How we cite our quotes: Citations follow this format: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #4
Then as happens even in the brightest moment, I remembered Janaki. Last year she had come with us, she and her children. This year who knew—or cared? The black thought momentarily doused the glow within me; then, angered and indignant, I thrust the intruder away, chasing it, banishing it… tired of gloom, reaching desperately for perfection of delight, which can surely never be. (10.5)
Rukmani can’t afford to think of the fates of the people whose lives are changing around her. She’s just on the cusp of great disaster herself, and if she thinks of Janaki she’ll be forced to remember the instability and uncertainty they all share, relying on the land. Pushing away thoughts of Janaki is Rukmani’s futile attempt to pretend the current happiness and stability she’s having are going to last.
Quote #5
"I will have an answer."
"I can give you none."
Nathan’s brows drew together: she had never before spoken to him in this manner. Looking at her, it seemed to me that almost overnight she had changed; she had been tender and modest and obedient, now she had relinquished every one of these qualities; it was difficult to believe she had ever been their possessor. (16.52)
Before she turned to some way to make a little money, Ira was just moping around the house, ashamed of her barrenness. Her change of attitude is actually pretty understandable. In the face of the other changes she experienced, such as losing her husband, Ira was a passive victim. With this change of career, Ira is actually making her own choice: she’s transformed from a victim to an agent of her own fate. It’s kind of empowering, even though her choice leads to an illegal activity.
Quote #6
Not in the town, where all that was natural had long been sacrificed, but on its outskirts, one could still see the passing of the season. For in the town there were the crowds, and streets battened down upon the earth, and the filth that men had put upon it; and one walked with care for what might lie beneath one’s feet or threaten from before or behind; and in this preoccupation forgot to look at the sun or the stars, or even to observe they had changed their setting in the sky: and knew nothing of the passage of time save in dry frenzy, by looking at a clock. But for us, who lived by the green, quiet fields, perilously close though these were to the town, nature still gave its muted message. Each passing day, each week, each month, left its sign, clear and unmistakable. (20.1)
The center of the town changes dramatically, but the outskirts remain village-like. The transformation of the seasons is still visible in the village areas – though the people of the town can’t afford to notice it. The seasons will continue to happen reliably, whether or not people recognize them any longer.