Persimmon Tree Themes

Terrorism in Afghanistan is a major subject still being discussed today. The novel Under The Persimmon Tree portrays numerous events that are still occurring to this day. The author of the novel, Suzanne Fisher Staples, uses these events to form Najmah 's character and her family 's way of life. In the novel Under The Persimmon Tree the Taliban terrorized the people of Najmah 's village in Afghanistan forcing refugees and inequality, while in real life thousands of people in the Middle East and Afghanistan are terrorized. Suzanne Fisher Staples uses these real life conflicts to form Najmah 's character and background in the novel. The novel Under The Persimmon Tree portrays an average Afghan family living under Taliban

Thousands of people in Afghanistan face tragic and unforgettable incidents, these same incidents are very similar to what Najmah and her family faced. The Taliban is known for prohibiting things that we take for granted everyday, particularly against women and children. Some say “Life under the Taliban was harsh for many. Some cruel rules the Taliban enforced are women are forbidden to work outside of their homes” ( Max Yan ). Women in Afghanistan are looked down upon and are limited to what they can do with their lives. Being a child under the Taliban 's rule meant “You couldn 't keep birds, no board games, no singing/playing music, and no selling kids ice cream” ( Max Yan ). Clearly the Taliban is against anything enjoyable and they want complete control over everyone and everything. Entertainment is a major topic that the Taliban despised, they “banned television and cinema and disapproved of girls aged10 and over from going to school” ( Athena Wu ). The Taliban prohibited women of going to school and working out of home, they could not make their own choices. Life under the Taliban is so harsh that the word decision hasn 't been a real word. “in Afghanistan and Pakistan the word decision has never existed for the past 20 years” ( Athena Wu ). A decision is supposed to be a natural right, but in other parts of the word that is not the case. The author of the novel used these events in real life to form Najmah 's character and how she has changed throughout