In the novel, A Thousand Splendid Suns, the author Khaled Hosseini reveals the constant struggles and the sacrifices of motherhood through comparing the lives of each female character in the book; Fariba, Nana, Mariam and Laila to show how motherhood and sacrifice are connected. In the specific quote on page 358, Hosseini has one of his main characters, Mariam, realize that she must make sacrifices as a mother to save the lives of the people she loves the most, “It’s fair,” Mariam said. “I've killed our husband. I've deprived your son of his father. It isn't right that I run. I can't. Even if they never catch us, I'll never . . .” Her lips trembled. “I'll never escape your son's grief. How do I look at him? How do I ever bring myself to look …show more content…
at him, Laila jo?” This passage shows one example of sacrifice and its relevance to motherhood. Overall, the question is, what does Hosseini show about motherhood and its sacrifices in this passage, or in the whole novel rather? Hosseini demonstrates motherhood as a daily struggle; it's full of impossible decisions, heartbreak, and horrible situations yet in the same way it is full of complete contentment, genuine care and of course, unconditional love. As the novel continues, the relationship between motherhood and sacrifice in the daily lives of each female character develops, not only leaving positive effects on others, but negative as well. Throughout A Thousand Splendid Suns, several of the characters show their common trait of motherhood that had be bestowed in them at different part in their lives, two of those characters being Mariam and Laila. In the chosen passage above, it becomes evident that Mariam has gone through so much in life and after years with a mother who called her a harami, and an abusive husband who never sympathized for her, “She understood then what Nana meant...that she, Mariam was an illegitimate person who would never have legitimate claim to the things other people had, things such as love, family, home, acceptance.” (4) However, Nana was incorrect. Although Mariam had a met her family late in life, she had gained the motherhood trait early in her relationship with Laila and then her children. This passage on page 358, demonstrated how Mariam felt after killing Rasheed, and the tough decision she had to make. “I've killed our husband. I've deprived your son of his father. It isn't right that I run. I can't. Even if they never catch us, I'll never . . .’ Her lips trembled. ‘I'll never escape your son's grief. How do I look at him? How do I ever bring myself to look at him, Laila jo?” Mariam had saved Laila from the monster, their own husband Rasheed, whom they had been fighting a war against for years. She had finally accepted that crime, realizing what she had done. Mariam felt despair because she would never see the only people she loved again, but she knew it would better them in the future. She finally understood that despite Rasheed’s abusive and villainous acts, she had killed a young boys father and idol, who that boy, Zalmai, loved unconditionally. Mariam shows her motherly sacrifices through her relationship with her new family Laila, Aziza, and Zalmai. Although Mariam had to leave her family, she had saved them. Mariam would die, but her family would live on, and ultimately, that was all that mattered. As the oldest member of Laila’s family, she felt like it was her duty to sacrifice herself for the sake of others, and even though this may seem like a negative effect on Mariam’s part, it really wasn't. Mariam got to be loved and love and she got to save her family from a hopeless life; and this was enough for her. Although Mariam and Laila both had very different childhoods, in their adulthood they both made motherly sacrifice for their children. Laila had to make her first sacrifice that would grant her the life she wanted when Tariq died and she was pregnant with his child. Laila was forced to marry Rasheed in the best interest for her child, “She knew that what she was doing was dishonorable… But even though the baby inside her was no bigger than a mulberry, Laila already saw the sacrifices a mother had to make.Virtue was only the first one.” (219) Laila was forced to decide between unbearable pain, which could overall cost her life and her second child, “The doctor took a deep breath , then told Laila that the hospital had no anesthetic. ‘But if we delay, will lose your baby.’ ‘Then cut me open’... Mariam would also admire Laila fo how much time passed before she screamed.” (291) Laila sacrificed her own life for her second child, Zalami before she even knew him. Laila had to give up her most beloved child, Aziza who was the only living blood line to Tariq that she had access to. Since Rasheed lost his business and money was tight through supporting two children, two women and a man, something had to go, for everyone not to die of hunger. Laila sacrificed her happiness that came through Azizza to be assured that she was fed and had a roof over her head, she had to put her in an orphanage, “Laila marveled at Aziza's grace ...she was faint with sorrow at the thought that this afternoon Aziza would not nap beside her... Aziza’s heels poking her belly.” (314) After