Ramy Character Analysis in Babel

Ramy is Robin’s closest friend at Babel, the Translation Institute at Oxford. He is friends with Victoire too and is also friends with Letty until Letty betrays the Hermes Society. Ramy is from India, and he and Robin bond over their similar backgrounds. Both were brought to England by “guardians” and educated in several different languages before matriculating at Babel. While Robin mostly seeks to avoid attention, Ramy is outgoing and sociable. He also has a biting sense of humor that can rub some people the wrong way. At Oxford, Ramy experiences profound racism. The novel shows how the racism Ramy experiences is different from, and often more acute than, the racism that Robin experiences because Robin can, in some circumstances, pass for white. Having grown up in India, Ramy is also keenly aware of the impacts of British colonization of India, which drives him to join the Hermes Society to try and resist and fight against the British Empire. Letty shoots and kills Ramy when she brings the police to raid the Hermes Society’s hiding place.

Ramy Quotes in Babel

The Babel quotes below are all either spoken by Ramy or refer to Ramy. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:

Clearly Ramy wanted to fight – his fists were clenched, his knees bent in preparation to spring. If Mark drew any closer, this night would end in blood. So Robin began to run. He hated it as he did so, he felt like such a coward, but it was the only act he could imagine that didn’t end in catastrophe. For he knew that Ramy, shocked, would follow. Indeed – seconds later he heard Ramy’s footsteps behind him, his hard breathing, the curses he muttered under his breath as they sprinted down Holywell.

Related Characters: Ramy, Robin, Victoire

Page Number and Citation: 63

Explanation and Analysis:

‘What was lost at Babel was not merely human unity, but the original language – something primordial and innate, perfectly understandable and lacking nothing in form or content. Biblical scholars call it the Adamic language. Some think it is Hebrew. Some think it is a real but ancient language that has been lost to time. Some think it is a new, artificial language that we ought to invent. Some think French fulfils this role; some think English, once it’s finished robbing and morphing, might.’

Related Characters: Professor Playfair (speaker), Robin, Letty, Victoire, Ramy

Related Symbols: Babel

Page Number and Citation: 107

Explanation and Analysis:

But there were also significant ways in which they did not belong. No one would serve Ramy at any of their favourite pubs if he was the first to arrive. Letty and Victoire could not take books out of the library without a male student present to vouch for them. Victoire was assumed by shopkeepers to be Letty or Robin’s maid. Porters regularly asked all four of them if they could please not step on the green for it was off limits, while the other boys trampled over the so-called delicate grass all around them.

Related Characters: Letty, Robin, Victoire, Ramy

Page Number and Citation: 139-140

Explanation and Analysis:

It sounded so abstract – just categories of use, exchange, and value – until it wasn’t; until you realized the web you lived in and the exploitations your lifestyle demanded, until you saw looming above it all the spectre of colonial labour and colonial pain.

‘It’s sick,’ he whispered. ‘It’s sick, it’s so sick . . .’

‘But it’s just trade,’ said Ramy. ‘Everyone benefits; everyone profits, even if it’s only one country that profits a good deal more […] Free trade. This was always the British line of argument – free trade, free competition, an equal playing field for all. Only it never ended up that way, did it? What ‘free trade’ really meant was British imperial dominance, for what was free about a trade that relied on a massive build-up of naval power to secure maritime access?’

Related Characters: Ramy (speaker), Robin (speaker)

Page Number and Citation: 305-306

Explanation and Analysis:

‘But this is war,’ said Letty. ‘Surely that’s different, surely that’ll provoke outrage—’

‘What you don’t understand,’ said Ramy, ‘is how much people like you will excuse if it just means they can get tea and coffee on their breakfast tables. They don’t care, Letty. They just don’t care.’

