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Themes: Ambiguity in defining one's identity, and what it means to be part of a country

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Themes: Ambiguity in defining one's identity, and what it means to be part of a country

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- "They were outside, filling the blank spaces of the town council's blueprints."; "We remained bound to this building, our dreams now narrowly defined by it's walls": Contrast: General definition of what it means to be SG'rean - doing SG'rean things. Also mentions protagonist's life, suggesting identity and identifying oneself as SG'rean is to be familiar with one's surroundings.

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- "It smelled very posh, not like any of the normal deodorant sprays we used": Contrasts: Representative of Marjorie's elitist mindset.
- "Why would Singaporeans go and study there?": Represents elitist, chauvinistic mindset.
- "Marjorie did say that they are a very kind, very innocent people": Perspective: Shows different view of Syrian refugees.

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- "I felt self-conscious of my clunky shoes, with their thick, ungainly soles": Contrasts: Suggest narrator being intimidated by Marjorie's wealth.
- "The walls were so high that I couldn't even look into her neighbours' house": Imagery: Reflects Narrator's awe over Marjorie's wealth.
- "I told Nabilah that at the end of the day, Margarine was our friend": Contrast/Perspective: Reflects on Narrator's neutral and understanding personality: In contrast to Nabilah's

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-Sophia
-Nicholas

Calvin
- ' sullenly mutters something about having too much work' suggests that he find excuses but in reality, he does not really care about the national day parade.
( lack of belonging and identity)
- ' grunts and scoops up a handful' suggests he is moody and angsty

Joy and Brian
- ' can we help?' karen is very helpful
- ' usually only one of us can come out, because of the baby' they have other commitments which is much more important compared to sg bday

Karen
- ' at brewerkz.. this happens every year' means that she does not bother about singapore's bday.
( irresponsible saying she will come later but did not)

Hui Xin
-  'hui xin cheers, her little flag held high'  suggests that she love her country a lot and is very patriotic

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1. pg 70, 'kitchen is needed as a staging area.' pg 72, 'school students rehearsing'
2. pg 71, 'imagines Sophia' 'frisky cheerleader outfits.' pg 72, 'convoy of girls in short skirts tumble onto the field.'
3. pg 70, 'decorating the flat,Red and white pennants.' 'large Merlion balloon,' pg 72 'rows of people wave balloons'
4. both pg 73, 'the doorbell rings.' and 'ladies and gentlemen, the Red lions!'
5. both pg 74, 'dinner parties are run with the military precision of a parade' and 'shouts a command' 'troops begin moving'
6. both pg 76, 'doorbell goes, she pirouettes' and 'music shifts' 'performers'

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-national identity

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- "yelled at him, his face purple": figurative language (metaphor): Suggests impatient, temperamental character
- "driving like a madman": Suggests impatience, anxiety.

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HUSBAND
""Haikel," her husband said, without looking up from his task. His voice was stern, but the response was so automatic that Junaidah felt insulted. "
-this shows that haikel's dad is very laid back in his parenting

JUNAIDAH
" to purchase a baju kurung for the boy"
-shows that Junaidah is thoughtful

"Junaidah felt as if she had been elected the sole spokesperson for the boy. She had to stand up for him, to assert his presence."
-shows that Junaidah already felt an attachment towards the boy

"Junaidah thought there was little point in forcing him to share his toy"
-shows that Junaidah thinks that there should be sincerity in sharing

"Suddenly Junaidah felt a certain protectiveness rise within her, a feeling that caught her by surprise"
-shows that Junaidah might have considered adoption

"The boy who had held Junaidah's hand would forever be beyond her reach"
-shows that Junaidah is facing the void that Mydeen is facing. When he is gone, she forgets about the other things like her social life.

MYDEEN
"Mydeen nodded. And then he reached out and slipped his hand into Junaidah's"
- Haikel did that for 'a sense of security' due to the lack of motherly love or it could be just something that he is 'expected' to do

"But evidently Mydeen knew his place"
-shows that Mydeen knew his place in the family

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Theme: Overcoming adversity in spite of inevitable challenges

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Theme: Overcoming adversity in spite of inevitable challenges

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- 'It's my resolution for 1993,' he declared proudly"
- "fell asleep every night and woke up with a bang": shows Mahesh's strong will to achieve his goal of becoming the first SG'rean to climb Mount Everest: Even though what he does may not be feasible, he still has the determination to succeed.

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- "its important to have goals"

supportive of mahesh's goals.

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- "So she thinks we can't pronounce her name?": Stereotypes: Depicts Nabilah feeling inferior.
- "I don't think that anybody who goes to Bukit Katak now, can become like your dad in the future": Stereotypes: Inferiority - Believed that type of future one has is only determined by the school one goes
- "I felt a dark cloud float above Nabilah": Figurative Language (Metaphor): suggests Nabilah's disdain for Marjorie's remarks - felt insulted.

