Character Clues
Character Analysis
Actions
It's a tired adage, but one that's true in Sold: actions speak louder than words. So the stepfather's words pale when we look at what he does around the house—which is nothing. And Mumtaz might say that Lakshmi is going to be able to have relative freedom in the house, but when she takes out her leather strap we know that her words are lies. The tea boy doesn't say much, but the kindness he shows to Lakshmi and the fact that he cheats Mumtaz out of her change tell us all we need to know about him.
One clear example of the importance of actions is when Monica gives her rag doll to Lakshmi after Harish leaves the brothel:
She thrusts a tattered gray thing in my direction. […]
"You can have her for a while," she says. "You know, instead of Harish." She says this so quickly her words barely register. (136.InsteadofHarish.4, 6)
Yes there are words here too, but it's the offer of the doll that counts—plus Lakshmi recognizes that Monica, a girl who brags about her ability to earn more money with the tricks she knows, is vulnerable enough to sleep with the rag doll every night. We also recognize the vulnerability of Monica here, as she both speaks and leaves quickly—as if she doesn't want anyone else to know that she finds comfort in an old doll.
Direct Characterization
A great place to observe direct characterization in action is in Shahanna's responses to Lakshmi's questions as she becomes accustomed to her new life in Happiness House. Shahanna doesn't beat around the bush at all when she tells the stories of the women of the house:
I ask Shahanna why Anita is always frowning. […]
"Anita escaped once," Shahanna says. "When the goondas found her, they beat her with a metal pipe." (103.UnderstandingAnita.1, 3)
And just like that we know both that Anita is always frowning—which likely means she's unhappy a good deal of the time—and also that she's feisty enough to try to escape Happiness House. Here's another example:
Later, I ask Shahanna why Shilpa would drink that hateful liquid. […] "Her mother gave it to her when she was young, so it would not hurt so much when she was with a customer. She says she used to hate it. But now she likes it too much." (115.Shilpa'sSecret.2)
So now we know that not only does Shilpa have a bad relationship with alcohol, but that her life has been governed by prostitution and a need to numb pain.
Physical Appearances
The first way Lakshmi delineates the other people in the Happiness House is by describing them. Anita is the girl who frowns all the time, Monica is the thirsty vine girl, Shilpa is the aging bird girl, and Mumtaz has the fat mango face.
Each of these initial descriptions holds relatively true throughout the story, though each character grows in depth. For instance, Monica is more than bold with the customers but she is also kind when she thinks others aren't watching (122.UnderstandingMonica); and Shahanna displays a fervor that surprises Lakshmi when she tells Lakshmi that she too wants to leave Happiness House (139.ASecret.).
The importance of physical appearance becomes clear when we see how Lakshmi first describes Shilpa:
She has the reed-thin body of a girl and the hollow cheeks of an old woman. She is, under the folds of her yellow dress, frail as a baby bird. (64.TenThousandRupees.1)
Shilpa's aging face and frailty seem to physically represent the toll that life in a brothel extracts from its workers. Of course, it could be the result of her alcohol addiction as well:
Her hands are trembling as she gives him the money. She swallows half the bottle in one long gulp […] when Shilpa sees me watching, she spits at me and tells me to mind my own business. (115.Shilpa's Secret.1)
Even this physical description requires us to make inferences. The trembling implies a physical need, the gulping suggests satisfying that need, and the spitting at Lakshmi is pretty clearly Shilpa feeling at that she was caught by Lakshmi and hiding beneath a show of distain.
Thoughts and Opinions
It makes sense that in a novel written in first person thoughts and opinions are one of the primary ways we get to know Lakshmi and the other characters. And because no one ever explains to her what is happening as she transitions into the modern world, we puzzle over new things as much as she does. For example:
She points to a metal wagon with two men inside […] Suddenly, the beast roars, a hundred times louder than my stepfather's motorcycle, and I cry out in terror. (45.AnInauspiciousStart.2)
The truck frightens Lakshmi—and us as well as we experience it for the first time with her. But Lakshmi chooses not to show her thoughts and opinions with anyone but us readers. She is very guarded, sometimes because of ignorance, sometimes for the sake of survival—and sometimes because of a combination of the two:
"From now on," he says, "I will be your uncle. But you must call me husband. Do you understand?"
I don't. Not at all. But I nod. (54.UncleHusband.8-9)
Even though she is confused about what is happening to her, Lakshmi doesn't want to let others know how much she doesn't know. Ultimately this control in hiding her thoughts and opinions serves her well, especially as she is just about to leave Happiness House. Check it out:
My stomach is heaving with fear as I hear the heavy thud of footsteps in the hall. But when Mumtaz enters the room, I show her the face of a docile Nepali girl, a girl who will put up no fight. (176.Punishment.5)
We are lucky that we have entrance into Lakshmi's thoughts—because otherwise it would be super hard to get to know her.