Nana In A Thousand Splendid Suns

“In the most essential way, she had failed him-seven times she had failed him-and now she was nothing but a burden to him” (Hosseini 99-100).

Mariam is now useless to Rasheed because she cannot bear any children, and is now a nuisance. Before Rasheed knew Mariam could not have any children, he gave her presents and treated her kindly. But, when Rasheed witnesses Mariam with her seven miscarriages he starts to beat her for the smallest of reasons. Mariam knows she is not useful for Rasheed anymore because in Afghanistan during that time, the reason a man marries a younger girl is to bear more children and pass on the family lineage. Mariam can not do that so she is despised greatly by Rasheed. This highlights the beginning of the strain between

men and women in the novel.
“Like a compass needle that points north, a man's accusing finger always finds a woman. Always” (Hosseini 7)
Nana instills this in Mariam’s mind from the very beginning.

Nana is shamed by Jalil when he says Nana forced himself upon her, she is abandoned by her father, and is rejected from marriage, causing Nana to become bitter against men. Nana, based on her personal experience, prepares Mariam for the worst in the world, and Mariam finds that her mom is frequently correct. Through out the book she is faced with an injustice men have put on her; Jalil marries her off because she reminds him of his shameful act, and Rasheed blames Mariam for her miscarriages. This foreshadows the obstacles many women face because of the patriarchal society in

Afghanistan.
“Society has no chance if its women are uneducated, Laila. No chance” (Hosseini 114).
This is what Hakim says to his daughter, Laila.

This contrasts to what Rasheed and Nana think about education. Nana says education is just a waste and the only useful thing in life is to endure. In Afghanistan, a woman's education is not honored and is deemed as worthless.Laila’s father, on the other hand, tells her to educate herself so she can help rebuild Afghanistan after the war. Laila’s education may have not helped her in the first half of her life but later on she helps to rebuild an orphanage in Afghanistan. This develops a theme of education the women get in Afghanistan.

“‘Meet our real masters,’ Rasheed said in a low-pitched voice, ‘Pakistani and Arab Islamists. The Taliban are puppets. These are the big players and Afghanistan is their playground’” (Hosseini 307).

Just as the Soviets and the U.S. used the Afghanistan ground as their battle, the Pakistani and Arab Islamists use the battlefield against the U.S. Rasheed also thinks these Islamists are training young Afghan men to become soldiers in the war. According to Rasheed, the Taliban are just being used by the Islamists to win the war. Hosseini is trying to say that Afghanistan is not responsible for the destruction of its own country. It is the fault of the many different countries that have used it as a battle ground.

“And in this fleeting, wordless exchange with Mariam, Laila knew that they were not enemies any longer” (Hosseini

250).
The women form strong bonds with each other regardless of the efforts their husband and society tries to reduce them to. Rasheed no longer divides the two women against each other but rather his actions bond them together. When Mariam gifts the clothes to Laila, Mariam no longer resents Aziza and Laila’s presence. Laila then asks Mariam whether she would like to drink chai with her and through this the two women become closer. This marks the starting point of their friendship. Hosseini also hints that through accepting and honoring what women can do in Kabul, Afghanistan will be able to heal back to its former state.
“‘And that, my young friends is the story of our country, one invader after another,’ the driver said, flicking cigarette ash out of the window. ‘Macedonians. Sassanians. Arabs. Mongols. Now the Soviets. But we’re like those walls up there. Battered, and nothing pretty to look at, but still standing” (Hosseini 146).
Mariam is similar to the land of Afghanistan. Afghanistan has a history of of great conflict and has endured a lot, but is somehow still standing. Mariam, when she is only fifteen, has to endure. Her mother dies, her father marries her off, and she has to handle a miscarriage of her child. Mariam persists and continues to live and has an undying way of perseverance. She may have given up hope, but when Laila comes and stands up for her, it re-ignites Mariam’s strength. This builds the theme of the inner strength of women.
“‘Or the thousand splendid suns that hide behind her walls’” (Hosseini 192).
In a country where war is happening, Hosseini says there is still beauty and hope. Hosseini is suggesting that the women of Kabul are the suns because they are protected in the homes. These women even when they are hidden are providing warmth for Afghanistan, making them very important. This ties in with the theme of the strength and importance of women to Afghan society.
“Laila, my love, the only enemy an Afghan cannot defeat is himself” (Hosseini 136)
Hakim is telling Laila that the Afghans are not going to win, they trying to rid the country of war, but their is still domestic violence and patriarchy between the genders. The Afghans can defeat their enemy, the Soviets, but they can not defeat the unfairness they themselves bring. Hosseini is saying that humans will never truly understand themselves. You can always defeat an enemy, but you can never defeat yourself. The brain and the heart will always be conflicting, but they will never outweigh each other. Logic and feelings will conflict because it is human nature.
“‘Everything I’d ever wish for as a little girl you’ve already given me. You and your children have made me so very happy.’” (Hosseini 358)
Mariam says this to Laila to convince her to leave to Pakistan without her. Laila and her children did not give Mariam nothing that was worth money, but they gave her love. When Mariam was little she dreamed of going to the cinema and eating ice cream, but all of this she wanted to do was with Jalil and her siblings. Mariam wanted to be loved and she is loved by Laila and her children. Hosseini is telling us that even though Mariam may have wanted to go out to the city and experience all these things, she just wants to be loved. Wanting to be loved and gaining others acceptance is in human nature even subconsciously.
“Mariam is never very far. She is here, in their walls they’ve repainted, in the trees they’ve planted and, in the blankets that keep the children warm, in these pillows and books and pencils. She is the children’s laughter. She is the verses Aziza recites and in the prayers she mutters when she bows westward. But, mostly Mariam is in Laila’s own heart, where she shines with the bursting radiance of a thousand suns.” (414)
Mariam sacrifices everything she could for Laila and her children. Due to this sacrifice it allowed better thing to take place; the rebuilding of the orphanage, and the fond way Laila and her family remember her. Mariam chose to die for Laila’s well-being and this allows Laila to grow beyond all the wrongs in her life. Mariam will forever live on in Laila’s heart and memory. Throughout the novel, Hosseini develops this theme of the strong bonds between women. Laila and Mariam became very close due to Rasheed’s cruelty, and this bond continues even after he dies.