Third Post for SOLD

Skyler Pemberton

Joy Roll

March 20, 2014

Third Post for Sold

The tone of the last third of the book was most definetly hope and hopelessness. The way Lakshmi spoke of the brothel was in a way of regularity, like she had given up on escape or that she had simply gotten used to the way men handled her, the abuse she endured and the sheer pain and misery she suffered through everyday. She seemed as though she didn't think she was going anywhere anytime soon. But toward the end, she seemed more hopeful that the American who offered her the business card would come to take her to the clean, safe place. This made me happier when she seemed like she really wanted to escape the brothel rather than when she just seemed set on paying off her ever rising debt. At one point she speaks of her regular customer who she doesn't seem to like but he pays her extra so she does everything she can to please him: "I have a regular customer now. He makes me do a nasty thing, but he gives me 10 rupees extra"(p 228). She describes all the men she sleeps with in order to pay off the debt. She tells about the old men, the fat man, the deformed men that sleeps with for extra, but what she does not realize, is that Mumtaz is not actually taking away from her debt, she is simply using her until she isn't of use anymore. "A deformed man came to the door yesterday. I told him I would be with him, for 50 rupees extra"( p 228). On page 229 she disrespects Shilpa, who she was formerly afraid of because she wants as many customers as possible. What lifted my spirits was the way she believed in herself. Most of the other prostitutes had given up, lost track of their old lives and excepted the fact that this was their past, present and future. This is a tragic story throughout the book with a confusing ending so its hard to judge whether you can classify it as "happy" or "sad" in the end.
It really is a sad book. Even though the book has a "happy" ending, Im not sure I was totally satisfied with it. It left me hanging and that is the most cruel way to end a book. Technically she is saved, but we don't know what happens to her after she is saved. I would have liked to see her reunited with her family and her married to the boy she was promised to.

      
My favorite part of the book was the relationships she develops with the other girls. The way her, Anita and Shahanna bond is simply incredible, given the circumstances. It is amazing how they found good in each other in such a rotten and terrible place. They found the positivity and awareness of those around them to build friendships and love with the girls. The way they care for each other made their journey together a lot easier. When Anita tells Lakshmi about the cupboard she saves for when there are raids, (p 221), I realized that Anita really cared for Lakshmi, not only herself. In their situation, Im sure it is really easy to become bitter about life and people in general, and through the darkness, Anita saw light in Lakshmi. Its really a beautiful thing I admired in the book.