4. Salim's relationships to several characters changes as the book goes on. It seems that his perceptions of Metty, Ferdinand, Indar and Yvette were premature at first, but as he spends more time with them and closely examines each person, Salim begins to see another side to them, for better or for worse. Metty was an annoyance to Salim in the beginning and was seen as concerned only with himself, but Salim begins to notice Metty's sadness and awareness of his own place away from the coast. Salim sees Metty more as an equal rather than a servant, not hiding certain things, such as his affair with Yvette.
As with Metty, Ferdinand was initially viewed as a burden to Salim and as a stubborn boy with a strong will to do whatever he wanted without thinking about consequences. Throughout the years, Ferdinand has taken on responsibilities and has been following rules. On page 165, he tells Salim he tipped the purser too much because the purser didn't use 'citoyen' to address the group. When Indar first came to Salim, Salim saw Indar as he had seen him years before: as an educated man with style. But he reassessed his views on Indar when he heard his story and saw that Indar has faced many challenges to preserve his dignity and keeps up a facade in order to feel like what he was "supposed" to be. When Salim met Yvette, he couldn't stop thinking about how intellectual and beautiful she was and soon became obsessed with her. But after sleeping with her and getting to know her, he finds out she isn't happy with her marriage or where her life is heading. She feels her life is "fluid" (pg 190) and Salim senses that she is anxious most of the time.
This shows that Salim is quick to make impressions about people, but doesn't push them away when he learns about their flaws and true intentions. He appears to be selective about who he truly cares about and is protective.
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