In response to the following discussion question: When Chacko says, "We're Prisoners of War. Our dreams have been doctored.We belong nowhere. We sail unanchored on troubled seas. We may never be allowed ashore. Our sorrows will never be sad enough. Our joys never happy enough. Our dreams never big enough. Our lives never important enough." (52) do you think he is referring to the troubles of his own life, or about the collective problems in Estha and Rahel's lives? I think that Chacko is talking about the collective problems of the world as a whole, not himself, Estha or Rahel specifically. However, I think he might relate his life to this idea, as he has had a fairly hard life (divorce, running a factory). I feel like Rahel's and Estha's lives are still young and new at this point in the book, and their lives would need to be more concrete. I do not think there is enough pattern in the twins' lives to be able to tell if Chacko is referring to them.