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After re-reading the last few pages I can agree that the “He” in the last line can refer to the lama. A couple of pages before the end we are told that the lama sits down. So, both Kim and the lama are sitting as the lama gives his extended and excited monologue and then has his conversation with Kim. So, both have laps J.

 

The serenity of the last line does seem to be more applicable to Kim than to the excited lama exhorting Kim to come with him but that is not conclusive. Perhaps it was meant to be ambiguous.

 

Bob

From: To exchange information and views on the life and work of Rudyard Kipling [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of John Mcgivering
Sent: Saturday, April 2, 2016 7:20 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: The last line of Kim. Who is He?

 

Ladies and Gentlemen

There can be no doubt that it is the lama speaking,  penultimate paragraph  beginning " I was meditating in that body....etc.  " and finishes with what is in effect a stage direction to the lama.

All good wishes

John McGivering


On 1 Apr 2016, at 20:41, JOHN RADCLIFFE <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

Any thoughts ?

 

All best, John R


Sent from Yahoo Mail for iPad

Begin forwarded message:

On Friday, April 1, 2016, 7:52 pm, Robert Paulsen <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

The last line of Kim is:

“He crossed his hands on his lap and smiled, as a man may who has won salvation for himself and his beloved.”

Who does “He” refer to? Here is a quote from http://www.shmoop.com/kim-rudyard-kipling/ending.html:

“Therefore, in the last chapter, the lama's love for Kim becomes an expression of his religious faith. That's why we think the last line of the book tells us that the lama smiles "as a man may who has won Salvation for himself and his beloved" (15.170). He is no longer thinking of his River of the Arrow on individual terms; it's for him and Kim.”

I think it might more likely be Kim who said that last line. There are two purely circumstantial reasons for that.

  1. First I think the lama is standing and Kim is sitting so Kim is the one with a lap.
  2. Second, alternating paragraphs imply Kim is the subject of that last paragraph.

A more fundamental reason is the smile. Kim has just heard the lama (in the previous paragraph) rejoice over his salvation. The lama is ecstatic (lots of exclamation points!) and beyond a simple smile, even beyond sitting down. At this point Kim is happy, serene, and perhaps proud that he has greatly aided the lama in his journey and now, having just had his own revalation, feels himself, finally, to be a man. And, “Kim” IS the name of the book.

Thoughts?