A New Hope

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 In the novel Sold, Patricia McCormick has incorporated the horror stories of girls that have been trafficked into a hero’s journey of a little girl named Lakshmi. The structure of the novel is written in poems and spans between the times that Lakshmi was trafficked and hopefully to where she was rescued. Throughout Lakshmi’s journey, she underwent several brutal realizations. Through her own self-discovery of what the world is like, it prevails to be brutal, dishonest, and full of disgust. The transformation that she had to undergo was too quick, and she could not understand the new world around her. Although in her mind she was the smartest girl in school, she was the best older sister, she was the best caretaker next to her mom, she found quickly that her new world did not provide her with the support that she previously had. The novel is depressing and difficult to get through due to the innocence of the character, and the fact that this is a real-life scenario that happens all over the world every day. 

Throughout the novel, there are several recurring patterns that indicate how Lakshmi has developed into a new person. Due to the struggles that she faces, she is forced to grow up quickly. Because she does not have a choice in the matter, she loses her innocence and her childhood. When Harish appears, he symbolizes what she could have been, and she revolves her days around him to try and gain back what she lost. As Lakshmi says, “I also learned that the David Beckham boy’s name is Harish. David Beckham, it seems, is some kind of god” (McCormick, 165). After Harish is gone, she is forced to lose that part of herself again that longed for normativity. Although she tries to remember the smells and faces from where she grew up, they all start to fade, but she never loses hope. Because Lakshmi still holds on to the fact that she could leave the place that trapped her, she finds her strength and is able to speak up at the end of the novel.



Comments

  1. Bekah LongOctober 4, 2021 at 3:22 PM

    I loved the poetic and narrative structure of the book. It was truly a blessing to bring awareness to this awful act and to make further strides to abolish human trafficking.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Shaekwon HeardOctober 6, 2021 at 6:09 AM

    Like Bekah, I loved the poetic structure of the book. It definitely helped me get through the heaviness of the subject. I agree that her innocence contributed to the difficulty of this novel, but I enjoyed the constant character development.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Erin RutherfordOctober 6, 2021 at 8:59 AM

    I think the structure of the book made it easier to really understand the emotions Lakshmi feels. Although the some of the book was very depressing, the small glimmers of happiness and hope make it more bearable. It was interesting to see her grow, and eventually have the courage to leave.

    ReplyDelete

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