Unit Intro

Sold by Patricia McCormick

Nepal – where the story begins At the beginning of the novel,

Lakshmi lives in rural, mountainous Nepal, which is a small country in South Asia.

India – where Lakshmi goes when she is SOLD Population = 1.2 billion

That’s almost 4 times the size of the United States!

Religions Hindu (74.0%) Muslim (14%) Christian (7.%) Sikh (1.9%) Buddhist, Jain and Parsi (2.5%)

Map of India and Nepal

India Government is

democratic Climate is varying and

includes Rainforests Deserts Mountains Glaciers

Thar Desert

Valley of Flowers National Park

Politics and Geography

Monsoons and Dr0ught

Monsoons = season winds and heavy rainfall

Drought = period of severe dryness and lack of rain

Food in India

Most Indians do not eat beef as the animal is venerated in Hinduism. The cow is considered to be a sacred

animal because people consume its milk.

Yogurt is a common food of India.Lassis, made of yogurt, spices, and

fruit, are common drinks.

Clothing in India

Men wear the sherwani, which is a knee-length garment similar to a coat.

Women wear saris , which can be worn many ways. They are designed to highlight a woman’s gracefulness.

Indian Social Customs Why do you often see an Indian woman

with a red dot on her forehead? The “dot” is called a bindi. In older times, the red dot was a symbol of a

woman’s marriage. Bindis today are worn throughout South Asia by

women and girls and no longer signify age, marital status, religious background or ethnic affiliation.▪ The bindi has become a decorative item and is no

longer restricted in colour or shape.

Gender in India

How do Indian men and women behave in their social context? Indians usually maintain a social distance

with members of the opposite sex (about an arm's length away). ▪ If you observe a step backward when you stand

too close to Indians friends, it probably does not mean that you have bad breath, it may mean that you have invaded their personal space.

Affection in public is avoided between even husband and wife.

Economics in India India is defined by a caste system

social hierarchy is very important also very restrictive

Poverty in India is widespread, as India is estimated to have a third of the world's poor. Causes of poverty in India ▪ large population ▪ low literacy (ability to read) ▪ the caste system in India also makes changing one’s social

class difficult ▪ the role of women in Indian society - compared to boys, far

fewer girls are enrolled in the schools, and many of them drop out in order to work to make money.

Images of urban (city) India

Marriage in India Traditionally, Hindu parents look for a prospective

match for their son/daughter from their own community also known as arranged marriage. Failure to arrange a match for a daughter is a source of stress

and sometimes shame for the family. In many south Asian countries, the bride’s family is

expected to pay a dowry to the husband’s family. Dowry = money, goods, or estate that a woman brings to her

husband in marriage. One of the basic functions of a dowry has been to serve as a

form of protection for the wife against the possibility of ill treatment by her husband and his family.

If a woman’s family cannot provide a dowry, their daughter may not be able to marry, causing shame to the family.

Religion

Most Indians practice Hinduism Oldest living religion Over 1 billion followers

Religious Beliefs No eternal hell / no damnation Each soul is free to find his own way Life is cyclical and God recreates

Hinduism in Daily Life Hindus are generously tolerant of other faiths. karma = the law of cause and effect by which each

individual creates his own destiny by his thoughts, words and deeds.

Reincarnation = soul reincarnates, evolving through many births until all karmas have been resolved, and moksha, liberation from the cycle of rebirth, is attained. Not a single soul will be deprived of this destiny.

Hindus prefer cremation of the body upon death, rather than burial, believing that the soul lives on and will inhabit a new body on Earth.

Hindus believe that all life is sacred, to be loved and revered, and therefore practice ahimsa, noninjury / nonviolence.

Lakshmi

Lakshmi, the main character, is named after the Hindu goddess Lakshmi. Lakshmi is the Hindu goddess

of wealth, prosperity (both material and spiritual), light, wisdom, fortune, fertility, generosity and courage; and the embodiment of beauty, grace and charm.