Jinwoo Ham’s Reviews > Oleander Girl > Status Update

In this final section of the story, the power dynamic is completely reversed. Earlier in the book, Sarjini’s silence was a wall Korobi could not overcome. Now, Korobi;s knowledge is powerful. The author shows that by accepting her “American” father and her mother’s “shameful” secret. Korobi no longer fears the social pressure that her grandparents dealt with in previous years.

Korobi going back to India was different this time. The author describes the tension in the air when she walks into the Roy mansion, knowing what she knows about her grandparents’ past. The author’s intent is to show how the truth about the past will ultimately change how people view the world and their place in it. Despite still being able to walk through the doors of her childhood home, Korobi no longer fits in.

Even more importantly, though, Divakaruni seems to show the intention behind the idea of the “truth” being a magical cure for the wounds of the past. By revealing that her father was a flawed man instead of the heroic figure of the novel, Divakaruni removes the last bit of innocence that the young Korobi had as a child. Korobi had to grow up to be a woman who accepted the mistakes of her people and history.

Korobi is finally facing the reality that finding her father might cost her Rajat. The reader can feel the stress of the situation as the letters from home ask for more and more from her, while the life she lives in New York comes to be her own. It is sad to see the old world that she came from fade away, but it is also seem necessary to see her survive without it.

Korobi’s intent is to unmake her until she can finally find and meet her true self. Her removal of her clothes, her fiancé, and her grandfather shows who she truly is. Out of this, the story intends to prove that the Oleander Girl is not a flower that needs to be held in a greenhouse to flourish but a woman who can survive in any soil, even the pavement of New York.

Learning that her father is alive is a huge shock for Korobi. I felt bad for her because she realizes that all of the life that she lived in Kolkata was based on a lie. She essentially has a perfect fiancé in Rajat but chooses to go to America. Divakaruni wanted to show that safety is not as important as knowing who you are and what truly sets you apart from the rest of the world.

While the death of the Master of the House led to the death of Korobi’s sister, it also gave her a twisted kind of freedom. The author's intent was to show the reader that as long as the Master of the House was alive, the truth of the matter would be trapped. By removing this primary gatekeeper, the story allows her to choose between the wealth of the Bose family or the discomfort of her own bloodline.

Korobi’s life is a trap. Her grandparents adore her but rob her of her childhood for her reputation. As the reader, I feel the quick approaching wedding, where Rajat gets married. The premise of the Roy family is a the outermost look, their mother’s secret note hints at the danger of marriage to Rajat. Despite the comfort that the family provides her, it is a lie that could easily turn into another kind of danger.