does not give up finding a way to get the room for Hasari. Lapierre also explains how Manik Row does not give up helping Hasari:
“The fact that the fat Bengali has appeared in person do not bode well at all,” thought Son of Miracle and, sure enough, it was not long before his worst
fears were realized. The owner blithely informed him that he was going to double the rent for the next tenant. Instead of thirty rupees a month, the room
would cost sixty, six U.S. dollars, an outrageous price for a rabbit hutch incompatible with the miserable means available to a rickshaw puller stricken
with the red fever. Hasari’s beautiful dream had just been shattered.” p.409 “Yet the taxi driver would not admit defeat. “My nickname was Son of
Miracle and, bent on living up to my name, I decided to put up a fight to get that dwelling for Hasari,” he aws to recount.” p.409
Someone like Manik Roy is rarely found in the city like Calcutta. In Calcutta
many people forget to help others because they have financial problem. However, there are some people like Hasari, Ram, and Manik who are willing to help people.
For people who still keep Hinduism doctrine like Ram, Hasari and Manik, by helping other people who need it, they get good karma. Lapierre writes in his novel that
Hindu people will do everything in order to get a good karma including giving alms to the lepers. Whereas, in Indian people believe that leprosy is a curse from god so
that the lepers are not allowed to live with common people. However, In order to get good karma, Indian people are willing to help these lepers. The evidence is stated
below: “Though they would give alms to lepers to improve their own karma, most
Indians looked upon leprosy as a malediction of the gods.” p.242
4.2.5. The Influence of Karma on Human Deed
Sometimes, poor people use their condition as a justification to do sinful
behaviors, such as being a robber, a deceiver, and a prostitute. Like Maya, a daughter of Hasari’s neighbor, lets herself to be a prostitute so that her family can eat enough
food. However, Hindu people must think thousands time to do these things. They
believe that everyone who does a bad deed must get bad karma; no matter they will get the karma in present or in future life. These poor people must avoid bad karma
because their poverty now is their bad karma which will grip them for their whole life. Therefore, they have to save good karma for the future life in order that in future
life they can incarnate into someone’s body that has a better life. Everyone always hopes to get a better karma in the future life like what is Lapirre stated below:
“It was as if he were trying to say something to us. But for him it was all over. I couldn’t help wondering whether there’d be more handcarts for him in
his next incarnation, or whether he’d be a sadarji behind the wheel of a taxi.” p.154
Although getting a job in Calcutta is very difficult, Hasari does not dare to do
sinful behaviors. He tries to find another way to earn money. He never gives up searching a job. After several days searching for a job, Hasari replaces a coolie who
gets sick. He walks around the bazaar to offer his service to some traders everyday. He hopes that one of the traders and the drivers in the bazaar will need his service so
that he can earn money. In order to afford his family, Hasari also let his blood to be sold. In Calcutta, there are many procurers who often offer poor people like Hasari to
sell their blood. These procurers will ask payment from the selling of the blood. For poor people like Hasari, money from the selling of the blood means a lot for them.
They can feed their family by using the money. After looking for a job for a long time, finally Hasari can get a job as a rickshaw puller because of help from Ram
Chandler. “The poor woman found herself alone on the pavement with three young
children and another on the away, not forgetting a son in prison and a prostitute daughter. “Sometimes there are good reasons for cursing your
karma.” Thought Hasari.” p.104
The statement above is Hasari’s opinion about bad karma that is accepted by his neighbor. He is thankful because he can get a job to afford his family. Hasari is
also thankful because his life is better than his neighbor. Although he is poor, his daughter does not become a prostitute. His son is also not in jail. For Hasari, doing
sinful behaviors in order to survive will produce bad karma and will cause bigger suffering.
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CHAPTER 5 CONCLUSIONS AND SUGGESTIONS
The last chapter consists of two parts. The first part is conclusion and the second part is suggestion. The conclusion presents the answer to the whole analysis
of the formulated problems. The suggestion contains the suggestion for the further study on Dominique Lapierre’s The City of Joy and some suggestions which are
related to the English teaching and learning activity.
5.1. Conclusions
Based on the analysis in the previous chapter, it can be concluded what the socio-cultural background of India during 1960s-1970s as seen in the City of Joy is.
India is a big country which population is the second largest after China. Many racial groups of people live in India. India is a big country which is developing and also a
poor nation. This condition appears because of some factors. The first factor is disaster. India is a country which is struck by disasters almost every year. Annual
disasters that strike India are floods and long dry seasons. Disasters often cause many people to lose their job and farmers to lose their land. Whereas, from the number of
Indian population, nearly three quarters of population directly depends on Agriculture. The numbers of farmers who lose their jobs increases the number of
poor people in India.The second factor is farmers cultivate their farm inefficiently. Indian farmers do not have land organizations, large-scale mechanized farming and
enough money to increase yields. Sometimes the rice production is not enough to feed the whole family. The third factor is Indian population density is not equal to the
amount of the work opportunity. This condition is even worse because of large scale
