The Rent Collector

by

Camron Wright

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The Rent Collector: Chapter Twenty-Nine Summary & Analysis

Summary
Analysis
Ki goes with Sang Ly to take a taxi, but he is still confused at how Sang Ly means to find Sopeap. Sang Ly cryptically says that Sopeap went to her real home—since the dump never truly became home for her—and she thinks she might know who can help her find it. With a car that Rathana supplied, Sang Ly, Ki, and the housekeeper’s family (Grandma Sin, Rathana, and several others) drive to the wealthy gated district in Phnom Penh where Sopeap once lived. Grandma Sin points out the house where her daughter worked as a housekeeper. When a guard approaches them, Sang Ly lies and says that the homeowner is expecting them and they are there “to see the old woman.”
Once again, Sang Ly’s boldness demonstrates the strength and tenacity of her hope, since she has no way of knowing whether her hunch about Sopeap’s location is actually right. Her choice to take action rather than question her instincts reflects Sopeap’s admonition in the start of the story that taking action is the most important step in resurrecting hope and keeping it alive.
Themes
Appearances, Judgment, and Hidden Character Theme Icon
Hope and Action Theme Icon
The guard is confused and hesitant, but calls the homeowner, who tells him to let the car into the driveway. The carload of people emerges from the vehicle and meet a well-dressed man at the front door, who announces himself as the homeowner, Mr. Rangsey. After confirming that Sang Ly is there to see the old woman, the man reveals that Sopeap approached him weeks ago, insisting that she needed to die in this particular house. The man refused until Sopeap explained she was a teacher, and since the man’s father was also a teacher killed by the Khmer Rouge, he finally relented. Sopeap, he says, is on the rooftop garden, though she is very ill.
Mr. Rangsey is overcome by the mutual connection he feels with Sopeap, since the story of her experience under the Khmer Rouge closely resembles his own father’s story. This once again demonstrates the power of literature or stories to connect strangers of different backgrounds, contexts, and social classes. Sopeap, it seems, desires to resolve her own story by dying in the same house in which her family died.
Themes
The Power of Literature Theme Icon
Appearances, Judgment, and Hidden Character Theme Icon
Sang Ly climbs several sets of stairs and finds Sopeap lying in a bad on a half-covered balcony amidst the rooftop garden. Sang Ly sits beside her, and Sopeap opens her eyes and quietly whispers that Sang Ly just won’t let her be. Sang Ly answers that Sopeap was too wrong to be left alone, and insists she will explain, but first she must meet some people.
In this moment, Sang Ly and Sopeap’s relationship comes full circle. Although Sopeap was once the teacher explaining lessons of life and literature to Sang Ly, now Sang Ly has a final lesson to teach Sopeap.
Themes
The Power of Literature Theme Icon
Appearances, Judgment, and Hidden Character Theme Icon
Grandma Sin steps forward and clasps the teacher’s hands; Sopeap already recognizes her, and taps her her chest above her heart, whispering, “Three holes.” Grandma Sin tells Sopeap that she knows her daughter’s death was not her fault. When Grandma Sin has made her peace, Rathana and her husband introduce themselves, and thank Sopeap for her kindness, explaining that the packages of money she sent paid for good educations and lifted their family from poverty, and thus they have come to honor their benefactor. Two more families follow suit.
Sopeap’s sacrifice not only provided extra money for the housekeeper’s family, but seems to have single-handedly lifted them out of poverty by allowing them to receive quality educations and move into the professional sphere. This again firmly establishes Sopeap as having been a hero throughout the entire story, even though did not see it herself. This suggests that often, truly self-sacrificial heroes may not realize their own heroism.
Themes
The Power of Literature Theme Icon
Appearances, Judgment, and Hidden Character Theme Icon
Heroism and Self-Sacrifice Theme Icon
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The families, having said their goodbyes, leave Sang Ly and Sopeap in peace. As Sang Ly sits with her teacher, the old woman’s heavy breathing makes her think of the dying elephant, and rain begins to fall “like elephant tears.” Sang Ly and Mr. Rangsey start to move the bed, but Sopeap insists she wants to be left in the rain. Sang Ly sees that she is dying. To ease her mind, Sang Ly pulls the phoenix story from her bag, opens it, and begins to read, and as she does Sopeap visibly relaxes. The story tells of a bird born in the Garden of Paradise, who every hundred years burns itself up, leaving a red egg in the ashes from which a new phoenix will be born.
Like the snow in Stung Meanchey symbolized future redemption and healing, the rain falling on Sopeap’s deathbed symbolizes redemption as well, as it redeems Sopeap’s own view of herself in her final moments. The phoenix story speaks of rebirth, and seems to reflect the manner in which, although Sopeap is dying, her spirit will live on through Sang Ly and the powerful gift of literacy Sopeap gave her, which Sang Ly will in turn pass onto her family and the other villagers.
Themes
The Power of Literature Theme Icon
Appearances, Judgment, and Hidden Character Theme Icon
Heroism and Self-Sacrifice Theme Icon
Hope and Action Theme Icon
Sopeap breathes her last breath. Sang Ly places the book upon her chest and sits with Sopeap’s body, holding her hand in the rain for perhaps an hour, “pondering the wonder and sacredness of the day.” She pulls a blanket across the body and leaves, finding Ki asleep in a chair waiting for her, and silently reflecting that her husband is a hero. As Ki wakes, he tells Sang Ly that Mr. Rangsey said they could stay the night, but instead they opt to walk home to Sopeap’s house, through Sopeap’s “renewing, restoring, astonishing, redeeming rain.”
As Sang Ly recognizes, Ki’s willingness to support and assist her in searching for and caring for Sang Ly in her final days—even though he did not have that same connection to the old woman—implies a sacrifice of his own time and energy. This self-sacrifice makes him a heroic figure as well, even though he never had his chance to fight back against the gangs or use his knife.
Themes
Appearances, Judgment, and Hidden Character Theme Icon
Heroism and Self-Sacrifice Theme Icon