Symbolism In A Thousand Splendid Suns

Mothers make a variety of sacrifices in their lives. The risks taken by mothers can come in many different forms; they can be physical, emotional and spiritual. The majority of those sacrifices revolve around taking care of, providing for and protecting their children. In A Thousand Splendid Suns, Laila makes sacrifices for Aziza and Zalmai, Nana risks things in her life for Mariam, and Mariam sacrifices things for Laila and her children. In A Thousand Splendid Suns, Khaled Hosseini explores the aspect of sacrifice taken by mothers. Women will go to extreme lengths of sacrifice in order to ensure the safety of their children.

Mariam’s alienation prompted by her mother, father, and husband, in Khaled Hosseini’s A Thousand Splendid Suns, reveals the oppression and shame around being a woman in the society of her native Afghanistan. Mariam’s countless, inescapable struggles throughout her life were all regulated by the systematic dehumanization of women in a patriarchal society, which resulted in her living in constant shame and fear. Starting from her birth, she was seen as a bastard because she was conceived out of wedlock, from both her parents, Jalil and Nana, and her society. In her childhood, Mariam is marginalized, by living in a cottage far off from the public eye, because of her father’s fear of humiliation and her mother’s fear of Mariam experiencing the

Hosseini's use of imagery in A Thousand Splendid Suns gives the reader a clear picture of the abuse that Mariam and Laila have experience

Violence, war, discrimination, and poverty: these issues have long been a part of Afghanistan’s history. Even though things in Afghanistan are getting better, war fills the country, and women and children have to learn to endure abuse, caused by men and the Taliban; they also learn to endure poverty. Considering this, it is no wonder why Afghanistan is in the terrible position it is in now. Many Afghan cities like Kabul are filled with things like violence and discrimination, and the book A Thousand Splendid Suns, by Khaled Hosseini takes place in Kabul. This book follows the lives of two Afghani women, Mariam and Laila, as they suffer pain and discrimination received from the Taliban and their

The fight for justice is not always unequivocal or favorable, sometimes justice is given by means that do not seem fair at all. William Styron says in a novel that life “is a search for justice.” It is blatant that throughout Khaled Hosseini's novel, A Thousand Splendid Suns, female characters are continuously battered with injustices. Hosseini hones into the oppression of women and the fight for women empowerment through the life of one of his main characters, Mariam. Her journey is shown throughout the novel where she struggles to search for and understand justice.

The most integral part of life in Afghanistan is the ability to carry on through difficult times. War in this country leads to devastation and loss, but they still hold onto hope and keep going. Throughout the book A Thousand Splendid Suns, Mariam and Laila have numerous relationships they persevere through by having the strength to do so. Afghanistan has difficulty and overcomes tough times stemmed from long years of war. The most common theme in A Thousand Splendid Suns is strength and perseverance, as shown through the characters’ relationships and growth.

Adversity is the difficulties or misfortune an individual may face in their life. Adversity can nurture an individual into becoming stronger or it can break a person apart and destroy them internally. People can face adversity when they a pressured or stressed in life to make quick decisions or even long term hardships. How an individual faces this adversity will determine how this affects an individual, whether it will nurture them to become stronger or whether it will tear them apart and this is what shapes their identity. In the novel, A Thousand Splendid Suns, Khaled Hosseini shows how when an individual is faced with adversity, their reaction to it can force them to endure suffering over time building a sense of patience and strength which ultimately leads to them overcoming and changing the way they perceive themselves. In this novel Mariam is called to bring upon her strength to fight back against the expectations set on her and her identity, initially, she is unable to fight back and conforms to the expectations of those around her. However, as time passes and she continues to persevere and ultimately she is able to overcome and thrive over her suffering creating strength in her identity.

Tim O’Brien uses literary devices such as Imagery and repetition to show how conflict affects humanity. It changed the way they think to care for what they have and the time they have with the people they care for. In the book it says “And in the end, of course, a true war story is never about war. It's about sunlight. It's about special way thar dawn spreads out on a river when you must cross the river and march into the mountain and do things you are afraid to do. It's about love and memory. It's about sorrow. It's about sisters who never write back and people who never listen” (81). It’s telling us that you should care for what you have and the memories and the sorrows.

