“we're not going to be married.”
Why it's great
The long-delayed decision lands in one flat, quiet sentence.
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Neutral
Use it yourself
We're not going to buy the house.
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Adela Calls Off the Wedding, Explained
A Passage to India · 1984
Chapter 5 of 19 · 3'37"
Adela tells Ronny, flatly, "we're not going to be married." Nothing has blown up; he answers, "You never said we would be married," and the two stay unbearably polite. The scene's real subject is the English habit of managing a broken engagement the way one manages the weather.
Key moments
Start here, then watch the full scene- 0:02–0:57
Adela Calls Off the Engagement
55s
Adela Calls Off the Wedding, explained
What happens
Adela comes to Ronny with something important: she has decided they are not going to be married. He does not argue; he only notes that he never said they would be, and the two agree they are being 'awfully English' about it. They decide to wait a day or two before telling Mrs Moore, and the talk drifts to the coming expedition and the arrangements for entertaining guests.
What's really going on
On the surface this is a polite parting, but the politeness is the point. Adela has travelled to India partly to find out whether she and Ronny suit each other, and now she answers her own question: 'we're not going to be married.' Ronny refuses the role of the wounded man and answers with a technicality — 'You never said we would be married' — which keeps the whole thing from turning into a scene. Later, Mrs Moore is even blunter about what marriage is worth: 'Century after century of carnal embracement, and we're still no nearer understanding one another.' Between them, the two women reject the wedding not out of anger but out of a clear-eyed view that it would not bring anyone closer. The English manage the whole thing by not managing it at all.
Key lines & what they mean
- “we're not going to be married.”
- Adela's flat declaration ends the engagement; the plainness is the point, after weeks of not knowing her own mind.
- “We're being awfully English about this, aren't we?”
- Adela names the mood: both bury feeling under good manners and treat a breakup as a matter of form.
- “Now we must all put our shoulders to the wheel.”
- A call to pitch in as hosts prepare for the trip and the guests — everyone shares the work, however grudgingly.
- “Of course, I have no earthly right to tell either of you what you can or cannot do.”
- A concession that sounds humble but quietly asserts she has every moral right to speak; she steps back without approving.
- “Century after century of carnal embracement, and we're still no nearer understanding one another.”
- Mrs Moore's verdict on marriage: physical union across the centuries has not produced any real understanding between people.
Theme
- Marriage — Adela ends an engagement she never truly wanted, and Mrs Moore calls marriage too much fuss.
- Identity — The pair judge themselves by how English they are being, letting manners stand in for feeling.
What this chapter teaches
Teaching points
Review right after watchingMy level2/6
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Language points
Click a card to jump to its moment in the videoGolden lines
A great line in its own right — why and how to use it“We're being awfully English about this, aren't we?”
Why it's great
Self-mockery names the stiff politeness they both feel.
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Informal
Use it yourself
We're being awfully polite about this, aren't we?
“Now we must all put our shoulders to the wheel.”
Why it's great
An old idiom turns a tedious plan into shared effort.
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Formal
Use it yourself
If we put our shoulders to the wheel, we'll finish by Friday.
“Of course, I have no earthly right to tell either of you what you can or cannot do.”
Why it's great
No earthly right is a grand, old-fashioned way to say he has no business interfering.
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Formal
Use it yourself
I have no earthly right to choose for you.
“Century after century of carnal embracement, and we're still no nearer understanding one another.”
Why it's great
He calls marriage centuries of futile intimacy, a rare moment of honesty.
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literary
Use it yourself
After months of talks, we are still no nearer an agreement.
Up next · 06condescend toThe scene: Fielding Visits Sick AzizTakeaways
What you walk away with- A flat decision can end a whole relationship.
- No earthly right is a formal way to step back.
- The picnic talk hides the pain of the breakup.
- Fuss is needless excitement about small things.
People also search
Questions, then the linesWhy does Adela call off the wedding?
She has finally decided she and Ronny are not suited, and she says so plainly rather than going through with a marriage she is unsure of.
Is Ronny upset that Adela ends the engagement?
He barely reacts. His answer, 'You never said we would be married,' is almost a legal point, and the two stay so calm that Adela calls them 'awfully English.'
Why do they wait to tell Mrs Moore?
Ronny doesn't want to upset his mother more than he already has, and Adela is about to leave on the expedition, so they postpone the news a day or two.
What does 'put our shoulders to the wheel' mean here?
It means everyone pitches in. As the guests and the trip are arranged, the speaker says all of them must share the effort.
What does Mrs Moore think about marriage?
That it is overrated. She says too much fuss is made about it, and that centuries of physical union have not brought people any closer to understanding each other.