Refugees in the kingdom are subject to prejudice. Even though Tranh would want to leave his past behind, it is dreadful when unconnected items such as durians initiate imageries of dead people. His unconscious has memories of all the people that he thinks he sees in the pile. He drops the durian and kicks it away, frantically scraping his hands on his jacket, trying to get the blood off his palms.” Tranh’s reaction depicts a man that is devastated by the deaths of his family. Just like stacked Chinese heads in Malacca: his wife and daughters staring out at him, accusatory. All neatly stacked with their blotches and their bloody wheals of blister rust. Paolo Bacigalupi writes, “But as he takes her gift he again notices the great durian pile behind her. His trauma prompts him to associate durians at the marketplace with heads and blood of his loved ones who lost life in the war. Evidently, Ma’s assertion, “Anyone can fall,” is valid in view of the reality that both him (Ma) and Tranh plummet from their glorious spots at different times. Besides, Tranh’s desperateness makes him to supplicate Ma for a job. At some point he eats Ma’s left overs for him to stay alive. In Bangkok, Tranh lives on scavenging because all his wealth was wrecked during the war.

Ma’s advantageous position is attributed to the loss of his job at Three Prosperities which prompted him to move to Bangkok. Comparatively, Ma lives in grace considering that he has connections with Dung Lord whom he works for. Tranh thinks that truly fate is cruel,placing him in such proximity to one he once considered so far beneath him.” Tranh shifts from grace (which was apparent in Malaya) to grass (when he turns into a refugee in Thai). Paolo Bacigalupi explains, “Images of Ma war in Tranh's head: the young clerk he once sent packing for being too clever with an abacus, the man whose son is fat, the man who got out early, the man who begged to be rehired at Three Prosperities, the man who now struts around Bangkok with Tranh's last precious possession on his wrist-the one item that even the snakeheads didn't steal. Tranh’s situation is the archetypal “Grace to grass” eventuality. Written by people who wish to remain anonymous We are thankful for their contributions and encourage you to make your own. These notes were contributed by members of the GradeSaver community.

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