Point of View

The novel is narrated in the third-person, always from the perspective of Bakha during a single day of his life as a sweeper. The author places no limitations on the access to any of his inner thoughts, allowing the reader to understand his true motivations and conflicts as he cannot be often outspoken with his family and friends. All of the characters in the novel do display vulnerability with themselves and others, paving the way for the characters to learn moral lessons throughout their experiences. For example, when Bakha is feeling dejected about his position in the caste system and relying on the fleeting generosity of the villagers, his father is uncharacteristically kind to him. He tells him about his fear when Bakha fell ill as a child and he begged throughout the town for medicine. There exists an interesting conflict between Bakha’s conception...