A son will always be a son, they say. But a girl is like a goat. Good as long as she gives you milk and butter. But not worth crying over when it's time to make a stew.
The attitude Lakshmi's stepfather expresses in this quotation explains his willingness to sell Lakshmi into sexual slavery. Lakshmi's stepfather regards her not as a human being but as an object he can sell or an investment he can make. In Lakshmi's village, women bear the majority of emotional and physical burdens; they carry out most of the farming and chores, their children die each season, and they are shamed for their husbands' actions. Still, women are not considered as valuable as sons.
“Simply to endure...is to triumph.”
This quotation exemplifies Sold's prevailing theme of hope and resilience. Ama and Lakshmi both endure constant abuse, disappointment, and disaster. Though they hope for a better future, neither Ama nor Lakshmi expects their fortunes to improve. Rather, both women find pride and dignity in their ability to survive against all odds.
Though the ending of Sold is ambiguous; the text does not explicitly state that Lakshmi is rescued; Lakshmi's story still concludes on a positive note because Lakshmi endures abuse without falling into despair, and thus, triumphs.
Instead, we linger over a luxury that costs nothing: imagining what may be.
Lakshmi and Ama enjoy the simple luxuries of popcorn and a cigarette while discussing their hopes for the next year, such as making enough money to buy cloth and sugar, or planting extra rice. They do not acknowledge that all of these things are an impossibility. This quotation foreshadows Lakshmi's survival strategy in the brothel, where she imagines her life as a form of escapism.
My stepfather scowls, but he does not say anything. On any other day, he would not tolerate such defiance, especially from a mere girl.
But today, I am no mere girl.
This somewhat ironic quotation speaks to the theme of commodification of sexuality. Though Lakshmi does not know she is being sold into sexual slavery, she still understands that she has power as her stepfather brokers her sale with Aunty Bimla. Lakshmi uses this bargaining power to provide a sweater and Coca-Cola for her mother.
This city is not so hard. You just have to study it. Aunty is right. I’ll do well here.
Lakshmi applies the analytical skills she learns in school to the city, recognizing patterns in how people behave and contrasting the city with her home village. This quotation is ironic in context, as Lakshmi does not know that Aunty Bimla is selling her into sexual slavery and only intends for Lakshmi to "succeed" by fetching a high price. However, Lakshmi does indeed "succeed" in making money in Happiness House and eventually escaping by learning English and figuring out that Mumtaz lies about the American's intentions.
“We all need to pretend," she says. "If we did not pretend, how would we live?”
This quotation exemplifies the theme of escapism prevalent throughout the text. In the Happiness House, women suffer such unspeakable abuse that without escaping reality, they cannot survive. Even before Lakshmi enters Happiness House, she and Ama imagine what their lives could be like, knowing that even the most basic luxuries are beyond their reach.
“Thirty rupees. That is the price of a bottle of Coca-Cola at Bajai Sita’s store. That is what he paid for me.”
This haunting quotation summarizes the theme of the commodification of sexuality. Coca-Cola is referenced multiple times throughout the text as a luxury or treat. When Lakshmi compares a man paying for sex with her to the price of a Coca-Cola, she underscores how her clients and traffickers objectify her.
And so I consider a world so ugly that a child would be maimed for life to fetch an extra rupee or two. And another world full of brides and marigolds, rain machines and white Horses.
Lakshmi occupies two worlds in Happiness House; reality and her imagination. The other women, particularly Monica, enjoy escaping into the romanticized world of movies and stories. Lakshmi cannot reconcile that the fantasy and glamour she sees on television exist in the same world where children are brutalized for money.
Mumtaz is a monster, I tell myself. Only a monster could do what she does to innocent girls. But I wonder. If the crying of a young girl is the same to me as the bleating of the horns in the street below, what have I become?
Lakshmi survives the horrors of the brothel by desensitizing herself to her pain and the pain of others. She practices ignoring sexual abuse until ignoring it becomes natural. In this quotation, Lakshmi contemplates how people distance themselves from others' suffering. Though Mumtaz is clearly wicked for selling children into sexual slavery, Lakshmi wonders if her failure to stand up for the new girls equates to complicity.
This affliction—hope—is so cruel and stubborn, I believe it will kill me.
Even though Lakshmi's persistent hope is her greatest strength, it is also her greatest weakness. Because Lakshmi truly believes her situation can improve, she is constantly disappointed and prone to despair. Additionally, hope prevents Lakshmi from growing numb to her pain. When she believes the American man will return to rescue her, she starts to actually process the abuses she endures in Happiness House.
