March 5, 2015 - 23:23
It is evident that everyone has an opinion about Fokir and something to say about him, although he himself actually speaks very little. As Maddie points out, opinions also tend to be relatively negative. Overall, I think that Fokir is the emotional springboard for the other main characters. Certain actions that he takes encourage reactionary emotions from others that are seemingly unfitting. For example, when Fokir is speaking tauntingly to Kanai when they reach Garjontola and intend to follow the tiger tracks, Kanai is riled up and angered to the point where even he is surprised at himself.
As Maddie also mentions, Kanai claims to have seen a tiger after rejecting Fokir’s help when he falls in the mud and provokes him to leave on the boat. This notion may be a bit farfetched but I will venture to say, especially since Kanai’s tiger sighting is a speculative incident, that this instance is a projection of the refracted emotion representing of the conflict between Kanai and Fokir.