How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Title.Paragraph)
Quote #7
I pray to the gods to make the hurting go away.
To make the burning and the aching and the bleeding stop […]No one can hear me.
Not even the gods. (83.Hurt.2, 4)
After Lakshmi is raped for the first time, she turns to her faith. Do you think this eases her suffering? Or does it just add to it by failing to ease her pain and, in doing so, letting her down?
Quote #8
As Shahanna is speaking, Pushpa is seized with a bout of coughing that racks her entire body. When the coughing subsides, she spits into a handkerchief, sighs heavily, then curls up on her bed with her face toward the wall. (93.InMyNewRoom.7)
Although we get Lakshmi's perspective throughout most of the story, we can see how others suffer as well—and here we get a glimpse at some of the very real health risks that come up during sexual enslavement. There is a much higher instance of tuberculosis, an infectious and often lethal disease of the lungs, in sex workers, in addition to other physical ailments.
Quote #9
"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)
Other girls in Happiness House cope with their suffering in different ways from Lakshmi, and Shilpa's coping mechanism is alcohol. Does this change your feelings toward Shilpa at all?