The God of Small Things: Chapters 4-6

Finally Sophie Mol is introduced. Well, introduced meaning that she is alive in the novel. She is a very interesting child. I think that she feels like Estha and Rahel are below her and childish. It wouldn't be completely unfounded, though. Rahel hid when being introduced and Estha got reprimanded by Ammu. Also, they randomly sprung the question of who she loved most on her quite suddenly out of the blue. I think that it might be tragic when Sophie Mol dies. I already know it is coming, but I have a feeling that the author is going to make me feel some attachment to the character so I am as upset as Estha and Rahel when she dies. I'm on to her. Poor Sophie Mol.

Poor Chacko, too. Even though he is her real dad, she loves Joe most. I know that in some cases step-dads can be way better than real dads, but Chacko was never even given the chance to be present in his daughter's life. I hope that Sophie Mol opens up to him more. She seemed rather uncomfortable when he was being affectionate with her. Then again, I suppose that Sophie Mol cannot open up too much to Chacko. Her number is up quite soon, I imagine. The clues from previous chapters hint to her death being not long after her arrival. I feel bad for Margaret. First she loses her husband, and then her daughter when they take a trip to try to ease the pain. I'm certain that happy endings do not exist any more. After the age of about 14, fictional novels are no longer allowed to have happy endings. It is some unwritten law.

Ammu is rather harsh with her children. She is an affectionate mother, but she has callous punishments for simple misdemeanors. I think that I would cry if my mother told me that she loved me less when I misbehaved. I am glad for my mother's unconditional love. If mothers stopped loving their children a little less every time they were bad, I think most mothers probably wouldn't love their children at all. When it comes to toddler years, I think it would be dipping down into the negatives. Rahel was deeply upset by that remark. I think Ammu should be a little more lenient with them. They are just kids. Then again, it is a different culture. I suppose I should not hold it to American standards. It just seems strange to me. I guess even love can be measured differently. Math is probably just about the only real constant throughout the world.

Poor Estha. That is so, so, so terrible. He was molested at the movie theater! I don't understand why he didn't leave. It didn't seem to even bother him until afterwards. Why on earth didn't he tell Ammu?! She seems like a pretty imposing woman. She probably would have told that slimeball what's up despite society's unwritten social laws. If she is anything, Ammu is protective of her children. Now Estha has this terrible thing to hold inside of him. Why didn't Rahel know about it? They seem to have a mental connection. Why didn't she see it or at least sense that something was tragically wrong with her twin? No wonder Estha is introverted nowadays! That had to be a rough time. He got molested, his cousin died, and he was later separated from Ammu and Rahel. What is even worse though, is that the man knows where he can find Estha now. He seemed a bit interested in Rahel, too. Don't they tell children about stranger danger in India?!

I must say that I enjoy the somewhat puzzling manner that the story is written. It reveals only tidbits at a time. Regardless of what just happened at the end of the chapter, it is a cliffhanger. Right now I'm really wondering what is going to happen to Sophie Mol. I want to know if she actually was alive when they buried her. That would be so awful. I also find it interesting how some words and phrases are capitalized even though they are not proper nouns. I know they are significant in some way, but I'm not sure what the method to her maddness is. Perhaps it is something to do with an Indian interpretation of English things?

The God of Small Things: Chapters 1-3

This book is both extremely interesting and extremely confusing. I feel like everyone is laughing at an inside joke that I don't understand. It jumps around so much that I'm having difficulty keeping up. I wish I knew more about Sophie Mol because it definitely had a profound effect on the life of the entire family. I also would like to know more about why Estha and Rahel didn't speak for so long despite the distance between them. I would have thought that such a strong bond would have withstood their separation. I can't imagine being so attuned to someone and then being separated, cut off for years.

There are so many cultural literacy references in this book. Thank you, Mrs. Fox! I understand all of them! I have never read Heart of Darkness, but I understood the reference and the character. I also knew the meaning of "Et tu, Brute." Honestly, I think cultural literacy should be a part of all English classes. It is so useful. It helps you understand so many other books (and win game shows).

I'm a bit confused about some events in the book. I'm really hoping that they get cleared up. Was Sophie Mol truly alive when she was buried or was Rahel just making a really intense analogy/description of her emotions at the burial? How did she die? I know they said her skin was wrinkled from too much time spent in water? Did she drown? There is a river near the house. Where is Chako nowadays? Only the aunt and servant are at the house with Estha. The crazy order that everything is happening in leaves me with a lot of questions. I can't wait to get more insight into the past of the characters. It will make everything much easier to understand.

This book has some clever humor. I enjoyed the free bus ride comment as well as the irony of the woman who criticized their backward-reading being run over by a backward-moving vehicle. It made me laugh. The twins are certainly strange in the way their minds are connected and in the fact that they can read backwards. Who does that?! It's crazy. I can't even say the alphabet backwards.

I was interested by the fact that the family is Christian. It is set in India, and they are natives, but they are not Hindus. Yet, the caste system still applies. I suppose that is an Indian thing, though. Although the book didn't directly state it, I think that Ammu and Velutha have a little something going on. Ammu was obviously never one to follow the rules, but that seems pretty intense. Maybe I'm way off base, but I'm just going off hints that have been dropped. I would imagine that forbidden love is somewhat common in India (for rule breakers, that is). I don't know what I would do if I fell in love with someone society told me I couldn't be with. I'm not sure that their relationship will go far. It was already stated that Ammu died when she was thirty-one. I will feel stupid if I completely misinterpreted everything about Ammu and Velutha. That is just what I am gathering from the text, though.

Even though we learned about the caste system in class, I was a bit shocked by what I read. The fact that the Untouchables had to broom backwards is ridiculous! How degrading! I am so glad that I do not live in a society like that. Although I think the Hindu religion is pretty awesome, I don't understand how the caste system and Hinduism can coexist. They treat cows a billion times better than they treat the Untouchables.

Hopefully the next chapters give some more insight and understanding. At this rate, I will have the book finished by next week. The confusion is enthralling and certainly keeps me reading.