Nectar in a Sieve

Nectar in a Sieve Danise Bachman “Nature is like a wild animal that you have trained to work for you. So long as you are vigilant and walk warily with thought and care… but look away for an instant…and it has you by the throat.” (pg. 39) Rukmani’s description of nature in an accurate one, especially for this story. Her relationship with the land is closely tied with her fate. In a way, the land was one of the antagonists in Nectar in a Sieve. When crops did poorly, her family starved. Then,…

Brief Summary Nectar in a Sieve is a story about a woman named Rukmani who is reflecting back on her life. Rukmani is married to Nathan at the young age of twelve. Nathan is a good man who is a tenant farmer who loves the land that he lives and works on. Despite the very young and rapid marriage, Nathan and Rukmani grow to truly love each other and find happiness in each other. Rukmani learns the role of a wife and learns the chores of her new life. One of her roles as a wife now is to bare…

The Wrath of Imperialism “To think that imperialism is not a beast is to think that we are not animals.”-Karl Liebknecht. In the book Nectar in a Sieve by Kamala Markandaya, an Indian woman named Rukmani tells the story of her life during a period of imperialism. Throughout the story, she suffers immense misfortune including loss of her land, a son, and traditional values. Many sufferings are caused by imperialism, as the British imperialize her village by building a tannery nearby her home.…

Rukmani’s true self In the novel Nectar In a Sieve by Kamala Markandaya tells the life story of a strong woman named Rukumani. Throughout her life she faces many unfortunate events. In the novel Rukmani shows that she is a strong woman, by being considerate towards others, not being afraid to express her beliefs and showing her angry side, proving that she is not always perfect when dealing with problems. Rukmani is considerate of others, Ruku tried not to hurt her husband’s…

In the book, Milk and Honey by Rupi Kaur, the main character, Rupi, changes throughout the book due to healing from her break-up. Before Rupi heals from her break-up, she displays negative character traits such as; empty and fearful. To begin, Kaur states with sorrow and emptiness, “he guts her with his fingers like he’s scraping the inside of a cantaloupe clean” (31) Rupi described her feelings after her boyfriend (at the time) took everything she had, and left. Rupi didn’t have much. She had…

one outside fluence that changed how Rukmani and her family lived, it caused them to leave their village and tore apart her family. The last outside influence was how people lived in the city and how Rukmani experienced living in the city. In Nectar in a Sieve,…

Rukmani and the Concept of Change Everyone has experienced change and each person has reacted differently, either adapting and accepting change or trying to fend it off. In the novel, Nectar in a Sieve (Kamala Markandaya) the protagonist Rukmani has her run-ins with change and more often than not she braces change. This constant force is always present throughout Rukmani’s life whether it is massive or not. Rukmani has grown and adapted with change for she knows from Nathan’s phrase, “bend like…

In Kamala Markandaya’s Nectar in a Sieve, amidst the ideas of poverty and suffering, she also portrays an idea of change and hope of a better future for the lives of those in the novel through Kenny. Kenny does his best to bring some western ideas into India’s traditional culture and provide a means of help for the Indians, while also encouraging them to rise up against their suffering and injustice. Additionally, Kenny also provides insight to the readers about the differences between Western…

imperialism changes and replaces the native people’s way of life and culture. Imperialism essentially dominates over the developing nation which does not enhance the country itself. This course is a direct reflection upon Kamala Markandaya’s novel Nectar in a Sieve in which Rukmani and her family grow into various hardships and complications as the construction…

Dominance over Social Progress Imperialism; the largest genocide that we never talk about. Imperialism is a policy of extending a country's power and influence through diplomacy or military force. Kamala Markandaya wrote the book Nectar in a Sieve. Nectar in a Sieve is about an Indian peasant woman, Rukmani, whose life is shook by the sudden presence of imperialism. The experiences that Rukmani goes through is reflected by the haunting imperialist history in the Congo as well as the British…