Family and dysfunction
Some novels make strong political statements, but this novel is not one of them. In this novel, the law basically passes the issue of justice back to the reader. The judge deems Mala neither innocent nor guilty, deeming her too mentally unstable to legally hold trial. Her insanity leads her to be institutionalized, and within that institution, Tyler explains Mala's family life and dysfunction. He happens to know a lot about her father, so the real judge in the book is actually the reader. Is Mala innocent or guilty for murdering a father who chronically abused and raped her?
Suffering and mental health
This novel is largely a depiction of how mistreatment and suffering can warp a person's experience of reality. We see Mala's life within the context of her own father's life and decisions so that together, they can be seen as a kind of cause and effect. What is the mechanism that is depicted? It is parenthood. The suffering caused by a parent leads Mala to understand reality as essentially chaotic and horrifying, so that later in life, she is so chronically exposed to horror and panic that she is unable to think or communicate clearly.
Existential suffering
Mala's life is defined by suffering that can be called "existential," because of its extreme nature. Because the suffering is ultimate, her experience of suffering is a symbolic representation for the absolute worst fate that a human could endure—mercilessly raped and abused by her own father. This thematic description of suffering is an artistic response to life and the various ways that humans suffering in the human experience. Mala's story is juxtaposed to legal consequences for further consideration of her suffering.
