Monday, February 1, 2010
PRMOPT 2
For this week, please consider any depiction of the slums or of poverty in general that we haven't talked about in class. What is the effect of that description? From whose perspective are we seeing the poverty and why? How do we come to be accustomed to feeling a certain way about the poverty in the novel? If the novel is indeed structured like a romance and poverty is something to flee from, then does this mean that the novel believes that poverty is really only temporary? Make sure to explain which passages you are looking at -- page numbers are helpful.
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The depiction of poverty that struck me as the most poignant at first glance was the condition Gudiya’s family was reduced to upon entering life in the chawl. It was heartbreaking to see two women dependent upon a man who was slowing losing his mind to alcohol. We get the sense that there is no way out of this situation for Gudiya and her mother because in the grips of poverty there is nowhere to turn for help. They have no other way of supporting themselves without becoming more debased than they are at present and we already know that poor people can not appeal to authority figures for any assistance. Upon entering the chawl Mr. Shantaram unravels to such a great extent I would argue because of the unrewarding work that he must endure to keep his family alive in such a lowly condition and this results in his being overwhelmed with shame. Poverty can not be the excuse for his behavior but like many other characters, it seems to spark his disintegration from a man into an animal. We get the sense that poverty is so overwhelming for many that they lose a part of their soul in the daily struggle just to survive. However, this situation soon turns from tragic to romantic. Ram becomes the savoir for Gudiya by simply pushing Mr. Shantaram down the stairs which causes him to have a change of heart and cease attempting to molest his daughter. For Gudiya, just as for Ram, poverty is something that is temporary and through moral courage it seems one can transcend their circumstances. How Gudiya was able to afford to go to school and become a lawyer was never addressed. Maybe her father got his job back as an astronomer. This seems unlikely.
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