Examples Of Attachment Styles In A Thousand Splendid Suns

Diego Holland

Mr. Evans

Pre-IB English 2

What Attachment Style Best Suits Mariam? Attachment styles are characteristic patterns for how individuals relate to others in close relationships. These are usually developed early on during one’s life due to their interactions with parental figures. An example of this is a character named Mariam from the novel “A Thousand Splendid Suns” (ATSS) by Khaled Hosseini. The attachment style that best described Mariam was insecure: avoidant. She is insecure: avoidant, as evidenced by her mother who was emotionally abusive to her for most of her early life. She had a secure relationship with her father, even though she was spending most of her early life with her mother. This would change later, and was made clear that Mariam’s relationship with her father had changed forever. Her mother never let her feel as if she was wanted by her, and she typically had a major feeling of umbrage when Mariam made even the tiniest of mistakes. She had never had the full experience of having a loving family.

To start, it is seen that Mariam is insecure: avoidant due to her upbringing and her behaviors during her adult years. Typically, a person who is insecure: avoidant has a strict guardian and may not have had a complete childhood

Wasn't it true that she might as well have slipped that noose around her mother's neck herself” (60). This is seen as Mariam criticizing herself for something she had no immediate control over. Mariam still blames herself for Nana’s death, and losing her baby was a way of penance for what she had done. Even though there is no logical reason to believe that, her abusive upbringing had caused her to continuously take responsibility for things that are not her