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Perseverance In A Thousand Splendid Suns

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A Thousand Splendid Suns, a novel by Khaled Hosseini, depicts the main characters, Mariam and Laila, who persevere through the many obstacles they face in their lives. Ultimately, Both of them at the end of their lives feel satisfied with themselves, whether that be from continuing the promise of a family to being executed for a just crime to save a loved one. This book shows that Life can be bittersweet through the writing strategy/theme of perseverance, although these powerful women endured so much in their lives, in the end, they felt as if they got the reward they deserved. Mariam was born in Herat as a harami (bastard) child to a wealthy man and a housekeeper, and long story short, her father essentially gave her away through marriage …show more content…

She voluntarily takes the bullet for the murder so Laila and her new family can run scot-free. In her final moments which is in chapter 47, Mariam …show more content…

She was born into a somewhat stable life and a loving family consisting of Mami and Babi the teacher, but Laila’s life would soon turn that normality around. Her fond friend Giti blew up, Her parents had been hit and killed with a missile that also struck Laila but didn’t end her, and she ended up marrying Rasheed to save not only herself financially but her and Tariq's (a love interest who is now thought to be deceased) fetus. Once she would recover from the missile, she would endure the abuse of Rasheed, until her eventual escape from his wrath through the heroic sacrifice of Mariam. Laila would flee to Pakistan, then become a teacher following in her father's footsteps. Before becoming a teacher Laila goes back to Afghanistan even though she had endured so much suffering there. In chapter 50 she reflects upon this fact, but then she remembers “Babi’s farewell ode to Kabul: One could not count the moons that shimmer on her roofs, Or the thousand splendid suns that hide behind her walls. Laila settles back in her seat, blinking the wetness from her eyes. Kabul is waiting. Needing. This Journey home is the right thing to do.” (Hosseini 392). Even though she had terrible experiences in Kabul, she feels now she needs to move on and carry on a legacy not only for her father but for her life. Throughout Laila's entire life, she persevered through suffering, but in the end, she now values her family, her friend Mariam, and her state of where

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By the end of the novel, Laila has had two children, Aziza and Zalmai, fulfilling Rasheed’s desires for a son to replace his previous family. However, when Rasheed lashes out on Laila over trouble started by Zalmai, Mariam gets involved and tries to stop him from hurting Laila. Laila was surged with strength and went on, “Mariam raised the shovel high, raised it as high as she could, arching it so it touched the small of her back. She turned it so the sharp edge was vertical, and, as she did, it occurred to her that this was the first time that she was deciding the course of her own life. And, with that, Mariam brought down the shovel.

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After years of being married to Rasheed is when he met Laila. Laila had just been a young girl that had lived down the street with her family. But when Laila was injured and alone is when Rasheed started to find interest in her. Rasheed had not been genuine like Laila thought and asked for her hand. Laila starts to share the same discomfort Mariam had felt, she reflects on her feeling when she states, “She pictured herself in a refugee camp, a stark field with thousands of sheets of plastic to makeshift pokes flapping in the cold, stinging wind” (Hosseini 219).

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In this chapter, Foster discusses the importance of viewing a story from the perspective of the character. This accounts for fully understanding the character’s background and weighing that with the current occurrences. After taking into account Laila’s familial and religious background along with her new situation with Rasheed, this passage has a lot more weight. In the situation Laila is in right now, she likely feels repressed and alone. Because of this, she confides in her memories with Tariq.

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They work together to free themselves from Rasheed. However, they are only friends because of the abuse both have endured. After Aziza’s birth, Laila had been lowered to Mariam’s rank and was starting to be abused just as harshly as her. Rasheed wanted a son, but Laila had given birth to a baby girl.

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After Rasheed is killed, Laila has to lie to Zalmai that her father is just on a trip even though he is dead. “Laila knows that this shameful lie will have to be told again and again and again. It will have to because Zalmai will ask, hopping down from a swing, walkin' from an afternoon nap, and, later, when he’s old enough to tie his shoes, to walk to school by himself, the lie will have to be delivered again”. In the quote, we can see that Laila must repeatedly lie to Zalmai about her father's death. We can see perseverance here because even though Laila must lie to Zalmai, she overcomes the challenge for happiness and protection from the pain and sadness that would come from Zalmai learning about her father's death.

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But in a matter of seconds that changed, she was orphaned and brought in. She was later forced to marry a man she never really knew and begin a life with him, a complete stranger. Laila was no longer really loved, until her and Mariam gained each other’s trust. She was just

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Having a daughter in Afghanistan is described as a sin; however, the wives have found a way to connect with each other as they each understand that life isn’t always easy. To add on, Mariam and Laila use their struggles to work together and conquer their worst nightmare: Rasheed. At different points in the book, the author represents Laila by saying, “She watched Laila’s hand rise… swooping down… Glass shattered”(Hosseini 347). Later, he also interprets Mariam’s actions by stating, “She raised it. Said his name.

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Meanwhile, having a good strong amount of perseverance is very helpful and important for someone having to endure, including the women of Afghanistan. In the beginning, when a bomb destroyed Laila’s home, killing her family, Rasheed saves her from the wreckage and Mariam works hard and perseveres to nurse Laila back to health, “... Mariam rub antibiotic ointment on the cuts on the girl’s face and neck, and on the sutured gashes on her shoulder, across her forearms and lower legs” (Hosseini 200). Little did Mariam know, but she and Laila would become great friends later on, and they both would show perseverance for each other 's friendship and sisterhood. “Mariam slowly grew accustomed to this tentative but pleasant companionship.

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(Hosseini 96). Her final act of heroism is going to jail to save her friend, Laila, and her two kids, Zalmai, and Aziza. She wanted to save them from getting executed because of the death of Rasheed. Mariam wanted to show her apologies for earlier in life when Laila first came and they showed their hatred for one

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The Taliban. Think like a mother, Laila Jo. Think like a mother of three. I am” (Hosseini 319). While Laila longs for all of them to escape together, Mariam reminds her of the reality of the situation.

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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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However, after a long time of struggling against the society and the loss of her two sons in addition to that, her role as an ideal feminist challenger is no longer dominant. Much like Mariam, Laila is a victor. The difference between Mariam and Laila is Laila has been defying the norms of the culture throughout her life, unlike Mariam, who was submissive for the early years of her lifetime. Laila represents a hope for woman in the male dominated culture, as she goes on to escape from her abusive husband, finds happiness, pursues education, and contributes back to the society postwar. The male characters are also notable to observe from the novel because the patriarchal society, as well as for the comparison purpose.

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1317 Words | 6 Pages

The war and prejudice against women in Afghanistan changes everything for Laura. Her parents die in a bombing and she is left to find her way and determine her fate by herself. Just like Mariam, she is married and like fate would have it, as a second wife by Mariam’s husband, Rasheed. Laila however bears two children for Rasheen unlike Mariam who has none and is treated much differently from Mariam. He compares her to a brand new first-class shiny Benz.

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Her husband happens to become Rasheed. He finds Laila unconscious after a bomb went off, dissipating her entire family. Rasheed then takes her in and nurses her back to health. He feels that because he saved her, he should be rewarded, “The way I see it I deserve a medal”. Rasheed later practically forces her to have sex with him.

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