How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Title.Paragraph)
Quote #10
I am afraid. Afraid that Mumtaz will beat us senseless. And I am afraid that the Americans will shame us and abandon us in the streets.
But most of all, I am afraid to imagine a life outside this place. (139.ASecret.19)
Why might Lakshmi fear a life outside Happiness House? How has slavery affected her emotions, her conceptions of what freedom is, and her hope in a better life?
Quote #11
"You are a clever girl, but not so clever, are you?" she says.
I simply stare at her."Let me do the calculations for you," she says.
She pretends to be adding and subtracting."Yes," she says. "It's as I thought. You have at least five more years here with me." (153.ARecalculation.18-20)
We tend to rely on Lakshmi's calculations—she was first in her class in school in her village, and she seems to have a pretty good concept of money. Why does Mumtaz lie? Why does she specifically add five years to Lakshmi's time? And why does she get away with it?
Quote #12
"You will never pay off what you owe," she says. "Mumtaz will work you until you are too sick to make money for her. And then she will throw you out on the street."
I shut my eyes and shake my head from side to side. She is wrong. Because if she is right, everything I've done here, everything that's been done to me, was for nothing. (162.Revelation.8-9)
Slavery is pretty closely related to lies and truth, and Shilpa tells Lakshmi a truth that we've suspected, but only now have confirmed. Think about Lakshmi's reaction, that "everything […] was for nothing." How does this truth affect her view of her own slavery? How might this truth affect what she believes about herself and any hope she has?