she checked Aziza in she put her life at risk every time she would go and see Aziza alone because Rasheed didn’t want to escort her, she found different ways to see Azia. Through going to see her, Laila got tongue lashed, short whips and fist thrown by the Taliban. Because the two female characters, Laila and Mariam, did not have the happiest of lives, the question whether or not their trait of motherhood impacted their lives positively or negatively is debated about, but since both of these characters ended up happy with the sacrifices they made, their impact seems to be positive. On the other hand, a different female character in this book that left a negative impact and legacy on her family was Fariba, Laila’s mother. Though Fariba showed her love for her sons, she did not show that same love for her daughter Laila. “The walls of Mammy’s room were covered with pictures of ahmad and Noor (pg. 122).” In this quote, Laila is observing Mammy’s room after she had waited at school for her to pick her up, but Fariba never showed up because she was locked away in her room, sleeping. Unlike Mariam and Laila as mothers, Fariba “sometimes had good days” and sometimes showed her love for her youngest child Laila, but she was always praising her two boys. When the Ahmad and Noor were at war, Fariba spoke of them with pride and in this quote, “Those two dwarfs? No, no, no. Oh, no. Not for my sons. Not for my sultans. They deserve better,” on page 121, her profound love of her boys was shown through her defiance of allowing them to marry anyway less than the best. On the other hand, Fariba never showed that same love for Laila. She never praised Laila the way she praised her sons, and when her sons died, she stayed in her house, hardly even bathing herself. When her two boys died, she felt as if she died, and at the point her trait of motherhood surfaced. But, when Fariba forgot about Laila over and over again, and put her and Babi in danger, the trait was hidden again. Years later, Fariba would not allow them to leave Kabul because of her son's sacrifice for that home they once had, risking the life of her daughter and husband without even a second thought. Even though Fariba had finally given in to moving to a safer area, it had been too late. Laila became an orphan, and although this allowed her to meet mariam, it also resulted in years of constant hardships and pain that she did not deserve. Ultimately, Fariba had once contained the motherhood that Mariam and Laila felt, and would have done anything for her son's, yet at the same time she would not do the same for her daughter, proving that that the impact her life left on her daughter and the life of her husband was negative. Although Mariam’s life ended through making a sacrifice for her “family,” it can be argued if her own mother Nana had a connection between motherhood and sacrifice as seen through Mariam.
Despite Nana calling Mariam “a harami” and “an unwanted thing”, she truly loved Mariam jo, “You know I love you, Mariam jo”. (15) Nana was constantly attempting to keep Mariam safe from all those who would judge her. Nana concealed Mariam from the world for both her own and Mariam’s sakes, “Nana made no secret of her dislike her visitors- and, in fact, people in general...” (15) Mariam had few connections with people outside a select few that Nana would allow in her life and this harmed overall because when Nana died there was no support for Mariam besides her cowardly father. Nana endured great pain physical and mentally for Mariam which displays her genuine love for her, yet she never lets Mariam forget the pain she felt, “It did not occur to young Mariam to… apologize for the manner of her own birth.” (11) Though Nana was present in the majority of Mariam’s childhood unlike Fariba, overall she caused Mariam more sadness than joy. Nana taught Mariam one worthwhile lesson in her adolescent years, “Only one skill. And it’s this:tahamul. Endure… Women like us. We endure. It’s all we have..They’ll say the most terrible things about you. I won’t have it.” (18-19) This little tidbit of motherly advice served Mariam well in her life- she endured physical and mental pain in her adult life. …show more content…
Mariam serves as Nana’s backbone than the other way around, this becomes evident when Mariam wants to go to see Pinocchio at Jail’s theater and Nana begs and threatens her to stay, “Everything I endured for you!How dare you? How dare you abandon me like this...I’ll die if you go … Don’t leave me, Mariam jo. Please stay. I’ll die if you go.” (27) Nana killing herself was a selfish act that only benefitted herself, Mariam felt guilt from being foolish enough to travel to Jalil’s house for nothing and then seeing Nana hang from the tree. Through Nana killing herself, Mariam was forced to get married which led to abuse and heartache, yet it also helped her be connected to a woman who would give her the family she always wanted. Through Nana’s motherly sacrifices, Mariam was both put in distress while also given a chance at a new life. A Thousand Splendid Suns demonstrates the relationship between motherhood and sacrifice in the lives of several of the characters, four of which being Mariam, Laila, Nana, and Fariba.
