A Soldier's Tale

The chapter, "A Soldier's Tale," provides a couple of depictions of the slums and poverty. First, the description of the bunker assigned to each neighborhood. The bunker in Raj's area is under the school and is a "large, rectangular hall with subdued lighting. It has a faded and dusty red carpet on the floor, and the only furniture consists of a couple of rickety chairs and an old metal table, on which stands a fourteen-inch television set" (166). The image suggests dank and claustrophobic surroundings that the families cannot complain about because it is a freely provided space, ultimately for their safety. But the narration suggests the assigned families share rumors about a more comfortable bunker in nearby Pali Hill that "has a thirty-two-inch TV, Dunlopillo cushions, and air-conditioning'' (167). Even in war, the bunkers reflect a better world, higher status, and secure economic standing.
Also, Balwant Singh, the soldier, provides an image of poverty. He is described as "an old Sikh on crutches...He is thin and tall, with a small, whiskery mustache on a weather-beaten face" (169). Balwant is old, alone, and disabled. After his desertion, his family is killed and he loses a leg. He may have been able to regain some semblance of a life after desertion but his disability immobilizes him in a constant state of poverty. Balwant's condition ties into the descriptions of Maman's street orphans. The kids that were disabled will always have to beg to survive. For a moment, Balwant's stories provide him with an audience and he is status rises from old cripple to war veteran. The community rallies around him but Balwant chooses to take is life the real story is revealed. Instead of moving to a new place, Balwant chooses to die because he can never rise above his desertion and disability.