Similarities Between Pride And Prejudice And A Thousand Splendid Suns

Summer Assignment

• Compare two characters – one from each work – who are similar in temperament or who seem to be in analogous situations.

Throughout both books, it seems to be that George Wickham from Pride and Prejudice and Rasheed from A Thousand Splendid Suns are very similar in temperament. Both of these characters are very manipulative in the beginning of their relationships. George Wickham tried to manipulate Elizabeth when they first met into thinking that he was the innocent one between the feud/history that he had with Fitzwilliam Darcy. Wickham claimed in chapter 16 that “His [Darcy] behavior to myself has been scandalous; but I verily believe I could forgive him any thing and every thing, rather than his disappointing the hopes

and disgracing the memory of his father,” making it seem that Darcy should be the one apologizing. Later on he explains the situation that supposedly happened to Elizabeth which was that (speaking of Darcy’s father) “He meant to provide for me amply, and thought he had done it; but when the living fell, it was given elsewhere,” basically accusing Darcy of changing his fathers will so he can inherit all the money and estate. This led to Elizabeth believing that Darcy was such scum and wanted absolutely no relations with him throughout the whole book, making it troublesome for Darcy to flirt and engage in a relationship with Eliza. In chapter 35, Darcy writes Eliza a letter clarifying the beef with Wickham. Darcy did provide the one thousand pounds Wickham was actually given, he stated, but Wickham gambled it all away, went behind Darcy’s back to marry his sister for her inheritance. Wickham, however made it seem that they were in love and manipulated Georgina Darcy to believe that she loved him, when he was really in it for the money. This changed Eliza’s feelings about Darcy immediately and she began to fall in love with him which leads to the ending of her marrying him.
Rasheed manipulates Mariam (the female protagonist who just got married off to Rasheed by her father that doesn't care for her as much because of her mother’s suicide) by getting her a burqa (chapter 10), according to Rasheed “it embarrasses me, frankly to see a man lose control over his wife.” He gave off the vibe that he gave her the burqa because he cares for her and wouldn't want anyone else looking at her. At the time, it was completely normal for a women to walk around in regular covered clothing, not a burqa. He then takes her out the next day and treats her to lunch so she begins to feel comfortable around him and the burqa. Throughout the book, he clearly doesn't care about Mariam though because of how much he abuses her. For example, in chapter 15, when Rasheed was eating Mariam’s food and disapproved of it, he shoved pebbles in her mouth to make her feel how her food felt (“His powerful hands clasped her jaw. He shoved two fingers into her mouth and pried it open, then forced the cold, hard pebbles into it.”) Overall, this resembles the spousal abuse and manipulation of Mariam's feelings and trust that she had towards Rasheed.
• Compare the endings of each work as they relate to the author’s view of humanity. What details in each work suggest this, and how do these ideas relate to overall meaning.
Jane Austen’s view on humanity is that we are slowly progressing.

At this point in time, love was overcoming all situations. Not only that, but the book represents the pressures women had to rely on men. The ending is progressive as seen with the main characters marriage situations. Darcy and Bingley are both financially secure unlike the Bennet sisters or Charlotte Lucas whose families need to work for their money and the land would be inherited by someone else. Women were to be married off to have at least some fortune. However the two Bennet sisters (and also most of the male characters), Jane and Elizabeth, choose love over wealth status. Especially seen with Elizabeth in chapter 19, her consistent rejection towards Collins’s proposal gave the reader proof that she doesn't want to marry for money, she could've said yes and been set for the rest of their life and inherit her father’s estate, but ended up marrying Darcy who she fell in love with. Darcy threw away his possible marriage with Miss de Bourgh, Bingley threw away the possible marriage with Miss Darcy (even though his sisters kept trying to get them two together because Miss de Bourgh is upper class compared to Eliza), and both of them could've been set for life and benefited from their wives money instead of marrying the middle class Bennet