Sacrifice by definition is an act of giving up something valued for the sake of something else regarded as more important or worthy. Motherhood and sacrifice go hand in hand, hence why a person really cannot be a mother without having to make sacrifices. The connection between Mariam and Laila, Mariam and Laila’s kids, and Laila and her kids displayed sacrifice through motherhood over the course of their relationships’ development. Although these characters endured struggles that hurt them, these sacrifices were not necessarily negative; they saved the ones they loved and bettered their lifestyle through taking these risks. In a contrast, Nana and Fariba showed their different traits of motherhood through their influence on their daughters. Although their influence was negative, these selfish women, raised two wonderful women who were incredibly strong, leading two different lives, but met in the middle for a short period of time, and saved one another. Despite Laila’s and Mariam’s childhoods where Fariba was absent and Nana being ridiculously cruel, if these mothers had acted differently, Mariam and Laila would not have been brought together through fate, thus it is difficult to categorized Nana and Fariba’s impact on their children’s lives as positive or
negative.
Are all mothers fit for motherhood? The concept of motherhood is scrutinized in the stories “The Rocking Horse Winner” and “Tears Idle Tears”. In “The Rocking Horse Winner” by D.H Lawrence the mother, Hester, unpremeditatedly provokes her son into providing for her through gambling. In the story “Tears Idle Tears” by Elizabeth Bowen, Mrs. Dickinson disregards her son’s emotions and puts more emphasis in her appearance than her son’s wellbeing. Hester and Mrs. Dickinson both were inadequate mothers. Both the mothers were materialistic, pretended to love their offspring, and their dominance hindered their children’s progress in life.
The story opens up with Mariam’s mother, Nana, calling her a “harami” for breaking a sugar bowl. “Harami” means “bastard child” and Mariam was born out of wedlock, with her father being Jalil, a wealthy businessman. Although it was Jalil’s fault for having an affair with Mariam’s mother, Mariam gets the pain and backlash from her mother for being a “harami.” She did not understand what this meant, though, because she was
Our mothers were the flames and we were the blaze” (35). Not only do sacrifices occur in mothers and daughters, but also in mothers and sons, as presented in “Night Women,” the fourth chapter of the book. The unnamed “night” woman displays the sacrifice of her own innocence to preserve her son’s innocence. She is prepared to lie, if it means protecting him and his innocence: “Should my son wake up, I have prepared my fabrication. One day, he will grow too old to be told that a wandering man is a mirage and that naked flesh is dream.