Related Characters: Ramy (speaker), Letty (speaker), Victoire, Robin, Professor Lovell

Page Number and Citation: 356

Explanation and Analysis:

There was no future down this path. She saw this now. She’d been duped, strung along in this sickening charade, but this ended in only two ways: prison or the hangman. She was the only one there who wasn’t too mad to see it. And though it killed her, she had to act with resolve – for if she could not save her friends, she had at least to save herself.

Related Characters: Ramy, Letty, Robin, Victoire

Page Number and Citation: 439-440

Explanation and Analysis:

‘That’s just what translation is, I think. That’s all speaking is. Listening to the other and trying to see past your own biases to glimpse what they’re trying to say. Showing yourself to the world, and hoping someone else understands.’

Related Characters: Ramy (speaker), Robin

Related Symbols: Babel, Silver Bars

Page Number and Citation: 535

Explanation and Analysis:

Ramy Character Timeline in Babel

The timeline below shows where the character Ramy appears in Babel. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.

Language, Translation, and Power Theme Icon

Race, Gender, and Intersectionality Theme Icon

...he finds another student, named Ramiz Rafi Mirza, who is from India. He goes by Ramy. Ramy says his guardian wanted him to adjust to English society before going to Oxford.... (full context)

Robin is struck by the similarities between himself and Ramy. Their rooms are across the hall from each other, and the two quickly bond. Robin... (full context)

One night, before classes start, Ramy and Robin return to their lodgings at Number 4, Magpie Lane, and the other boys... (full context)

On the last day before classes, Robin and Ramy explore Oxford. They visit a library called the Bodleian, which they find especially impressive. As... (full context)

...out and telling him to leave in disgrace. Robin wakes up the next morning to Ramy shaking him. Ramy says he overslept, and they only have 20 minutes to get to... (full context)

Robin, Ramy, Victoire, and Letty then meet Anthony, who is a postgraduate. Anthony gives the first-year students... (full context)

...the bar. When he does, Robin feels the world shift. He feels bound together with Ramy, Victoire, and Letty. It is as if they know something that none of the other... (full context)

After the tour, Robin, Ramy, Victoire, and Letty eat lunch together. Over lunch, they trade stories about instances of discrimination... (full context)

...next few weeks, Robin attends classes like normal. He and his cohort—which consists of him, Ramy, Victoire, and Letty—continue to grow closer. Robin and Victoire bond over a shared love of... (full context)

...clear that there are other ways in which they do not belong. Pubs won’t serve Ramy if he’s alone. Letty and Victoire can’t check out books from the library without a... (full context)

The next morning, Robin recounts the party to Victoire, Ramy, and Letty. Victoire and Ramy laugh uproariously, especially when Robin recites the lines from Elton’s... (full context)

...at Oxford while feeling anxious that everyone there wishes she were her brother. Robin and Ramy feel sorry for occasionally making fun of Letty. By their next day of classes, though,... (full context)

After the first year, in the summer, Ramy goes to Spain to study, Letty goes to Germany, Victoire goes to France, and Robin... (full context)

That year, Robin, Ramy, Letty, and Victoire also take a class on Etymology with Professor Lovell. The class turns... (full context)

...the first daguerreotype. Robin and his friends have their picture taken with the device. Robin, Ramy, and Victoire find the resulting image unsettling, but Letty likes the picture of them together. (full context)

...on independent research projects. Robin and Letty are happy with their projects and advisors, but Ramy and Victoire aren’t. Victoire in particular is upset that her advisor wants to translate Kreyòl... (full context)

In the middle of January, on their way to classes, Robin, Letty, Victoire, and Ramy see upperclassmen and graduate fellows wearing black under their robes. Someone tells them that it’s... (full context)

...gathered outside Babel. As they try to walk through, someone throws an egg and hits Ramy. When they’re inside, they learn that the angry mob is made up of mill workers.... (full context)

...a public announcement, listing fourth-year students who have passed or failed their exams. As Robin, Ramy, Letty, and Victoire watch, they think the public nature of the ceremony is cruel, but... (full context)

