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Mariam And Lalia In A Thousand Splendid Suns

1018 Words5 Pages

In the surroundings of Pakistan, two young women at different times held advantage in Afghan's culture. Hosseini's novel, A Thousand Splendid Suns, presents similarities and differences between Mariam and Laila. Both Mariam and Lalia are naive women with dynamic and vibrant culture. Yet, there are many differences between the two which make each one unique. Their idolized father, lifestyle, and desires show Mariam and Lalia many similarities, yet many differences as well. Ultimately illustrates the importance of belonging.

First, there are many similarities and differences. Between the idolization of the fathers of Mariam and Laila. Both fathers show affection for their daughters. The fathers of both of the girls want the best for them. Furthermore, they are both expected to be the best of their fathers. For example Babi, prefers what's best for her; “Marriage can wait, education cannot. You're a very, very bright girl. Truly, you are. You can be anything you want, Laila”(Hosseini 103). This statement proves that Babi wants the best for Lalia. In his opinion, he prefers that she gets a better education rather than getting married. Both of the girls wanted to feel …show more content…

Jalil also has many wives while Babi stays loyal to his wife, Mammy. Mariam looked up to her father until she realized her father did not care for her; “I used to worship you . . . On Thursdays, I sat for hours waiting for you . . . I thought about you all the time . . . I didn’t know you were ashamed of me.” (Hosseini 50). This statement shows that Mariam cared about her father’s presence. Mariam realized that her father cared about his reputation more than his daughter. Although both idolized fathers, Babi was more of a father than Jalil ever was... Jalil is an inconsiderate man who left his wife and his kids because of his other wives. Furthermore, Jalil forced Mariam to get married to Rasheed, while Babi did

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While Mariam wasn’t comfortable with Rasheed, he was still her husband. In her eyes, Laila was a new, younger, and prettier girl, which added to Mariam’s insecurities. Mariam wasn’t able to resist Rasheed’s abuse or his news of a second wife. Her bottled up emotions made her a resentful and bitter

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Laila was forced by the fear of being punished for having a child out of wedlock. Mariam and Laila both had very different reasons for ending up with Rasheed. Mariam had been completely forced and torturing her but Laila was out of the need to not be punished for having a child without

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[…] And, when I do, there isn't a court in this godforsaken country that will hold me accountable for what I will do (3.36.147) This quote describes the verbal and physical abuse that Mariam has to go through, Laila was also involved with this and was also yelled at.

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  In the book Jalil never does what he wants he always does what his wives say to him, as in when Nana committed and Jalil wanted to stay with Mariam, but his wives said she had to get married no matter what and that’s exactly what he did he gave her in too an older man. When he let his wives' control what he didn’t

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In fact, at the end of part one, Rasheed forces Mariam to eat rocks because he was mad at her for spilling sauce on their sofra, bellowing, “Now you know what you’ve given me in this marriage, bad food and nothing else!” Because of this treatment, Mariam feels like she is not even allowed to talk, only to work and try to please Rasheed, although it will never happen. When Laila enters the story, Mariam is immediately aggressive towards her because that is the only way she knows how to communicate because of how Nana and Rasheed treat

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Mariam sacrifices her freedom for Jalil by marrying Rasheed. In the novel, when the wives told Mariam they found a suitor for her, she tells Jalil to say something and he says “‘Mariam don’t do this to me’”(49). Even though Mariam did not want to marry Rasheed, she knew Jalil wanted her to and so she did, forever surrendering her freedom to him. Marrying Rasheed deprived Mariam of her freedom because when Rasheed tells Mariam “‘a woman’s face is her husband’s business only’”(70), it indicates that she is his and he controls her.

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Brad Cain Jeana Link World Lit 04 May 2023 Lives of Struggle A Thousand Splendid Suns is a novel by Khaled Hosseini that tells the story of two women, Mariam and Laila, in Afghanistan. Both Mariam and Laila differ and have similarities in their personalities, relationships, and struggles. Firstly, the personalities of Mariam and Laila sets them apart from each other.

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Jalil’s wives did not like her so they forced her to marry Rasheed, who lived in Kabul. She suffered from many miscarriages, and turns out Kabul was only with her to replace the son he had lost. They take care of a girl, Laila, who lived down the street. The city was bombed many times, and as Laila’s parents were killed.

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After Nana’s affair with Jalil, Jalil refused to accept the blame for getting Nana pregnant, due to his high position as a wealthy man in society. Under pressure from his wives

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He’s a businessman, Mariam thought. Something had to come” (Hosseini 30). The significance of Jalil not showing up shows Mariam that he might not be all that she had believed Jalil was. Though at this point she was still in denial that Jalil would betray her like that and not take her to his cinema. Nana had warned Mariam that he isn't the perfect person she thinks he is.

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When Mariam unexpectedly killed Rasheed, Laila was terrified by what had happened and Mariam “had Laila lie down, and, as she

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She knew how much of an abomination killing her husband would be to society, but she loved Laila enough to risk the punishment. Instead of running away from Kabul with Laila, Mariam stayed behind so that Laila would never get in trouble for killing Rasheed. She was then arrested and later shot for murder (371). Mariam sacrificed her own life so that Laila could marry Tariq and live happily and freely with her family. She gave up everything, even her life for those whom she loved, even though they biologically were not her children.

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Rasheed however asks her to wear a burqa before going out. He makes it very clear to Mariam and later on to Laila, that a “woman 's face is her husband 's business only”. However when Mariam fails to bear a child, after several miscarriages, Rasheed begins to torture her both physically and mentally. Rasheed also becomes cross on Laila when she gives birth to a girl child. Later on Laila gives birth to a boy, but this does not improve her status in front of Rasheed.

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The readers clearly can identify that his agenda was not to rid Nana of his home but the issue of hiding his child from the world to protect his image as an honorable man. There is evidence that Jalil did indeed have some affections for Mariam which is evident by is visits and the way he lied to please her however his love for her was always outweighed by the fact that he had to maintain his “so called name” to society in the fear of “losing face” thus he could never give Mariam he love she deserved or that he truly wanted leading to Mariam’s discrimination from his other legitimate children. Furthermore, the fact that Jalil visits Mariam years later signifies he did not intend nor take pleasure in this

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Laila on the other hand was raised by both parents except her mother did not focus much on her. She therefore had a strong bond with her father than her mother. The two grew up with the knowledge they were brought up with. My essay will focus on the comparison between Mariam’s relationship with her mother and Laila’s relationship with her mother and how these relationships prepare them for adulthood.

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