Summary
As political tensions heat up, Nili moves in with Mister Salgado. Triton unpacks her clothing and helps her settle into the house, noting how both Nili and Mister Salgado own far more clothing and shoes than they could possibly need. Nili assumes the role of nona, or lady of the house, and redecorates to suit her taste. Triton enjoys Nili's endearing presence and devotes himself to preparing extravagant meals for her. Mister Salgado grows outgoing and joyful after Nili moves in, a contrast to his quiet and reserved attitude prior to their relationship.
One day, when Mister Salgado takes Nili scuba diving, Mister Salgado's assistant, Wijetunga, tries to entice Triton into joining the revolution. Wijetunga sees Triton as part of the same social class and thus feels comfortable speaking with him. When Triton asks what became of "the kolla," Wijetunga's child assistant, the researcher explains that he sent the boy to be educated. Triton explains that Nili hopes to open a guesthouse for tourists, causing Wijetunga to scoff; according to him, foreigners will only create greater oppression. Though Triton argues he is "only a cook" and cannot become a revolutionary, Wijetunga encourages him to research socialist principles, and promises they will speak again.
Excluded from Mister Salgado and Nili's relationship, Triton walks alone on the beach and encounters a group of fishermen. When he asks about their daily catch, the fishermen reply that they blame the government for the scarcity of fish. Noticing an unusual blue parrot fish in their haul, Triton buys the fish from them, pulling cash from his shirt pocket. The fishermen notice Triton's money and offer to gut the fish for him; Triton is pleased that they treat him like a wealthy man.
Later, Nili accompanies Triton to the fish market. Though Triton is completely at ease, Nili is horrified as the sea creatures are butchered. When a group of fishermen brings in a dolphin for slaughter, Nili asks to leave, believing only cruel people can kill a dolphin. Triton, by contrast, identifies with the fishermen and argues that they "have to make a living" somehow. Despite her moral outrage, Nili still eats the seafood Triton prepares that evening.
Nili frets over what to wear to a party celebrating the Mahaweli Scheme, a government plan to improve irrigation, generate hydroelectric power, and create jobs. Nili and Mister Salgado briefly quarrel, as Nili suspects Mister Salgado is embarrassed that she is of a lower social class and they are unmarried. They return from the party intoxicated, and Mister Salgado drunkenly recounts that the driver of a wealthy man, Bala, pulled a knife on his employer. When Mister Salgado is asleep, Triton accidentally sees Nili naked. Though Triton is ashamed and worried, Nili never mentions the incident.
Robert, the American who attended Mister Salgado's Christmas party, arrives at the bungalow with a journalist named Sujie, who wants to write an article about the impact of sea erosion on coastal villages. Triton does not pick up on the sexual tension between Robert and Nili and cannot understand why Mister Salgado is so upset with the conversation. Later, Nili, Mister Salgado, and their eccentric friends discuss the assassination of Palitha Aluthgoda, a corrupt businessman with connections to the ruling party. Though his friends blame Aluthgoda's "conspicuous consumption" for his assassination, as the businessman flaunted his wealth during a time of great economic inequality, Mister Salgado simply asserts that the assassination is a "bad business" and refuses to engage with the topic further.
Mister Salgado and Nili begin to fight frequently, disagreeing over one another's lifestyle choices, such as how Mister Salgado neglects his research in favor of hosting poker games. Instead of taking Nili out to dinner, Mister Salgado invites his friends over, including Tippy, a licentious man who made his money in America and often behaves inappropriately with Nili. Distraught, Nili asks Triton to help her create a "sauna" using boiling water and a towel. Though Triton thinks Nili's behavior has an "ambiance of madness" he obliges her strange ritual.
During the poker game, Nili, fed up with Mister Salgado ignoring her, takes a phone call from Robert. She then leaves to see him. Mister Salgado's friends claim that Robert cavorts with "local girls," exploiting their poverty for sex. When Nili returns, she and Mister Salgado fight. Mister Salgado accuses Nili of infidelity, and Nili leaves him. Mister Salgado plunges into depression, which Triton tries to remedy with food.
Meanwhile, the opposition party is elected. The new government ushers in anti-capitalist policy changes, which result in a new position for Dias, but puts Mister Salgado's reef research in jeopardy. Soon after, Dias is reported missing and presumed dead, a victim of politically-motivated violence. Fearful for his life and hoping to forget Nili, Mister Salgado takes Triton to England, where he insists Triton can "learn something and make a real life."
Analysis
Throughout the text, the quality of Triton's English varies between his spoken dialogue and his internal monologue. When speaking to others, Triton's English has some grammatical errors, though his English is flawless and poetic in the narration. For example, when shown Nili's luggage, he asks, "Where to put them?" but internally ponders how Nili's clothing represents her personhood. The text uses this inconsistency in Triton's grammar to demonstrate the differences between how Triton's employers view him versus his self-understanding at the time of narration, years later, when he has moved to England and become a successful entrepreneur.
The text uses understatement when referencing political turmoil, like increasing violence, to underscore how Triton's domestic duties isolate him from the outside world. To underscore this point, Triton troubles for several paragraphs over seemingly minor domestic issues, like where to put Mister Salgado's shoes. Mister Salgado and Nili both own far more shoes than necessary and Triton worries over how Nili's wardrobe will change the house's layout, rather than contemplating why they hold so much when others possess so little.
In earlier chapters, Wijetunga cannot bring himself to talk in front of Mister Salgado and Dias. However, the assistant reaches out to Triton because of his position as a servant and encourages the cook to be politically active. Ironically, Wijetunga fears that foreigners "will turn [them] all into servants" and "sell [their] children" and expresses this fear to Triton, who was sold as a child into a servant role by his own family.
In "A Thousand Fingers," Triton imagines pursuing a life beyond Mister Salgado's household. As Mister Salgado becomes increasingly enamored with Nili, Triton ventures into the world alone and notes how others treat him. When the fishermen treat him differently simply because he carries money in his pocket, Triton "liked the idea of them thinking of [him] like that," believing the respect "was worth the extra money." Thus, at this point in the text, Triton begins to find his voice and long for true independence.
Nili and Triton venture into the fish market, an environment that unsettles Nili. Nili finds the market bleak and violent, whereas Triton, used to procuring food for others, is unfazed. The text casually remarks on the "dark doorway plastered with subversive slogans," indicating that the fish market is a space for the discontented working class, which adds to Nili's discomfort.
While home alone, Triton imagines Nili and Mister Salgado's time at the party and begins to imagine his future beyond Mister Salgado's house, though still through the constrictive lens of Mister Salgado's connections. For example, Triton conceives that Nili, experienced in hospitality, could manage a restaurant and place Triton in charge of the kitchens. Though Triton wants more, he struggles to imagine building his future without Mister Salgado's help.
Triton witnesses Mister Salgado's friendships on the periphery, forming opinions about the group's conversations and members. Triton ponders similarly important philosophical and social questions, yet he is unwelcome in the group because of his position as a servant. He also has no one to share his thoughts with. For example, he sees oil and water mixing in a symbolic way and "wanted to tell someone" how he connected that "if a fluid could be so controlled in its apparently free fall, then why not our own lives?" However, when he attempts to show Mister Salgado his observation, he falters and reverts to his servant role.
In 1977, when Triton is in his mid-twenties, Mister Salgado's friend Tippy calls Triton "kolla," meaning boy. At Tippy's callous disrespect, Triton realizes with shame that despite his notable culinary skills and age, members of the upper class still disrespect him and see him as diminutive due simply to his role as a servant. This disrespect causes Triton to get angry and wish he had continued his education instead of choosing to stay with Mister Salgado.
