Genre
Historical Fiction
Setting and Context
Set in India during Gandhi's ahimsa, or non-violence movement.
Narrator and Point of View
Third person omniscient.
Tone and Mood
The novel is violent, empathetic, intense, and frenetic.
Protagonist and Antagonist
Anjali (Protagonist); the British (Antagonists)
Major Conflict
Anjali, her family, and Gandhi's attempt to advance their movement and expel the British.
Climax
When Anjali's mother is thrown in prison and Anjali takes up her responsibilities.
Foreshadowing
Anjali's mother being imprisoned is foreshadowed by other members of the ahimsa movement being imprisoned.
Understatement
The peculiarity of Anjali's role in the ahimsa movement is initially understated.
Allusions
There are a number of allusions to the history of the British empire and India, to the personal and family history of the author, to popular culture, geography, and religion (mainly Buddhism).
Imagery
As the ahimsa movement begins to work and British power begins to lessen, imagery surrounding governmental changes becomes more common.
Paradox
The British become incredibly wealthy from India, yet do not care what happens to the country and treat the people that make them wealthy incredibly poorly.
Parallelism
Anjali's efforts in Gandhi's ahimsa movement is often paralleled with the efforts of others who join that movement.
Metonymy and Synecdoche
n/a
Personification
The country of India is personified quite frequently in the novel.