...looking for Griffin’s notes, but they never come. Meanwhile, as the end of Robin, Victoire, Ramy, and Letty’s third year approaches, they prepare for exams. If they fail any of their... (full context)

As Robin, Victoire, Ramy, and Letty’s exams approach, their anxiety becomes increasingly overwhelming. One day, Robin goes to a... (full context)

...It seems that Robin has done well, and the same is true for Letty and Ramy. (full context)

...and English. She says that she asked her advisor afterward, and found out that she, Ramy, Robin, and Letty all passed the exam. (full context)

Every three years, University College (the part of Oxford to which Ramy, Robin, Victoire, and Letty belong) throws an extravagant ball. Letty pushes them all to go... (full context)

During the ball, Ramy, Robin, Victoire, and Letty stand together. Colin, who lives at Magpie Lane with Ramy and... (full context)

When Robin and Ramy go to see what is happening, they find Elton and his friends leering at Victoire... (full context)

...night, Robin sits with Letty on the stairs. She starts crying and asks Robin why Ramy doesn’t want to be with her. Robin can think of several reasons. Perhaps it’s because... (full context)

The summer that follows their third year exams is the best of Ramy, Robin, Victoire, and Letty’s lives. They enjoy long days together, and that time is a... (full context)

...clad in black approaching Babel. As they get closer, he sees that it’s Victoire and Ramy. He’s sure they must be there on Hermes Society business. He decides to pretend he... (full context)

...as he gets them free, he becomes ensnared in the web. He asks Victoire and Ramy how they became involved in the Hermes Society and asks if Griffin recruited them. They... (full context)

Ramy has always been clever and brilliant. As a child, he grew up around elite British... (full context)

...Horace Wilson was appointed the first Chair of Sanskrit at Oxford and wanted to take Ramy with him when he went. He promised to educate Ramy. Ramy’s parents didn’t resist, and... (full context)

The morning after Robin freed Victoire and Ramy from the silver web, Robin wakes up and meets Ramy outside the house. They walk... (full context)

...will take them to Canton. The trip will take six weeks. When they’re on board, Ramy and Victoire are terrified that they’ll be caught for their crimes at any moment. Robin... (full context)

A week into the journey, Robin, Ramy, and Victoire finally find themselves alone. They initially talk over one another because they’re so... (full context)

Ramy is angry that Robin didn’t tell him about the Hermes Society for three years. To... (full context)

...Robin that she’s here for him if he needs anything. Lovell tutors Letty, Victoire, and Ramy in Mandarin every afternoon with the idea that they’ll be able to navigate once they... (full context)

...Co.—meets them when the ship lands. His name is Mr. Baylis. He shows Robin and Ramy to their lodgings. He then shows Victoire and Letty to their lodgings. He apologizes to... (full context)

...Chinese people he interacts with derisively. After a morning filled with translating, Robin goes with Ramy into Canton. Ramy asks if Robin knows where his old house is, and Robin decides... (full context)

As they walk back to where they are staying, Ramy says that once his guardian showed him the opium fields he invested in in India.... (full context)

Robin returns to where he is staying and sits with Ramy, Letty, and Victoire. Out the window, they see a large fire. When they look closer,... (full context)

...Lovell takes the group to a civilian ship that will bring them back to England. Ramy and Robin will stay with the sailors, while Letty and Victoire will share a room... (full context)

...Lovell’s chest bursts open, and he dies. Robin kneels at his side and says, “Father?” Ramy, Victoire, and Letty come into the room, saying that they heard yelling. Then, they see... (full context)

Robin is surprised that Victoire, Ramy, and Letty’s first instinct is to help him. Victoire explains that she and Ramy will... (full context)

...him. Over and over, he repeats to himself that he killed his father. He asks Ramy if he is evil. Ramy says that Robin’s not evil and all that he can... (full context)

