Wednesday, October 22, 2014

Behind the Beautiful Forevers: Chapter 13 “Something Shining”

[Behind the Beautiful Forevers]

In chapter 13 “Something Shining” of Behind the Beautiful Forevers, the effects of the American recession begin to reach India where the impacts are detrimental to the garbage collectors, causing Sunil to become a garbage thief. Terrorists start attacking area hotels which only adds to the despair and gloom of Annawadi.

Boo notes “A city in which terrorists killed foreign tourists in hotels was not a place other foreign tourists would want to spend their winter holidays. There would not be a peak season in Annawadi this winter. The airport would be quiet, the hotels empty. When midnight came on January 1, there would be few partiers at the Intercontinental shouting ‘Happy New Year.’”

What did you find most interesting about Annawadians perceptions of the economic downturn?

--Kacee Aldridge  

11 comments:

Jacqueline C. said...

The Annawadians were going through an economic crisis but it doesnt seem like much was being done to recover.The boys even started stealing and didn't think about the consequences.The economy doesn't seem to have the resources to revive their home.This is very unfortunate.

C. S. said...

When the US entered the recession, I never put much thought into how I may have impacted other countries.

It is intriguing and saddening to hear about the struggle of the Annawdi people. The moral values of the people also declines as the money does. As portrayed in the book, this is clearly out of survival. The people of Annawadi are already desperate, and as food and money are limited, they seek help through thievery and deception.

It makes me upset, but I also understand. Americans are no better or different as they also struggle with moral rights and wrongs when things become increasingly difficult.

Kayleigh E. said...

What I found most intriguing was how desperate it got for them. He kept talking about how stealing made these boys change. The conditions were already bad, but it is sad to resort to that kind of thing. He could see the change in himself. On the other hand, you do what you have to to survive.

Sandra N said...

The people of Annawadi see the economic downturn in terms of survival. With less tourists coming through the city, the scavengers have less options available to them. Having to turn to stealing is even more dangerous for them. They become desperate for food, money, and a way to keep up there homes and this leads them to doing whatever they see necessary to survive.

Unknown said...

In this chapter, the Annawadians appear not to be phased by the downturn. They didn't seem to have a strong inclination to want to change the situation and they also seemed to be more concerned with the extra curricular things they might have to miss out on.
Ashya F.

Jacquelene G said...

The thing that I found most interesting was that the economic downturn brought about such hard conditions. They had to get back used to digesting rats. Also, the life of scavenger got harder with more pressure to be the best and provide for their families. The overall Annawadian morale and perception was even more depressed and stressful, because of the added pressure.

Jac`quelene G.

Jenee B. said...

Though I did not find much surprising in this chapter, I was interested in how most of the people were determined not to let the recession stop them and how they would be forced to face even bigger risks and challenges just to have food to eat. Like how Sunil did not want to become a thief, but he knew that there was no other choice. Also, even though he was just trying to pump him up, I wondered if what the game shed owner said about Sunil being daring to the other Annawadians was true in a way. I think that even though he was stealing, they were still impressed that he was surviving and slightly thriving compared to others.

Anonymous said...

What surprised me the most was how far reaching the consequences of our recession were. I think Americans never gave much thought as to how it affected the global economy. Too me, I saw the actions of the Annawadians as a means of survival. The only other options that they had were to starve. It pushed already bad conditions into horrible ones where you had to steal to survive.

Marta A.

Breanna B. said...

Nothing is being done to actually fix their economy. They just become more desperate and begin doing worse things than before--stealing without remorse. It's sad.

Kiara Gay said...

What I find interesting about their reaction to the crisis is the fact that they are worried about not being able to collect garbage. It is just ludicrous to think that these people make a living on collecting scraps and instead of their recession revolving around the decrease in money they can spend, it is about the decrease in trash they can collect.

Candace P said...

Nothing much surprised me about the Annawaidans perceptions' of the economic downturn, especially since this particular civilization was already doing whatever was necessary to survive. However, the American recession led to Annawadians going to extreme measures in order to prevent starvation and avoid eating rats: thievery. This newly popularized occupation had great financial opportunities, but could also led to prison and even death.