The big white house on the seaside in Colombo figures prominently. What does it represent?

The big white house on the seaside in Colombo figures prominently in this book. It is where Visaka grows up, where Yasodhara is brought after she is born and where the Upstairs - Downstairs wars take place. What does this house seem to represent in the book?

I thought the house represented the whole community and showed that both sides could live together and respect each other. It also showed that younger people could disregard the old ways and make change.

I like Navy Mom's description above about the house representing "the whole community." Proximity helped build acceptance and understanding. For awhile, it was a safe environment for the children and the adults.

The book had some very dark themes, but some of the activities in the Colombo house and in the house near the sea in the early part of the book brought some much needed humor and lightness into the story. The characters were more fully developed because we got to know them in these settings.

I also see this big house as representative of the country which was very much a mix of two different ethnic groups. I think that it also represented that it can work and it can be good for both parties but when push comes to shove and a choice must be made they have to stay with their own and take care of their own.

The house symbolizes two groups living together and treating each other decently. I think it also symbolizes the past, since the people ultimately couldn't keep living together. Perhaps that will change now that the war is over.

To me the big white house represented an ideal where tolerance was the norm.

I agree with Navy Mom's statement, but I also think that in addition to the fact that the two cultures learned to live with each other, that process wasn't stress-free or completely painless. There was effort involved on both sides, and a growing willingness to be tolerant of the other culture's differences over a long period of time.

Tolerance. Divided but humanity victorious.