Summary
The story begins by introducing protagonist Kimball O’Hara, Jr., known affectionately as “Kim.” Kim is an orphan—his mother was a nursemaid, and his father was an Irish army officer stationed in India. Although Kim is white, he comfortably weaves through the streets of Lahore (in British India, present-day Pakistan) and speaks Urdu like a local. Following the death of his parents, Kim is looked after by a woman who runs a local opium den. It is revealed that Kimball O’Hara, Sr., was an opium addict prior to his premature death.
Before he died, Kim Sr. prophesied that someone special would arrive in his son’s life. In his drug-induced ramblings, Kim Sr. spoke of a “great red bull on a green field, and [a] colonel riding on his tall horse, and nine hundred devils.” One day, long after Kim Sr. has passed, Kim Jr. is playing outside of the Wonder-House (the Lahore Museum). There, he encounters a Buddhist lama from Tibet. Kim learns that the lama is on a journey to visit the Four Holy Sites of Buddhism. The lama is mainly concerned with finding a holy river, called the River of the Arrow, that will enable him to transcend his human existence. He plans to head south on his journey, and Kim volunteers to be his chela, or disciple.
Before their journey truly begins, Kim decides to stop by the house of Mahbub Ali, a horse trader in Lahore. After learning that Kim is heading south, Mahbub Ali gives the young chela a mission—he will need to deliver a written message to an army officer in the city of Umballa. The message, “the pedigree of the white stallion is fully established,” is cryptic. It is revealed that Mahbub Ali is a spy employed by the British Indian government, and his spy registration number is C.25. Later that evening, Mahbub Ali passes out drunk. While unconscious, the prostitute that he had spent the evening with, along with two other men, begins to search Mahbub Ali’s property and possessions for the message. Kim, witnessing the scene, flees the house with the message in tow.
Kim and the lama arrive at the train station, and the lama is overwhelmed by the chaos of their crowded car. Kim buys two tickets—one to Umballa (far away from their city of origin), and one to Amritzar (a city closer to Lahore). Kim does this to save money, and he begins giving a sob story about his orphaned youth. His manipulation is successful—a prostitute sharing his train car gives him extra money for a ticket. In the meantime, the lama is concerned that each river they see passing from the train window could be the River of the Arrow. He strikes up a conversation with his fellow passengers about his Buddhist faith, and he is met with skepticism. One of the train passengers, the wife of a farmer, offers for Kim and the lama to stay at her home in Umballa.
While in Umballa, Kim steals away to deliver Mahbub Ali’s letter. Kim passes the message along to a British soldier, who responds by explaining that troops must be sent to the north of the country. Kim realizes the gravity of Mahbub Ali’s message, and he begins to wrap his head around his own role as a delivery boy. Kim heads back to the farmer’s house in Umballa, where he has left the lama. At the farmer’s home, he is greeted by a Hindu priest, who delves into his horoscope. Using Kim’s birth chart, the priest forecasts that Kim Sr.’s prophecy will come true—two men will lead Kim Jr. to the Red Bull, where he will then find his fortune. However, hanging over the Bull is the star sign of Aries, which means that war will play a part in Kim’s near future.
Kim and the lama are onto the next phase of their journey when they trespass on a farmer’s property while searching for the River of the Arrow. Although they are first reprimanded for their presence on the farmer’s land, they are soon granted permission to proceed. Kim sees a cobra on the property and expresses his desire to kill it, but the lama dissuades him. They continue searching for the river when they encounter a new village. The villagers gather around to greet Kim and the lama, and the lama once again brings up Kim Sr.’s prophecy. Kim digresses, explaining what he has just learned—soon, he will be involved in war in some kind of capacity. A local villager who fought in a revolt against British colonial forces in 1857 is interested in Kim’s comment.
Kim tells the villager (we’ll refer to him as the “former soldier”) what he has learned from delivering Mahbub Ali’s letter: troops are marching across the north of the country. The next day, the former soldier intends to show Kim and the lama how to reach Grand Trunk Road on their path south. The three begin talking about the former soldier’s experience in the war, fighting on the side of the British. When they finally arrive at Grand Trunk Road, they see a man beating his horse. The lama is perturbed by the abuse, and he quickly intervenes. However, the scene changes tone when the former soldier embraces the horseman. The reader learns that the horseman is the son of the former soldier.
Analysis
From the first details that Kipling shares with the reader, it is clear that Kim possesses a sense of self-assurance that propels him from a life of tragedy. Kim exists in the in-between. He is Irish, but he has never stepped foot in his country of origin; he is not Indian, but he converses with Lahore’s locals as if the language was his native tongue. As the story progresses, it becomes clear that this position is an advantage. While he’s able to make himself a chameleon, he also can draw attention to himself to get what he wants.
Kim’s navigation of Lahore and its surrounding cities is quite effective in immersing the reader contextually. British India in the late 19th century is described as chaotic, vibrant, and diverse. This is particularly relevant when Kim and the lama crowd into the train on their journey to Umballa. In the small car, the two characters are jammed between a Hindu banker, a Dogra soldier, a Sikh craftsman, and an Amritsar prostitute. In this way, Kipling presents the assortment of ethnicities, religions, and social classes present in the region. Kipling also includes various details about quotidian life—mainly, he talks about the incessant chatter among streetgoers, neighbors, and friends. These details are enveloping, thus blurring the line between spectator and participant. In this way, the reader understands how Kim is absorbed by his environment.
When Kim encounters the lama, he is immediately attracted by his stature and presence. Perhaps this can be attributed to the fact that Kim lost his parents at a young age, and he is searching for a father figure to guide and mentor him. From the moment that Kim decides to be the lama’s disciple, he proves himself to be an asset. He possesses a level of metropolitan savviness that the lama needs to successfully arrive at the River of the Arrow. Although it is clear that Kim is learning from the lama, it’s safe to say that the lama also learns some key lessons about traveling and relating interpersonally from Kim.
Kim Sr.’s prophecy is one of the most important elements in the first section of the novel. While Kim Jr. and the lama are propelled by their quest for the River of the Arrow, the prophecy looms as much over the reader as it does Kim, creating a sense of suspense. The prophecy appears in each vignette of Kim’s initial travels—first at the home of the farmer’s wife, and later in the village of the former soldier. Kim gains reassurance from the cast of characters he meets along the first leg of his journey, and they draw upon his father’s initial prophecy as if to confirm that Kim is on the right path. The sense of lost & found, predetermination, and cosmic reassurance are important motifs throughout the novel.
Kim’s position as an “asset” is most clearly capitalized upon in his encounter with Mahbub Ali. Ali, a horse trader, sees Kim’s journey as an opportunity to advance his political agenda. Kim innocently walks into an espionage ring, but instead of fearing it, he runs towards it. Kim is intrigued by the characters in Mahbub Ali’s circle, and he boasts his knowledge of the troop's whereabouts when he meets the former soldier. Kim is excited when he is told that his horoscope predicts war in his future. This is quite ironic, since the main motivation for his journey was to accompany the lama (a pacifist) and learn about his ways of the world.