How much are you willing to sacrifice for another? Whether they are a family member or a complete stranger. In the novel The Kite Runner Baba was was willing to risk his life when he had stood up and was trying to stop the Russian soldier from rape the young woman as payment for letting them pass through one of the checkpoints. Then there had been Amir it was when he had suffered extreme injuries, nearly losing his life when he had fought Assef, so that he could save Sohrab for the abuse he was suffering from the Taliban. Both Character Baba and Amir were willing to sacrifice themselves for another person, regardless of who they were. Khaled Hosseini’s novel, The Kite Runner, teaches the reader sacrificing your life can lead to another person’s happiness through Baba saving the woman from the Russian soldier and Amir fighting Assef.
order to care for her mother in old age becomes a thorn in Tita's flesh. Her unwillingness
From start to finish, one could see how much Mariam values Laila, Aziza, and their friendship. The first example is when Mariam vows to help Laila while they are in the hospital for Laila’s unborn child: “I’ll get you seen, Laila jo. I promise” (287). This simple promise is a deep portrayal of Mariam’s desire to help Laila find a doctor and deliver her baby. Additionally, one can see Mariam’s love for Laila when she protects her from Rasheed’s grip of death, “‘Rasheed.’ He looked up. Mariam swung. She hit him across the temple. The blow knocked him off Laila” (348). Rasheed was going to kill Laila, but Mariam steps in and knocks him off of her with a shovel to save her life. Mariam forms a tight-knit bond with Laila, and when Hosseini includes their relationship, one can see how Mariam values Laila enough to kill another man. The author also describes their relationship after Mariam and Laila discuss plans for leaving: “When they do, they’ll find you as guilty as me. Tariq too. I won’t have the two of you living on the run like fugitives.” … “Laila crawled to her and again put her head on Mariam’s lap. She remembered all the afternoons they’d spent together, braiding each other’s hair, Mariam listening patiently to her random thoughts and ordinary stories with an air of gratitude, with the expression of a person to whom a unique and coveted privilege had been extended” (358). The love Mariam has for
Hosseni’s application of spousal abuse in the novel inflicts a feeling of sympathy and sorrow for Mariam and Laila. Mariam and Laila are victims of abuse in a patriarchal society. In their polygamous relationship with their husband Rasheed, he oppresses them emotionally, verbally, and physically. After Laila is brought back from the police, Rasheed promises that if she ever tries to run away again, he “swear[s] on the Profit’s name [he] will find [her]”(272) and if he does, he will
For example, one of the hardest sacrifices that Minerva makes is the sacrifice of her own motherhood. Around nineteen fifty-nine, Minerva and her husband Manolo had a baby boy, Manolito. At around the same time, the underground’s efforts finally started to partake and the revolution against Trujillo was spurred. Minerva being one of the lead revolutionaries had a lot on her shoulders and was faced with the tough decision of choosing between the revolution and staying at home to take care of her child. According to Patria, when Minerva was approaching her to hand her child over, “That tense silence came upon her and then haltingly, as if not wanting to say more than she had to,”(Alvarez 155), she told Patria that she would be on the
Mariam’s strength is immediately tested from birth and throughout her whole childhood. She has been through a lot more than other children of her age, and one of those challenges is the hope for acceptance. She is looked at as an illegitimate child by her parents, and they say there’s no need to attend school. We learn right away what the word “harami” means when Nana uses that to describe her own daughter. She says, “You are a clumsy little harami. This is my reward for everything I’ve endured. An heirloom-breaking, clumsy little harami” (Hosseini 4). Nana especially pushed Mariam away from pursuing her goals. She said there was no need for education and men always find a way to blame it on a woman. This pushed Mariam away from her mom and closer to Jalil, but he refuses to acknowledge her and his wives look at her with cold stares of disgust. Mariam only feels loved by Jalil through all of this, mainly because he brings her things and shows her some love. She asks him to do something with her outside of the kolboa and he first agrees, but never brings her because of his fear with his wives and the structures of Afghan culture that frown upon it. He starts to act as if she was a burden to him and Mariam’s hope for acceptance is crushed. She realizes the truth, especially once she reaches adulthood. In Afghanistan, marriage is not all about love for eachother, it is about traditional role...
