The Clay Marble - Minfong Ho

1. With close reference to the text, describe the Nong Chan Refugee Camp. (8m)

• The Nong Chan Refugee camp is located in a vast, barren plain with few shrubs and trees
• Dara describes the place as a "scrubland"
• It is also mentioned that the soil in the paddy fields are hard and cracked from the dry season

• Thousands of people had already settled down in Nong Chan before Dara and her family had arrived
• The people there have constructed thatched lean-tos and plastic tents to live in
• They also dug mudholes for the buffaloes
• They also built fences around vegetable patches
• They also chopped the trees for their branches to be used as firewood

• The people at Nong Chan are bustling around, almost like their lives are normal
• Children play with tops or draw water from wells
• Some people sit around to chat
• Women are taking down laundry from lines or cooking meals
• A sinewy old man was splitting firewood
• Boys scrub their buffaloes clean
• Sisters comb each other's hair
• Huge crews dig trenches

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2. What are the two things Dara says about the Communist "liberation"? (8m)

• Dara describes the Communist "liberations" as (ironically)oppresion
• The Communist had instilled a lot of fear in the peaceful villagers
• They ruled every aspect of the villagers' lives
• They also had no qualms about using force, or to even kill to achieve their goals
• The villagers are also forced to work with little food and even less freedom

• Dara also reveals that the Communist "liberation" actually destroys families and communities
• The Khmer Rouge soldiers insist that Cambodia was one huge family and the Communist Party was their parent
• However, this is the total opposite of what happened. Sarun and other young men had been sent far away from their homes to dig huge ditches
• Dara's father was executed at night for no apparent reason

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3. With close reference to the text, describe how the persona and her family are treated by Nea when they first arrived at Nong Chan Refugee Camp. (8m)

• Nea could not have treated Dara and her family any better
• Nea welcomes Dara and her family to Nong Chan
• She also invites them to set up camp near hers
• Dara and her family have travelled for days while rationing food and water. As such, they are starving when they first arrived at Nong Chan. 
• When Nea first meets them, she offers to give them some kindling so Dara and her family don't have to complete the arduous task of starting a fire
• When Dara's mother refuses, Nea picks up the hint and realizes that Dara's family has no food left to cook
• She then promptly invites them to dinner with her family
• She cooks extra to make sure there is enough food for everyone
• She also explains that the situation in Nong Chan is different because there are food trucks and supplies so to convince Dara's family to accept her invitation
• When Dara's mother cries in gratitude, Nea made Dara's mother help in cooking to get her mind off the issue
• When Sarun refuses a plate of rice, gently insists until he accepts it. 
• This shows her tact and senstivity
• Nea tries hard to integrate Dara into her family
• She invited Dara to bathe with her near a well, hence fostering a sister-like bond
• Nea also sends Dara to fetch water from the well with Jantu, thus introducing the eventual best friends to each other
• Nea does all of this in hopes of making Dara and her family feel a sense of belonging

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4. What do you find most striking about the main characters? Remember to give details. (12m)

Statement:

• I think that it is amazing that the main characters have the mental strength to continue fighting on for their survival despite the terror of the war and the depressing state of the country

Evidence & Analysis:

Sarun

• At the beginning of the novel, Sarun was leading his family to seek solace at a refugee camp. He was very determined to make it. However, Dara figures out that Sarun himself has doubted the existence of the camp
• However, Sarun took the risk of following rumours while being well aware of the consequence if his plan did not work out
• He did not share his misgivings and doubts with his mother and sister, so to keep them motivated and optimistic
• Instead, he kept his doubt to himself and thus, burdened himself with huge pressure while sparing his family from the same negativity
• Do note that Sarun is taking this huge responsibility of leading the family despite not being the eldest(he is only nineteen years of age)

Dara

• Dara also displays her tough mental strength when she is tasked to look for the rest of the family after she, Jantu and Baby got separated
• Anyone who steps into Dara's shoes may very well be paralyzed in fear, such is the difficulty(and impossibility) of the dask. However, Dara who is merely twelve years old managed to accomplish her mission
• During her journey to look for her family, she had to fend for herself in a country at war
• She had to scrounge for food as well as approach complete strangers for information(again, she achieved this at age twelve)
• She made traveled on foot(mind you, she lost her sandals) to Nong Chan and then subsequently to the Khmer Serei military base camp
• At the military base camp, she even faced off with Kung Silor, general of the Khmer Serei forces, and managed to negotiate a deal with him using her bravery and wit

