The Rent Collector

At their next lesson, Sang asks Sopeap about the role of the hero. Sopeap has told her that everyone “want[s] to be the story’s hero” (132), but one of Sang’s neighbors argues there are no heroes in the dump. Sopeap explains that there are all kinds of heroes, but the common denominator, “what sets him apart from everyone else, is sacrifice. A hero gives something up, sometimes even his own life, for the good of others” (133). Sang argues that Sopeap is a type of hero for teaching her. This makes Sopeap angry and insist, “[I am] not a hero […] not to anyone!” (133).

Sopeap next teaches Sang about different types of characters: the shape-shifter, the trickster, and “the mask of the shadow” (135). Sang wonders if this is “the evil person, like the gangs” (135). Sopeap explains that it is not always that simple: “[A] shadow may also be someone who simply disagrees with the hero […] And sometimes the shadow isn’t a character at all” (135). Sopeap emphasizes that the shadow can be another aspect of one’s self, and “sometimes these characters are all mixed together. We may find that any character in the story can temporarily wear the mask of any or all of these, even the hero” (135).