Henry Piddington Character Analysis in The Hungry Tide

Henry Piddington is the man responsible for naming the cyclone storms that ravage the Sundarbans. He was a low-level official in the English government in British India and warned Lord Canning that it was foolish to build a port city on the Matla River, a location that while fairly far inland, still experiences flooding when cyclones strike. Piddington was called crazy when he staked his reputation on his assessment, but five years later, the city of Canning was swept away by floods.

Henry Piddington Character Timeline in The Hungry Tide

The timeline below shows where the character Henry Piddington appears in The Hungry Tide. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.

Kanai says that that was surely a reference to Nirmal's favorite story about Henry Piddington and the port of Canning, but Nilima cuts him off; she insists it's too hard... (full context)

The Human Cost of Environmental Conservation Theme Icon

Idealism and Theory vs. Practicality and Action Theme Icon

In Kolkata at the time, however, there was a shipping inspector named Henry Piddington . He'd fallen in love with storms while in the Caribbean, and he understood that... (full context)