The characters of Nana and Mariam show the archetype of a mother by sacrificing to make their children’s life better. Towards the beginning of the book Nana describes Mariam’s birth to Mariam and mentions, “ I cut the chord between us myself. That’s why I had a knife.”(11). As Nana mentioned she sacrificed throughout her pregnancy though the pain and separated the umbilical chord herself because she wanted her child to have the best chance that she could. She also mentions the knife, which could have been use to kill the baby, similar to what Laila almost did with the rusty bicycle spoke. In addition, the knife could have been used to kill herself to end her suffering. Nevertheless, Nana does not carry out this plan and instead she decides to give up her feelings for the child’s. Mariam too goes through moments where sacrifice is necessary. For instance, when the drought hit and Rahseed looses his shoe store she realizes that in order for her family to survive she must ask Jalil, her father, for money. In order to contact her father she travels in the hot sun, calls the mayor, and says, “I know you have important things to tend to, but it is life and death”(310). Mariam swallows her pride and begins to realize her negative reaction towards her father w...
In the very beginning of A Thousand Splendid Suns, Nana is introduced. Nana has faced her share of prejudice and disapproval with being ill with “jinn” and also giving birth to a “harami”. This child out of wedlock instantly changed the way the world saw her, now she is doomed to be thought of with nothing but shame. The most tragic thing is that Nana herself believed this herself; she even, “wished my father had had the stomach to sharpen one of his knives and do the honorable thing. It might have been better for me.
In the novel “Before We Were Free” by Julia Alvarez many sacrifices were made throughout the novel. One of the most important ones is the sacrifice that Anita’s family makes which is to try to overthrow el jefe which was a sacrifice of freedom. Anita was affected by this because of what her mother and father took part in overthrowing el jefe, now she has to be hidden from the SIM. Anita’s father was impacted by this sacrifice where he is now involved in the act of killing el jefe, so he goes to jail and is eventually killed. Tio Toni tried several times to overthrow the dictator el jefe where for the rest of his life he has to be hidden from the SIM.
Her selfishness has been proven more then multiple times in the text “as the family was traveling in the car she was putting her make up on, where she denies to help her little daughter to pain her figurea nails” (Lahiri 996). Her cruelty just did not stop there she also denies to share her food with her daughter and there seemed no motherly feeling when she decides not to take her little four year old daughter to the
Next let us examine Mariam's plight. She is denied the chance to go to school. "What's the sense schooling a girl like you? It's like shinning a spitspoon." She lives with a cruel mother. "You are a clumsy little harami. This is my reward for everything I've endured. An heirloom-breaking, clumsy little harmi"(4). She has a neglectful father. "Mariam kept thinking of his face in the upstairs window. He let her sleep on the street. On the street. Mariam cried lying down"(35). Her mother commits suicide and Mariam blames herself. "You stop that. These thoughts are no good, Mariam jo. You hear me, child? No good. They will destroy you. It wasn't your fault. It wasn't your fault no". Mariam nodded, but as desperately as she wanted to she could not bring herself to believe him"(44). She is forced into marriage to a man she does not love. "I don't want to," Mariam said. She looked at Jalil. "I don't want this. Don't make me"(47). She is sent to live in a strange city were she does not know anyone. She has a physically abusive husband. "Then he was gone, leaving Mariam to spit out pebbles, blood, and the fragments of two broken molars"(104). Her husband is cruel and says hurtful words to her. She can not do anything right in his eyes. When he is not ignoring her he is being verbally or physically abusive towards her.
A simple definition of sacrifice is to give up something for the sake of something else, whether it is for another human life, for an idea, or even for a belief. “She was 17 years old. He stood glaring at her, his weapon before her face. ‘Do you believe in God?’ She paused. It was a life-or-death question. ‘Yes, I believe in God.’ ‘Why?’ asked her executioner. But he never gave her the chance to respond. The teenage girl lay dead at his feet.” (DC Talk 17) This example of a sacrifice really happened at Columbine High School in Littleton, CO, on April 20, 1999. In the story Iphigenia and in today’s society, justification can be found in favor of the sacrifice of life for the lives of others, for the sake of one’s country, and for one’s religious beliefs.