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Summary Of ' The ' By Her Mother '

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I. Young Child- 5 years old -Focal Point One 1. Miriam is called a Harami by her mother Nana. a. Miriam does not understand that this word means ‘bastard’, she only understands that it is a negative word, due to the way her mother says it. b. Miriam and Nana are banished to a Kolba to avoid humiliating Miriam’s father Jalil, his three wives, and nine legitimate children.
II. Adolescence -Focal Point One 1. Miriam’s 15th birthday… she asks Jalil to take her to see Pinocchio, but he failed to show up. a. Due to this Miriam walks the city alone, and finds Jalil’s house. However, he is not home and the wives shoo her off. 2. Upon her return to the Kolba, she finds that her mother has committed suicide. …show more content…

a. Rasheed then takes her to a nice restaurant. b. Afterwards they share a bed together and she becomes pregnant. c. She miscarries later on.
III. Young Adulthood- 19 years old -Focal Point One 1. Four years of marriage have passed, and six miscarriages have occurred. 2. Rasheed takes the miscarriages as a personal insult from Miriam, and because of this he beats her. 3. Fariba and Hakim have a daughter. Also, their two sons go on jihad against the Soviet Invasion. a. Both sons die and Fariba stays in her room and Laila takes care of her at this point. Laila also cooks her father’s dinner. b. Laila drops out of school during the civil unrest. 4. During this time Laila becomes intimate with her best friend Tariq. 1. Afterwards, Tariq’s family has chosen to go to a refugee camp and he wants Laila to come with them. However, Laila cannot go with them because she needs to stay for her family. 5. Fariba and Hakim are then killed in their home, Laila is injured. Miriam finds her and helps her recover. -Focal Point Two 1. Laila is told that Tariq has died. She then finds out that she is pregnant with Tariq’s child. 2. Rasheed begins courting Laila, who plans to fool him into thinking the child is his. Then they are married. a. Miriam then becomes the servant of Laila and Rasheed. During this timeframe, Laila and Miriam don’t get along. 3. Once Laila’s baby Aziza is born, the girls begin to

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