Behind The Beautiful Forevers Chapter Summary

Chapter three of Eyal Press’ Beautiful Souls follows Avner Wishnitzer, an Israeli combat soldier serving in the occupied territories during the Second Intifada. In the 6-Day War of 1967, Israel captured the West Bank and the Gaza Strip and has since kept the land under an Israeli military occupation. In 1987 to 1991, a Palestinian uprising involving resistance and civil disobedience, known as the First Intifada, occurred in the occupied territories. Consequently, Israel deployed many soldiers into the occupied territories, and an estimated 1,674 people were killed in total. The Second Intifada, a much more violent Palestinian uprising in the occupied territories, transpired from 2000 until 2005. In response, Israel enacted Operation Defensive Shield, a large-scale military operation, in 2002 to stop the terrorist attacks and suicide bombings of the Second Intifada. An approximate 4,426 people were killed in the Second Intifada. Avner Wishnitzer’s public refusal to serve in the occupied territories was worth getting kicked out of Sayeret Matkal and being disgraced by Israeli society because it made people question the occupation and the treatment towards Palestinians. Even if Avner had been my father, I would have condoned his choices because I could create my own reputation in the military. Additionally, the current controversy over the Israeli occupation legitimizes his stance and actions for many Israeli citizens.

“What you don't want is always going to be with you. What you want is never going to be with you. Where you don't want to go, you have to go. And the moment you think you're going to live more, you're going to die” (Page 32). This quote shows how harsh it is to live in the slum of Annawadi. It is saying if you are born in the slums that it will be almost impossible to find a life of fortune of any kind. More often than not, it seems that if you are born Annawadi, you will remain in poverty for the rest of your life. Many reasons can be attested for here. The first being that disease spreads vigorously throughout the streets and allies of Annawadi. This is

The city of Mumbai has seen much growth in the past years. A string of elegant hotels have been set up for travelers and high-class business men. An ever growing, top of the line airport has been built for those coming in and out of the country. From the outside, Mumbai seems to have taken a liking to being internationally integrated with the rest of world, otherwise known as globalization. This is not the case, however; as seen in Katherine Boo’s novel Behind the Beautiful Forevers: Life, Death, and Hope in a Mumbai Undercity. This novel is set in a slum right next to the Mumbai International Airport called

(1) Education, while not popular for slum residents, was a way to move up the social caste system. This is also seen in developed countries; educated residents are able to enter career paths with more opportunities, higher salaries, and greater prestige. Manju, the daughter of Asha, was attempting to complete her education at a local women’s college. If she completed this education, she could marry someone in a higher social caste and escape the slum. Her mother Asha often discouraged her because it violated the social role of women; women should be married off and serves as servants to their husbands. If Manju were able to complete her education, she would be Annawadi’s first female college graduate. Nevertheless, it is difficult for a person to receive an education when structural conditions do not allow. At one point in the story, Manju has to stop teaching the local children to assist her mother in ripping off a Western nonprofit- Asha was running a fake kindergarten program.

During the film, the subject of poverty was actively depicted. Even though this issue has raised great concerns for India in the past, statistics show that this problem has gradually decreased. In 1978 the percentage of people living on less than $2

Katherine Boo, a staff writer at The New Yorker and former reporter and editor at The Washington Post, has worked for over two decades “reporting within poor communities, considering how societies distribute opportunity and how individuals get out of poverty” (Boo 257). In November 2007, she and her husband, an Indian citizen, moved from the United States to India to study a group of slum dwellers in Annawadi, Mumbai (Boo 249). While studying this group of individuals in India from 2007 to 2011, Boo’s goal was to learn why the individuals within this slum have not banded together against a common enemy in order to gain upward mobility. She illustrates several common issues of developing nations including: corruption, education, the mismanagement of foreign aid, and the possibility for social mobility in her book, Behind the Beautiful Forevers. In this literary work, Boo accurately portrays the acts of corruption and as well as how corruption has entered the sphere of education, which is typically an individual’s only avenue to social mobility and success in that area. She argues that instead of rising up against a higher power, the individuals within the slum fight against one another to get a leg up on their competition, even if it keeps them in the same social class.