Robin, Victoire, Ramy, and Letty go to Professor Lovell’s home in Hampstead to stay the night. When they... (full context)

Ramy then comes into the room and asks Robin what he’s looking at. Robin says that... (full context)

Letty then walks into the room and asks what the Hermes Society is. Ramy, Robin, and Victoire begin to explain to her what it is, but Letty has trouble... (full context)

...people to help keep people enslaved. Letty is reluctant to believe what she is hearing. Ramy says that there’s almost no limit to what people like Letty will look the other... (full context)

The next day becomes a series of mishaps. Robin, Victoire, Ramy, and Letty leave Hampstead early to get a train back to Oxford, but they miss... (full context)

...they’re afraid that more and more people will start to realize that Lovell is missing. Ramy then remembers that there’s a faculty party on Friday that they’ll have to attend to... (full context)

When Friday comes, Robin, Ramy, Victoire, and Letty go to the party, where they struggle to act normally. Professor Playfair... (full context)

...tunnels later that night and invites Playfair to join them. Playfair agrees. Robin then finds Ramy, Victoire, and Letty. He says that Playfair is onto them, and they need to leave... (full context)

Anthony leads Robin, Victoire, Ramy, and Letty to the chapel. He then uses a passcode to open a secret door... (full context)

...Anthony why he joined the Hermes Society. She says that she remembers him liking Babel. Ramy becomes annoyed with Letty, but Anthony tries to explain. He says that before slavery was... (full context)

...then the supply of silver will be greatly diminished, and the country’s power will decrease. Ramy asks if they plan to essentially be lobbyists, and Anthony says that’s exactly right. Griffin... (full context)

...by people in league with Chinese lobbyists. In the article, there are sketches of Robin, Ramy, and Victoire, who are named as the perpetrators. Letty isn’t mentioned in the article. (full context)

The Hermes Society then continues to discuss their plans. Anthony tells Robin, Ramy, Victoire, and Letty that they shouldn’t leave the Old Library, lest they be caught. The... (full context)

...loud banging on the door. Soon after, police officers flood into the room. Anthony tells Ramy, Robin, and Victoire to hide in the reading room. He (Anthony) and the three other... (full context)

Letty tells Ramy, Robin, and Victoire to put their hands up. She says that the police have killed... (full context)

...transported to a cell. He thinks about what just happened. At first, he thinks that Ramy must be dead and that the Hermes Society has fallen. Then he wonders if there’s... (full context)

...leaves, and Robin is alone. He thinks of the future and can only think that Ramy and Victoire won’t be in it. He thinks that the Hermes Society has lost completely.... (full context)

...city that Anthony showed her. Robin thinks about Oxford. He realizes the mistake that he, Ramy, and Victoire all made was thinking that the university wouldn’t betray them. He thinks that... (full context)

...against her because she was a woman. She saw how differently people treated Robin and Ramy compared to how they treated her, and she noticed that faculty members more readily engaged... (full context)

...police officers, but no one has cleaned up the bodies of the dead. Robin sees Ramy’s body lying on the ground. Robin and Victoire then go to Babel. They’ve decided to... (full context)

...have turned on them no matter what. Robin says he’s convinced that Letty intentionally killed Ramy because she couldn’t bear the humiliation of being rejected by him. Victoire takes out the... (full context)

...bars begin to self-destruct. As the ceiling above him begins to crumble, Robin thinks of Ramy. He then thinks of his mother smiling at him and saying his name. (full context)

...into her dress. It feels too heavy to move. She tries not to think about Ramy, Robin, or Anthony. She cannot cry right now. She needs to keep moving. She has... (full context)

Babel

Ramy Character Analysis

Ramy Quotes in Babel

Chapter 3 Quotes

Chapter 6 Quotes

Chapter 8 Quotes

Chapter 17 Quotes

Chapter 20 Quotes

Interlude 2 Quotes

Chapter 33 Quotes

Ramy Character Timeline in Babel