Characteristic Sketch of Rahman

Rahamat is displayed with a powerful presencethatindicates something underneath the surface. On facevalue, he is a fruit seller and Tagore describes him in analmost wanderer quality. The impression of him at the firstdescription is that he is one that causes an immediatesense of fear in Mini, the child who is afraid that hecaptures children and places them in his large bag that hehas across his shoulder. Over time, Tagore draws out hischaracter as one who forges a bond with the little girl. Heis committed to seeing her every day, "bribing" her withalmonds and raisins. Tagore plays with the reader in thisdescription, almost trying to tease the reader into believingsomething sinister in Rahamat's actions in expressing theconcerns that the wife of the narrator has in the story. Thefamiliar question that helps to forge the bond between bothRahamat and the girl involves him asking her when she isgoing to her father in- law's house. The fact that he returnsafter he was imprisoned and asks the girl the samequestion on the eve of her marriage helps to allow a fullerunderstanding of the now aged fruit seller. His bond withthe girl is representative of the bond he wished to have withhis own daughter in his native Afghanistan. When he asksthe girl the same question on the eve of her wedding, it is amoment, a reflection, of his own life and how his own girlwould be preparing for marriage. While Rahamat could notbe there for his own daughter, he is there for this girl. Thesentiment of yearning for what cannot be and seeking tobring it into existence with what is in front of usisheightened when Rahamat takes out a small piece of paperwith the handprint of his daughter. It is at this moment thatthe speaker, and the reader, understand the pain andyearning that exists in this man. His wandering is not asphysical as much as it is emotional, to find somesemblance of personal contentment in a world and