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- Father:
* "You won't find a mountain in this country, ""the closest thing is that hill in Bukit Timah."
perspective: father is realistic. does of reality
* "roofs and yards were features of story book homes; they were the stuff of my father's dreams."
materialistic: likes success in property form
-He had been successful in moving us from India to Singapore but his sights were set further west"
Power hungry: craves for something more

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Themes: Marginalisation and ostracism of the rich (irony)

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Themes: Marginalisation and ostracism of the rich (irony)

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- "None of the other girls rebuked the boys, as we normally would when one of us was attacked": Imagery: Suggests condemnation, and ostracism towards Marjorie: due to her status.
- " 'Aren't rich kids so annoying?' I said, trying to break the ice": Casually talks about why Marjorie and other rich students are irritating, don't fit in: Suggests free ostracism, acceptable to condemn the rich students.

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- "Joe's house was a mansion"; "Nabilah lived in a corner unit on the fourth floor of the HDB flat": Contrasts: Different living environments created by different socio-economical divides.
- "Golden retriever bounding towards us with a slight hand gesture"; "knew the old grandma who lived right next to her": Contrasts: Different surroundings, created by different wealth.

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" I don't really have asthma(this is dawn at the clinic) " I said. " Just a little bit" "
denial of her asthma: too proud to admit that theres something wrong with her

" "Oh my DOG," I mocked Mahesh as payback for his comment about my asthma. "Do you want some PALS or a SLAP?" "
spiteful: gets back at people\

"I didn't usually reach out to Mahesh to take him anywhere, but I didn't want him sitting there, listening"
compassionate, protective;

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- "scrambled up to his place": suggests a sense of duty, responsibility to job.
- "see from Ah Lai's closed face that he, too had a temper": shows agitated personality restrained by Ah Or's superiority.

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- "emanated a seigneurial air as he patted his old friend's sholder": shows welcoming, hospitable character.
- "Arul's burgeoning success a wall between them": Arul's success divides him and protagonist - contrasts in lifestyle

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- "Ah Bey would trot over, bark an order, and they would disperse": Ah Bey has total command of workers - respected, make workers fear his authority and work.
- "Ah Bey was secure within the fortress of his temper and his dusty Mercedes": Suggests Ah Bey's totalitarian attitudes - dictating the manpower.

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"tears were streaming down Mahesh's face."
scheming,knows that the mother favours him.
"Mahesh began training the day after his announcement"
Diligent,responsible for his own words and promises
" 'It's my resolution for 1993,' he declared proudly"
Ambitious; wants people to not see him as just a boy with dyslexia
" 'If we go to India I'll have to find a place to train,' Mahesh said. 'There are more mountains there for sure,but...' "
He only thinks about his own goals

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- "weepy at nights, thinking of his family": sentimental: missing family
- "boasts about handling machinery, surprisingly maladroit": excessive boasting, prideful
- "Siva's eyes welled but he quickly disguised it, clapping his hand to his friend's shoulder in masculine heartiness": wanted others to perceive his grit, resilience as a man - through concealing his insecurities and the fact he dearly misses his family.

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Themes: Prejudice and Discrimination to foreign workers:

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Themes: Prejudice and Discrimination to foreign workers:

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- "His screams are the whispered chuckle of a rill": Figurative Language: suggests that protagonist is silence, his voice and calls for help drowned out in despair. - representative of the fact that the injustice suffered by foreign workers often go unnoticed.
- "rolls down a log and comes to a halt with a splash in water smelling of rotting grass and mould": shows the extent of mistreatment protagonist faced.

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Theme: The prospects of migrant workers: Always a gamble.

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Theme: The prospects of migrant workers: Always a gamble.

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- "Arul had left a farmer's son, but in his absence had become a young man with prospects."; "what hospital was this, so far away, in a place with no street lights": contrasts: shows both ends of the prospects of working overseas: can end up earning lucrative money, or get harmed in the process

*MARGINALISATION OF FOREIGN WORKERS
"His friend Ashok had died from just a fall. Unforeseen circumstances, said the hospital, and that had been that."
nobody cares about the foreign workers, hospital didn't care enough to check up on the safety of workplace

*INJUSTICE IN THE TREATMENT OF FOREIGN WORKERS
"workers literally disappearing into thin air, lucky to be found or claimed, dead or alive, the nameless and faceless who slipped through the cracks"
workers treated as nothing, disposable

*LACK OF CONTROL

*POWER PLAY

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- "There she was, hovering not inches above him against the velvet night": shows that he misses family:  recalls the reasons he came to Singapore to work - to provide better prospects for his family.
- "Shamed himself in just the way as they lifted him nto the lorry and made them curse. Shamed himself now because they would curse again.": shows that protagonist is very sensitive to what others think of him - felt shameful to cause further embarrassment to himself

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- "Our laughter came to an abrupt halt wen we noticed Dad's shoes outside the flat.": Children afraid of Father: did not want bad things to happen to them (ie. beatings) - possibly due to many harsh things they witnessed him do during childhood: Children showed respect for Father's authority achieved through Dad's dominant behaviour towards family.