Nea

• Nea also displays huge amounts of mental strength especially in her relationship with Sarun
• Initially, Nea and Sarun had mutually fallen in love. However, the nature of their relationship changed as Sarun was brainwashed by nationalistic propaganda
• While Nea still loves Sarun, Sarun seems to love more his newfound purpose as a soldier instead of her
• Sarun had become self-centered and egoistic which is a far cry from being the caring and responsible farm boy Nea had first met
• Nevertheless, she stuck by his side and cared for Granpa Kem as well as Dara's mother while he was off on duty
• During the showdown between Dara and Sarun, Nea chose to support Dara to return to the village
• This is rather brave of her, considering Sarun's increasingly assertive attitude and the traditional Eastern culture whereby wives(or in this case, fiancée) are subservient to their husbands
• In this scene, Sarun had directly asked Nea for support to argue against Dara Instead of agreeing(like Sarun had expected of her), she went to support Dara
• She acted as the tiebreaker between Dara and Sarun. As a tiebreaker, she was subjected to a lot of pressure(especially from Sarun) but she still made the right call and managed to get Granpa Kem as well as Dara's mother to join Dara's side. Her decision to support Dara made it impossible for Sarun not to concede. Thus, we see her mental strength in standing against her future husband

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5. Hope is the only thing that keeps survivors going on in difficult times. Discuss this statement with close reference to the novel. (12m)

Statement:

• When we have hope for something, we set a goal for ourselves. From having a target, we can garner the motivation to keep striving hard to achieve it. 
• Without hope, we do not have a purpose and therefore will not be able to get out of our conundrum
• Hope drives us forward to achieve greater heights but for those in difficult times, it may mean the difference between continuing to fight and eventually finishing it or giving up and losing everything

Evidence:

Dara

• Dara clings onto the hopes of returning home and living her old life as a farmer
• She keeps this hope as motivation to overcome all her seemingly impossible tasks such as reuniting with her family after they got separated
• Her hope keeps her strong even when all the circumstances seem to be against her. She stays strong despite all her misfortune and grabs with both hands onto her lucky breaks.
• For instance, when confronted by Kung Silor for stealing food, Dara uses the opportunity to negotiate for a job and regular meals

Jantu

• Jantu also has the hope of returning home and living a normal life
• She hopes to be part of a "real" family again(half her own family died in the war)
• She hopes that Nea and Sarun would marry so she and Dara can live in the same village and remain friends
• She also has hopes to plant fruit trees and rice in the paddy fields
• Her hope keeps her constantly optimistic
• With her positivity, she manages to console Dara when she is upset
• She also makes a "magic" marble for Dara to motivate her

Sarun

• In the first chapter of the novel, Sarun leads the family towards the Nong Chan Refugee Camp. He tells Dara and his mother that food and tools are handed out for free at Nong Chan. He also emphasizes that they can rebuild their lives once they stock up on supplies at Nong Chan. 
• He does these things to give hope to his family and motivate them.
• However, it is revealed that Sarun actually is unsure of the existence of such a camp as he had only heard rumours about it
• He may very well be giving false hope to his family and lead them to nowhere
• Sarun bears the burden of uncertainty by himself to keep the morale in his family high because he does not want them to give up

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6. "After all, the magic ins't in the marble. It's in me." Discuss with close reference to the text. (12m)

Analysis Part One:

• The 'magic' marble that Jantu creates for Dara is what keeps Dara going even in the most perilous of times
• Dara truly believes that the marble contains luck and is the difference between success and failure
• The marble is seen as a physical manifestation of luck by Dara
• She holds onto this belief as she was looking for her family and when she succeeds, it only reinforces her superstition
• As the novel progresses,l we see the development of Dara from a follower to a leader, thanks to the 'magic' marble

Evidence:

• Jantu made the marble to convince Dara that she is capable of achieving impossible things
• Dara who has always believed in Jantu, believes in the 'magic' marble and it gives her strength to solder on her seemingly impossible quest to reunite with her family
• When Dara was tasked by Jantu to find their missing family members, she was extremely afraid. But once Jantu made Dara the marble, Dara instantly feels braver
• When she sleeps for the night, she holds onto the clay marble to reassure herself. When she wakes, she believes that the marble was the reason she survived the night alone.
• When she gets some food as well as information from the old man, she once again thanks the marble for showing her the way
• When she successfully negotiates with Kung Silor for a job, she again thinks that the marble was the reason she had the bravery and wit to negotiate with the general
• When she runs into her family again, she believes that it is the marble's doing
• Lastly, when she successfully argues against Sarun and manages to convince her family to leaving the military base camp, she credits it to her marble

Analysis Part Two:

• I think the marble is only in a catalyst in the evolution of Dara's personality
• Every time she believes that the marble gives her strength and luck, a confidence slowly builds up in Dara herself without her knowing it
• An analogy would be that the clay marble can be seen as a walking stick
• When Dara is weak, she relies on the clay marble to keep herself up but it is ultimately the strength in her legs that allow Dara to stand
• At the end of the novel, Dara finally understands that the marble was only ever a marble and it was she herself that enabled her to achieve all those incredible feat
• She had projected and pinned her belief onto a physical object because she thought it would help her succeed
• However, it is her ability to put her belief into that object that ultimately helped her succeed
• Therefore, it really is ourselves who make our own success