p. 50-75

Manju is a really interesting and strong character. She is very obedient to the things her mother asks her to do, like preparing herself for marriage. She wants to be accepted by her mother, yet she has a strong desire to rebel against her. Manju doesn’t want to be anything like her mother. She longs for the deeper things in life, which her mother lacks, like virtue. Because her mother is so focused on the finances of the family, Manju couldn’t care less about money. She desires to be a successful and independent teacher and fears that marriage will prohibit her from her dreams. I think Manju is oblivious to how significant she is within the slum. She is said to be more beautiful that she knows, yet continues to be nice and caring.  Manju is very hardworking and dedicated to making something of herself. She believes in imperfection. She sees beauty even in her unfortunate condition.

Manju reminds me of my mother, a lot, actually. My mom always felt rebellious towards her mother because she wanted my mother to be perfect and womanly. My mom didn’t care about being girly or picture perfect; all she cared about were her studies and being independent in life. I think this rebellion had a really positive affect on my mother, like it did Manju. It caused her to believe in free spirits become very helpful and caring towards those who needed it. I think my mom might have been slightly more obvious with her terms of rebellion, though. Judging by the stories I hear, my mother wasn’t interested in pleasing her mother as much as Manju was, but she also didn’t have the threat of an abusive mother.