POPPIES #5: a comedy of errors

Comment on scenes from this part of the book that involve misunderstandings and the resulting comedy. In most cases, these misundersandings are due to problems with differing language. Please find a scene and include a relevant quote, illustrating these misunderstandings and their importance. Suggestions:

1. Neel's judgment scene: i.e. when his sentence is pronounced by the long-winded judge. Note the difference between the judge's use of high-flown language and Neel's thoughts and state of mind at this time.
2. Neel is subject to a physical exam and the tattooing of his sentence on his body. The tattoo artist is a loyal subject of the former zemindar. Neel vows to always speak English in the future. He has been renamed. Themes: language, renaming, reversal of fortune, cleanliness.
3. Paulette's discussion with Mrs. Burnham regarding the judge and possible marriage. The scene is full of misunderstandings, some of them comic, but Paulette's expectations about "love" and Mrs. Burnham's expectations of a woman's lot are starkly opposed. Mrs. Burnham's attitude that you can "learn to love" resembles that of Mumtaz in Rushdie. Examine the scene.
4. Life aboard the ship in several scenes involves a lot of jokes and comedy and hazing of sorts. Find a scene dramatizing this, and analyze the nature of the humor. In nearly every case, it has to do with language.
5. Perhaps most striking: Paulette's discussion with Neel at Neel's boarding house. This is clearly almost slapstick comedy, with Paulette struggling to describe the sermons and sexual hijinks to which Mr. Burnham subjects her. Is there a satire of some contemporary mix of religion and sex here? This is another scene in which a woman shows radical innocence of sex and male anatomy - to the point of absurdity. How does this add to our understanding of Burnham? The issue of purity or cleanliness takes on another meaning here.
6. Kalua receives a new name as the coolies arrive and are received by Baboo Nob Kissin. So, this is one of many scenes of renaming. Note the way Kalua is treated and received: he is defined very much by his body.
7. The various rumors aboard ship are worthy of note. Is Ghosh referring to some historical events? The passengers are afraid they are going to be eaten, drained of essential oils, or taken to prison.
8. This is somewhat out of order: Neel's reception of his wife while in prison and the issues of caste and the loss thereof. Here we learn more of Neel's mixed personality: his freedom-loving ideals which clash with his actual life and personality. It is his beliefs that are misplaced - they do not fit his life or person.

Or: find your own passage having to do with language, failures of comprehension, and other comedic scenes.