Of White Hairs and Cricket (continued)

The establishment of the change in tone is done with dexterity as the boy slowly begins to realize the reality of the situation. The first signal he gets of his discovery is when his friend Viraf acts strangely, in the sense that he is dull and seemingly upset. At first, his reaction to it is that of indifference as he says, “words to show concern were always beyond me”. The second time his discovery gradually starts to reveal as he sees his friend’s eyes are “red”. The narrator’s discovery is made significant as he hears “hushed voices” coming from Viraf’s flat. All this new behaviour which the narrator is put through creates suspicion and puts him into a confusion of what is going on.

The image created of Viraf’s sick father lying in bed greatly helps in establishing the significance of the narrator’s discovery as that image is the major signal which gives him the final realization of the existence of pain and takes him out of the world of innocence and protection. He describes the room saying “it was dark”. This could signify darkness in the sense of the existence of pain or evil. Viraf’s father had a “needle stuck into his right arm” and the narrator says, ‘it glinted cruelly”. The needle is described as cruel as the boy has always lived in such protected surrounding that he is not accustomed to seeing such a picture and for him it is not a good or right thing.

The entire atmosphere of gloom and sadness that is present at Viraf’s place is a key factor in establishing the importance of the child’s discovery. The worried mother and the sick father make the boy ponder over the importance of his own parents and provide him with a sense of appreciation for their love and efforts for him.