Hardship and Exploitation
Poverty in India is one of the worst in the world and can lead to the question, why would anyone want to live like this? Hardship along with exploitation are two themes that play a key role in the characters’ lives in Harvest because of their unemployment status, their poor living condition and their loss of humanity. The characters in the story are desperate for money because Om is unemployed and the cultural norms that only allow men to have jobs. Due to their poor living conditions, the family lives in a single room with one bathroom for the whole building to use. The family becomes dehumanized by the third world in order for them to attain their organs. Being the head of the household Om has a decision he is faced …show more content…
The men had to be naked during a certain portion and relieve themselves in front of their counterparts. Om and the other men are treated like animals as Om describes being put in a cage and treated like a test animal. The ill treatment of the third world towards the men in India shows that they have little respect for them. The desperation for a job leads Jeetu to selling his body as a prostitute. His jobs effects the family members and causes him to keep his distance from his family. In India, a man without a job or a feminine job is deemed dishonorable. Unlike Om, Jeetu would rather sell his body than be owned by people he does not know. Eventually his mind changes when he sees Ginni for the first time and thinks she can give him back his sight. He is willing to go with the guards and give more of his organs for a better life with Ginni.
As the story continues, the families living conditions are not the best and they have grown accustom to their unfortunate lifestyle. After Om gets the job with interplanta, the family has to change multiple things about their lifestyle including their eating habits. They are given pellets instead of actual food to live off of and Jaya grows angry saying “You call this food?”(Padmanabhan 20). Although he is employed now the family has to resort to being treated like animals so Om can keep his …show more content…
Although they are given gifts and incentives for cooperating they are also giving up there freedoms of life. Living in poverty can bring out the worst in many people making them do things that are not of their character. Not only in India but in America as well, people will do what it takes to attain wealth even in an inhumanely way.
Overall, the play Harvest depicts a lot of hardships and exploitation of people in India through living conditions, unemployment, and loss of their humanity. The poor living conditions brings on desperation of the characters which allow for the third world to come in and exploit the family. Om is desensitized which allows for the rest of the family, except Jaya, to play into the thirds world deception. No one wants to live in poor conditions as the family and finding a way to attain wealth is the only way out for the family. At the cost of taking a life it does not seem humanely moral or worth the
Poverty in India is one of the worst in the world and can lead to the question, why would anyone want to live like this? Hardship along with exploitation are two themes that play a key role in the characters’ lives in Harvest because of their unemployment status, their poor living condition and their loss of humanity. The characters in the story are desperate for money because Om is unemployed and the cultural norms that only allow men to have jobs. Due to their poor living conditions, the family lives in a single room with one bathroom for the whole building to use. The family becomes dehumanized by the third world in order for them to attain their organs. Being the head of the household Om has a decision he is faced …show more content…
The men had to be naked during a certain portion and relieve themselves in front of their counterparts. Om and the other men are treated like animals as Om describes being put in a cage and treated like a test animal. The ill treatment of the third world towards the men in India shows that they have little respect for them. The desperation for a job leads Jeetu to selling his body as a prostitute. His jobs effects the family members and causes him to keep his distance from his family. In India, a man without a job or a feminine job is deemed dishonorable. Unlike Om, Jeetu would rather sell his body than be owned by people he does not know. Eventually his mind changes when he sees Ginni for the first time and thinks she can give him back his sight. He is willing to go with the guards and give more of his organs for a better life with Ginni.
As the story continues, the families living conditions are not the best and they have grown accustom to their unfortunate lifestyle. After Om gets the job with interplanta, the family has to change multiple things about their lifestyle including their eating habits. They are given pellets instead of actual food to live off of and Jaya grows angry saying “You call this food?”(Padmanabhan 20). Although he is employed now the family has to resort to being treated like animals so Om can keep his …show more content…
Although they are given gifts and incentives for cooperating they are also giving up there freedoms of life. Living in poverty can bring out the worst in many people making them do things that are not of their character. Not only in India but in America as well, people will do what it takes to attain wealth even in an inhumanely way.
Overall, the play Harvest depicts a lot of hardships and exploitation of people in India through living conditions, unemployment, and loss of their humanity. The poor living conditions brings on desperation of the characters which allow for the third world to come in and exploit the family. Om is desensitized which allows for the rest of the family, except Jaya, to play into the thirds world deception. No one wants to live in poor conditions as the family and finding a way to attain wealth is the only way out for the family. At the cost of taking a life it does not seem humanely moral or worth the