The tone in the last third of the book is perseverance. Lakshmi's drive to never give into the inviting arms of running away in order to find her family -which would probably do her more harm than good seeing as she would probably get lost and never see them again - is prevalent throughout the last part of the book. Lakshmi ignores Mumtaz's threats that she will never go home and starts goes on about how she will sleep with every man she has to in order to get home quicker. "Here at happiness house, there are dirty men, old men, rough men, fat men, drunken men, sick men. I will be with them all. Any man, every man. I will become Monica. I will do whatever it takes to get out of here" (pg.227). She digs deep down in herself and pulls out the drive to get out of the brothel, however long, or however many customers she must meet with in order to fulfill that promise to herself. The syntax or sentence structure throughout the last part are in short, blunt, sentences. It is almost as if what is not said in the short blunt sentences are the silent screams of emotion she is feeling, the agony of being without her family and the shame she feels in herself. There must be so much more going on in her head as to what emotions she is feeling; but Lakshmi is so accustomed to shutting down all of herself and emotions in order to be the "woman" she needs to be for her customers that none of those feelings are clearly written, but rather hidden in the subtext.
Overall Sold was an incredibly interesting and original story on the horrid realities of prostitution, and that not every person has a happy ending. It was depressing but intriguing to watch Laksmi go transform from a little farm girl into an old girl way beyond her years, who is empty and represses her feelings so that she can get through the day. It was interesting to watch Lakshmi conform into such a person but still keep the perpetual hope of returning home. The kinships that she made with the women at the brothel and her friend Harish were touching, and it made the reader equally sad to see them go. The ending was the bad kind of mysterious and cliffhanger-esk. The repetition of her uplifting words were sweet but the ending gave absolutely no sense of closure. The man she shouts to could just as easily be bad and rape her and take her away than the man she thinks will help her get back to her family. It is understandable that the author meant to leave the ending up to the imagination; but it is particularly frustrating that the reader will never find out whether or not Lakshmi finds her family, or if she was basically raped in the literal and figurative sense of her childhood for no reason other than to make money for a twisted old woman only to never find happiness again. Over all, besides the ending, the book was compelling and a page turner, although not much description was given on the surroundings and the people, the reader will still be able to get a sense of Laksmhi's unlucky new life and how she lived. The friendships she makes are heart warming and equally as heart wrenching when they are ended. Overall this book was a nice and fast read that is recommended for people who can endure the shocking and sad material, but still be able to enjoy the book for its part in bridging the gap of a whole other world and culture and bringing it to the reader.
I agree, the tone of the last third of Sold is perservering and determined. While Lakshmi seems to give up hope often in the first two thirds, she shifts her atitude and perserveres to the end. She is able to do this because of the sparks of hope given to her by Harish, by the hugging man, and by the American. She even goes to the extent of stealing money, or doing disgusting things to the men for more money. She explains with determination, "I have a regular customer now. He makes me do a nasty thing, but he pays me 10 rupees extra" (228). Lakshmi is so determined to get through that torture that she will do anything for more money, thus supposedly paying off more debt to Mumtaz. Lakshmi also manipulates herself into believing she will get out, because it helps her ignore her reality. When Shilpa, Mumtaz's serving girl, tells Lakshmi that she is stupid to believe what Mumtaz tells her, Lakshmi ignores it and persists with her hope that she will leave soon. Shilpa says, "'You stupid hill girl. You actually believe what Mumtaz has told you?'"(230). Lakshmi responds by thinking, "I do. I have to believe" (230). The author's specific diction, using words like "believe," show what Lakshmi is perservering through. In the end, Lakshmi's persistence gets her out of the trap that was her reality for so long.
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