Optimism In A Thousand Splendid Suns

A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini is a story of two Afghan women, from seemingly different backgrounds, whose paths cross and lives are changed by each other. Although it may seem like this story is one of resilience and optimism, A Thousand Splendid Suns is clearly a story that represents pain and hopelessness.
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

young when this happened. When she grew older and found out what “harami” meant, she felt ashamed for ever being born and believed that she would never be fully accepted in society: “It was the way Nana uttered the word-not so much saying it as spitting it at her-that made Mariam feel the full sting of it. She understood then what Nana meant, that a harami was an unwanted thing; 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.” This pain always lingered with Mariam.
Mariam continues to endure pain and experience hopelessness with Jalil.

For her 15th birthday, Mariam asked Jalil if he could take her to his cinema to watch Pinocchio. She also asked if Jalil could bring her brothers and sisters so she could meet them. Both Nana and Jalil thought it wasn’t a good idea, but Mariam insisted on going, so Jalil said he would send someone to pick her up. Mariam did not like this idea and said that she wanted to be picked up by Jalil. Jalil reluctantly agreed. Later that day, Mariam gets the backlash and hate from her mother from her decision: “Of all the daughters I could have had, why did God give me an ungrateful one like you? …How dare you abandon me like this, you treacherous little harami!” Mariam wakes up the next day, disappointed and fed up since Jalil did not come to pick her up. She heads out to town to find Jalil herself. She makes it to his house when a chauffeur tells Mariam that Jalil was “away on urgent business.” She slept outside of his house and was awoken by the chauffeur, telling her that he would take her home. Mariam snatches away from the chauffeur’s grip and turns around towards the house, to see Jalil in an upstairs window. It was then that Mariam figured out that all she was to Jalil was a disgrace. Jalil had always been careful with the information he told Mariam. He may have loved her, but only on his own terms. Once Mariam realizes that her father allowed her to sleep on the street rather than bring her into his

home, she is traumatized and realizes there is more truth to Nana's stories than she initially thought. 
Jalil continues to cause Mariam pain and suffering by forcing her into a marriage she did not want to be in. Jalil brings Mariam into his house and lets her sleep in a guest room. This was always Mariam’s dream to be with Jalil in his house, but after the incident with her mother committing suicide, Mariam finally understood the dream has become a nightmare since she now realizes the social and cultural divide between her and her half-siblings. Mariam's new understanding of this divide is made clear as she refuses to take part in family activities, despite Jalil's invitation. It's obvious, through Mariam's visit with Mullah Faizullah, that she feels responsible for her mother's death. This guilt guides her behavior and fuels her desire to remain isolated.