Lakshmi is very persistent in the last third of Sold, creating a tone of determination. Although Lakshmi knew somewhere inside her subconscious that she would most likely never go home, she kept trying her hardest. She continues to do calculations in her books in hopes of determining when she will be released. When Lakshmi talks to Mumtaz about her calculations, Mumtaz tells her she will be there for at least five more years. She says to poor Lakshmi, "Who do you think pays for the comfort I provide? The fans? The music? The TV you girls love so much? Do you think that is free?" (226). Yet even with this horrible lie, Lakshmi is still persistent, determined, to get back home. She says, "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." (227). It's unbelievable that this tragic thing happens more times in real life then the world would like to admit.
There is no way I can pick my favorite part of the book, but some parts I enjoyed quite a lot was the descriptions of things that are new to Lakshmi. One example of this is when she is describing how the remote for the TV works. Shahanna explains to her, "If she pushes one button, the people inside get louder, if she pushed another, they get quiet...The most important button is the red one. This one can make the TV people appear. Or disappear." (157). I like this scene in particular because your mind instantly knows what she is talking about. We take advantage of the simple things in everyday life in America, such as the common knowledge of working a TV remote control. Reading this short scene opened my eyes to the sorrowful fact that such a simple thing, such as a TV remote, can create so much wonder and curiosity when placed in the presence of a girl like Lakshmi.
I agree that there is a tone of determination in the final third of the book. In your CCQC, you shared the quote "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" (227). There is even more evidence relating to this quote that shows Lakshmi's determination to go home. In the chapter "Whatever It Takes", Lakshmi describes what she is willing to do in order to go home. "I had a drunken costumer yesterday. When he fell asleep afterward, I went through his wallet and helped myself to 20 rupees more. A deformed man came to the door yesterday. I told him I would be with him, for 50 rupees extra." This quote, along with the evidence you gave above, proves Lakshmi's desperation and determination to leave her enslavement.
ReplyDeleteI found the tone to be less of determination and more so of desperation. The quote that you used from page 227 mentioned above portrays that she is powerless and has somewhat submitted to that. As much as she tries to fight the thoughts that she will never go back home she knows that that is what the most likely case is. When the "Hugging Man" comes Lakshmi says this, "And so I held him, too. Slowly, I put my arms around them and allowed them to stay. Eventually, we pulled apart. I was the last to let go,"(176). Lakshmi has lost any sense of what she used to know as family and all she desires now is to be known and to be loved.
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