The writing style of Khaled Hosseini in A Thousand Splendid Suns is both sympathetic and disgusted. He feels pity on those that bear the burden of the war. He shows this mostly through the use of two major literary devices: Symbolism and Imagery. These two literary devices impact the reader because it gives a deeper insight and understanding of the pain and fear these characters were forced into dealing with every day.

Mariam and her mother ‘Nana’, reside in a kolba (hut) outside of Herat. Her father was a successful businessman named Jalil who was a polygamist and had nine children. Mariam disobeyed her mother’s wishes and hiked into town to see her Father. Mariam returned to her kolba to her mother’s suicide – forcing her to live with Jalil until he insisted an arranged marriage with Rasheed who was thirty years elder. Once in Kabul, Mariam discovered her infertility complications. Rasheed became angry towards his wife’s inability to carry a child – in particular a son, so he became extremely abusive. Laila grew up in Kabul with Tariq who eventually became romantic despite the boundaries between unwed men and women. War took over Afghanistan and Tariq’s

A world of peace and love is all anyone ever hopes for. Imagine having to say goodbye to your country because of war. Feeling safe is one of the most important things in life. You need to feel safe for a place to be home. “One could not count the moons that shimmer on her roofs, Or the thousand splendid suns that hide behind her walls”(Hosseini 347). In A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini, the characters are threated in the country they call home, because of war. The cultural aspects, character storylines, and themes of the book is what make this book a cultural lesson.

“Joseph shall return to Canaan, grieve not, Hovels shall turn to rose gardens, grieve not. If a flood should arrive, to drown all that’s alive, Noah is your guide in the typhoon’s eye, grieve not (Hosseini 365).” A Thousand Splendid Suns, written by Khaled Hosseini, is a story that is set place in modern-day Afghanistan. It is one depicting the lives of two particular women who live under the control of a persecuting husband and the infamous rule of the Taliban. And through these two women (Laila and Mariam), Hosseini creates a mind-blowing, awe-inspiring adventure of regret, despair, tragedy, and more importantly, redemption. The book begins with separate perspectives of each woman, and how they consequently come together in the same

Everyone has relationships, whether it be with parents, friends, or even the special someone. It is also true that those relationships can change in an instant.. Authors show that truth in their work. Khaled Hosseini is no exception; including his novel A Thousand Splendid Suns. The main character Mariam does not see her dad, Jalil, except once a week. She loves him, but Jalil does not treat Mariam as well as he does his other children. When Mariam goes to Herat and wants to see Jalil,she ends up not being allowed into his house. This is when Mariam starts to dislike her dad, but Jalil only grows in his love for Mariam. Their relationship changed because of this one event. In the novel, A Thousand Splendid Suns , Khaled Hosseini uses character relationships to show that relationships can change or develop as a result of one event.

In the novel A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini, main character Mariam is forced into exile after a horrific set of experiences. After her mother’s suicide, she is removed from her home and is later arranged to marry a random man she never met before. Before her departure, Mariam lived in a “kolba,” a small hut on the outskirts of Kabul, Afghanistan. With no other place to go, she disapprovingly lives with her father for a short period of time before being shipped off to her new husband. Her encounter with exile is almost unbearable, yet she endures and grows into a hardworking and respectable woman. For Mariam, exile is both alienating and enriching; it illuminates how withstanding life’s challenges and learning to overcome them with love will ultimately be beneficial in the end, no matter what happens.

According to many critics Khaled Hosseini’s international bestseller novel, A Thousand Splendid Suns, is a heartbreaking novel that is sure to make the readers connect with the characters in the novel. “You say that you love rain, but you open your umbrella when it rains. You say that you love the sun, but you find a shadow spot when the sun shines. You say that you love the wind, but you close your windows when wind blows. This is why I am afraid, you say that you love me too.” (Original version in Turkish, translated by William Shakespeare). This quote means that actions do not define words, in fact actions are more powerful. In the novel the main protagonists struggle with the loss of their loved ones whether it is by death, or conflict, and it deeply affects their personality, also makes them see the world from a different point of view. Per example, Mariam has lost her mother, along with her father, which made her a loving and loyal woman. Rasheed on the other hand has lost both his wife, also his son, which made him violent, depressive and cold-hearted. Lastly Laila losing both of her parents and Mariam has turned her into a resilient character.