In the beginning of the movie one can tell that the less developed, or "slums",

Firstly, the novel displays the effects poverty has on the characters’ well-being. For example, in the book, “Aziza’s ribs [begin] to push through the skin […] and her complexion [turns] the color of weak tea. […] [Furthermore,] Zalmai [lies] around the house, eyes dulled and half closed, or in his father’s lap limp as a rag” (Hosseini 272). This exhibits the change in the characters’ health as poverty distresses them. As there is an insufficient amount of needs to support the family, the novel shows that the children begin to become weak and skinny and lose the vitality they had beforehand. After scarcity, readers view the harsh circumstances poverty brings upon the family with the absence of necessities. Readers are able to understand the experience of poverty as they grasp on how the children’s well-being has altered. In addition, the stress of living in scarcity collapses personal relationships. For instance, “after the fire, Rasheed [is] home almost every day. “He [is] fired from the kebab house […] because he and a customer [get] in a scuffle” [...] [After he is home], he [finds] fault with Laila, the way she [dresses], the way she [combs] her hair, her yellowing teeth” (Hosseini 271). Ultimately, Rasheed presents the opportunity to receive money for the family, but fails to work in a mannerly way. Once Rasheed is home, he believes Laila is unkempt. This shows an unfair conviction because they cannot afford to maintain a pleasant appearance, and it is his fault they cannot pay for things because he is the only one that can obtain a job, as women cannot work. This shows an effect on personal connections as readers are able to observe an experience of a personal relationship weakening because of poverty and Rasheed’s unfair thoughts due to lack of money. Overall, the book displays the experience of being affected by poverty through the change of the characters’ health and the breakdown of

Like Zehrunisa said to Abdul, “Finally we are making a little money, but one we think we’re safe, we’ll be stuck in Annawadi forever, swatting flies”(41). You can never be certain of what the future may hold, especially if you are poor, because the minute you start to get comfortable, disaster could strike, and all your savings and plans will be for

While reading Behind the Beautiful Forevers, I felt a strong connection to the girl who strived to be Annawadi’s first college graduate. Annawadi is an extremely poor slum located near the Mumbai international airport in India. Manju Waghekar, a teenager living in the slum, had extremely high hopes for her future. She did not want to be stuck living in poverty for her life with her over-ambitious, politically driven mother, Asha. Manju spent her days studying for her college exams, and her nights teaching in a free of charge school for young children.

This chapter questions the morality of people trying to survive as told from the beginning of the chapter. The chapter starts with four men who are all in a life boat without water and food. Three of the four men have a family and one that doesn't is an orphan. The orphan is about to die because he drank salt water. By the end the orphan gets killed and then eaten by the three surviving men. When rescued they ultimately get to court and they simply state that the boy was about to die anyways, and they needed food. We are told to ignore the government and the law and figure out what we would do in a case where we have to survive. Realistically I would have done the same exact thing in order to survive. The chapter than explain the meaning of being a

India is poor. On a daily basis, I saw young children crying and begging for food and money. I watched with pity as our maid broke her back day and night to do our dirty work. I felt deep sympathy for the young boys working at constructions sites. The miserable state of the people around me made me grateful for what I had. Seeing those unfortunate souls sacrificing themselves in order to afford a survival coerced me to value what I had and live modestly. A lack of flamboyance in my life augments my attention towards learning and working hard. I don’t desire to be rich and famous, I desire to make a difference, especially in the lives of those who are less fortunate than me.

The author in this sentence explains that a good moment won't last forever but make your best. I can tell he means this because he says "nothing can last forever" When I was in Europe I had a grandpa and he used to draw with me, this was very special to me because I only got to see him for a few days in a year. These were the best moments untill I had to fly back to

My grandfather was born in a time of poverty and struggle in India, as India had just gained its independence on the 15th of August 1947. Statistics during this time period state that the poverty rate was approximately 45% to 50% in the urban population and 50% – 55% in the rural population. Being born in Saidapet, an urban city, he faced poverty at a high level.