A Chip of Glass Ruby

Summary:
After reading the short story, A Chip of Glass Ruby, we learn Mrs. Bamjee is the protagonist. She is very dedicated to her family; husband and nine children. However, she also believes something should be done to protect the minorities of her country, South Africa, against the authoritarian government. Consequently, she gets arrested for helping the activists because she holds the duplicate machine, which it is used to make copies of leaflets against government. While Mrs. Bamjee is in jail, her older daughter who is pregnant takes cares of the rest of her younger siblings. Mr. Bamjee keeps his routine of waking up early in the morning to sell fruits and vegetables. So far he cannot understand why his wife wants to help the “blacks”, how he refers to the natives. However, towards the end of the story on Mr. Bamjee’s birthday, Girlie, the older daughter, answers her stepfather’s question that her mother remembers everything and nobody is left out.

Part I Liked:
I like the beginning of the story, when the duplicating machine comes to the house. Even though, the children have no idea what it is, they still look excited with the new object. However, Mr. Bamjee doesn’t like having such object in the house, “A fine thing to have on the table where we eat” (page 1 line 25). It sounds sarcastic, but I think it is because he knows the machine will bring problems to her wife.

Part I found confusing:
Probably the end is the most confusing part because we don’t really know what happens to Mrs. Bamjee. If she’ll remain in prison or her husband will try to do something to help her. In addition, when Mr. Bamjee understands why he had desired his wife saying “…she was not like the others; it was there, like the fact of her belly lay between him and her daughter” (page 11 line 6), what does it mean?

Question:
In the story Mr. Bamjee seems to know his wife will get in trouble if she continuous helping the activists, so why Mr. Bamjee did not interrupt the meetings that his wife was having at home?

Interpretation:
I think one of the lessons of the story is not being afraid of our beliefs. For example, Mrs. Bamjee believes in doing the right thing and it doesn’t matter if it will cost her freedom. She wants to help the minorities of her country and her husband cannot understand why. He thinks is better ignoring what is happening around them because he knows if he does anything against to the government he might have problems with the police. However, Mrs. Bamjee is not afraid to help the activists because she knows is not fair how people, blacks and Indians, have been treated in her country.