Most of the characters in the film consider Velutha a "nobody", because of his being a Paravan. Ironically, he was able to play a huge role in the lives of Ammu and her twins. Ammu was able to experience true love and happiness - one that her husband was not able to give her - because of the relationship she had with Velutha, despite her knowledge that their relationship had no future (320). She had also learned to appreciate the small things in life. It was also bec

Velutha symbolizes the possibilities of human nature. As a child, Velutha abides by the laws that were made - ...he could make intricate toys...bring them for Ammu, holding them out on his palms so she wouldn't have to touch him... (72) And as he grew, he had kept the gentleness, which is not common among men of sharing a friendship between two children - they visited him in saris...he greeted them with the utmost courtesy...chatted about the weather...introduced them to his surly hen. He is responsible in the sense that he finishes his responsibility to his family first before dealing with his own needs - ...his paralyzed bother and his one-eyed father had eaten the dinner he had cooked...so he was free to lie in the river...(315). At the same time, he had shown his capability of defying the laws on who should be loved and how, by engaging in a forbidden love. He also participated on protests asking for equality - ...Velutha marching with a red flag...in a mundu with angry veins in his neck... (68). The life of Velutha also shows a lot of mystery - then one day he disappeared...nobody knew where he was (73). Velutha is a person full of hope and optimism even though he knew that his life is doomed - Tomorrow...he told himself...tomorrow (272). He shows the innocence of a child - through his smile - beyond his physical appearance - how his labor shaped him...how the wood he fashioned had fashioned him... (316). Even though he belonged to the lowest caste - Paravan - he lived his life to it's fullest. He put his carpentry skills into work by working for the household of Mammachi (74). Lastly, he was able to make Ammu acknowledge life's simple pleasures.

ause of Velutha that their lives came to its end (304). His one single act of defying the Love Laws created a thousand ripples in the lives of the people that he cared for. Ammu was disowned by her family (285) who strictly adheres to the caste system, because she "defied generations of breeding and brought the family into its knees" (244). She experienced the oppression from the society were she belonged (154), and was left to die alone "with no Estha by her back" (154). On the other hand, Estha and Rahel were both traumatized by what they witnessed on the morning that Velutha was beaten at the back verandah of the History House. (While other children of their age learned other things, Estha and Rahel learned how history negotiates its terms and collects its dues from those who breaks its laws... it would lurk forever in ordinary things...They would try to tell themselves... it was an insignificant event...they would find no comfort in the thought - 53-54). Both felt responsible for the death of Velutha, "they both knew that they had been given a choice" (302), but chose to save

Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 1853
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page double spaced)