On The Coinage Of The Imperial Successor In Kim

Rudyard Kipling(1865-1936),the first British author to win the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1907 for Kim(1901),is one of the most influential British writers of the20 th century.Kim is his last novel on Indian themes.It tells the story of Kim,the orphan of a British-Irish soldier in India,who wanders around India with a Tibetan lama in search of the “River of Arrows” and plays the “Great Game”.From the current research at home and abroad,studies on this novel have focused on colonialism,identity,and the Indian complex.Although some papers have dealt with the imperial successor,few scholars have explored it in depth.Through the close reading of Kim,the author of this paper finds that the transformation of Kim’s identity from urchin to imperial espionage,in his journey to pursue the “Red Bull” and play the “Great Game”,is Kipling’s process of coinage the imperial successor.Therefore,this thesis takes the imperial successor as a point and combines it with Said’s postcolonial theory to explore the transformation of Kim from an Indian-raised white,to an English-educated espionage,to a tough-minded colonist,and finally become a qualified imperial successor.The thesis aims to reveal the signs of the decline of the British Empire in the early twentieth century and Kipling’s fantasy of continuing the glory of the empire: grooming boys raised in India to become imperial successors to carry on the imperial cause.The thesis is divided into three parts: the introduction,the body,and conclusion.The introduction consists of literature review,thesis statement,theoretical introduction,term interpretation and thesis structure.The main body consists of three chapters:Chapter One discusses that the coinage of the imperial successor is based on Kim’s white identity.Because Kim grew up in India,he is well adapted to the Indian natural and social environment and is better able to survive in Indian society;he gets along well with all people,which helps him unite all races against foreign threats;and his familiarity with Indian culture allows him to disguise his identity through dress and caste.This is the basis for the imperial successor.Chapter Two examines that the coinage of the imperial successor is based on espionage.Because Kim is a white,he was placed in the St.Xavier School to receive a British education.By changing the identity and language of different countries,Kim can seamlessly disguise his spy identity;moreover,through training and learning in school,he has mastered the necessary skills of spy such as measurement and observation;coupled with his superior ability of collecting intelligence,he became an excellent espionage for the “Great Game” in colonial activities.This is the test for the imperial successor.Chapter Three analyzes that the coinage of the imperial successor is based on Kim’s identity as a colonist.In the colonization activities,Kim always maintains the concept of unity,cooperation and obedience;and has the white supremacy;finally,he becomes a colonizer with a strong mind.This is the ideological belief for the imperial successor.Through the arguments in the three chapters,the paper concludes that Kipling is shaping an imperial successor by describing Kim’s identity as a white,a spy,and a colonist.