sisters.
In A Thousand Splendid Suns, Hosseni represents his views on the hardships that afghan women need to go through in a daily lifestyle and the love that can overcome the hardships at time (as a distraction type thing). In chapter 34, Mariam and Laila find each other to be beneficial to each other and begin to bond with a cup of tea in the backyard by the tool shed every night. They find each other in a time of need, where Mariam is constantly being abused by Rasheed and went through all those miscarriages while Laila had Aziza, was always exhausted, and lost all of her family. The bond that was formed led to this motherly love from Mariam to Laila, even when Mariam passed, lived on. Mariam sacrificed her self knowingly, just to protect Laila and her family, just like a mother would do for her family. Laila wants the memory of Mariam to live on so she uses the money that she inherited to rebuild the orphanage in Mariam’s legacy and decides to go check on Mariam’s past (like in chapter 50 where Laila goes to the Kolba that Mariam lived in and visited Faizullah). These events represent that the acts of both of these women showed undeniable love from each. It couldn't be denied that they became a family and that love and hope overcame all in the ending, as hard as the obstacles were…..from being locked in a room and a tool shed in chapter 40 nearing death, to killing Rasheed and living on with their lives.
• Compare two parallel scenes – one from each book. Show how these scenes are used to develop a complex theme.
The two following scenes to be mentioned are used to develop a complex theme of marriage in both books. The following situations depict that marriages were based on economic necessity and weren't based on “true” love.
Beginning with Pride and Prejudice, the character, Charlotte Lucas, was introduced in chapter five as “a sensible, intelligent young women, about twenty-seven, was Elizabeth’s intimate friend” (5.2).

Miss Lucas was 27 years old, she wasn't getting any younger, she was plain, and most of her worries (and of her family as well) were that she wasn't going to get married at all or have any fortunes. In chapter 22, it is being discussed that Charlotte solely married Mr. Collins due to having some sort of establishment, “ and Miss Lucas, who accepted him solely from the pure and disinterested desire of an establishment, cared not how soon that establishment were gained” (22.2). Charlotte’s feelings were pure because she wanted a future and a home, however was disinterested because she wasn't really in love with Mr. Collins. She had to do what she had to do. Her family definitely approved as seen in paragraph 3 in chapter 22 “Sir William and Lady Lucas were speedily applied to for their consent; and it was bestowed with a most joyful alacrity. Mr. Collins’s present circumstances made it a most eligible match for their daughter, to whom they could give little fortune; and his prospects of future wealth were exceedingly

fair”.
In A Thousand Splendid Suns, the character Laila was recently suffering from her parents death and is staying with a couple that saved her life, Rasheed and Mariam. Rasheed was opened to the idea of making Laila his second wife, as he said trying to convince Mariam in chapter 29 “I’m giving you help around the house and her a sanctuary. A home and a husband. These days times being what they are, a women needs a husband.” It was more of a charitable gesture that Laila needed a husband. Laila said “my answer is yes” (29.Last sentence). Laila solely said yes though because she is pregnant with Tariq’s baby, the man that she was in love with. There is no way she or the baby could've survived without a home (like Rasheed’s). Laila thinks to herself in chapter 30 “A part of Tariq still alive inside her, sprouting tiny arms, growing translucent hands. How could she jeopardize the only thing she had left of him, of her old life?” She goes on and makes the sacrifice of marrying Rasheed as a mother having to provide for her unborn child.
• Choose a symbol or image unique to each work, either implicit or explicit. Discuss how each author uses this symbol to develop meaning.
In A Thousand Splendid Suns, Hosseini uses the symbol of Pinocchio to relate the growth and maturity Mariam had experienced throughout the book and her relationship with Jalil. Pinocchio wasn't mentioned, however it was implied that is was the movie Jalil was talking about to Mariam when she was a kid (chapter 5, “Jalil said the film told the story of an old, childless toymaker who is lonely and desperately wants a son. So he carves a puppet, a boy, who magically comes to life.”). Mariam begged to see that movie for her birthday but Jalil seemed too embarrassed to take her to the movies and saying that was his daughter who he's been hiding this whole time (chapter 5, “’you know’ he said, ‘ The picture quality isn’t that good. Neither is the sound. And the projector’s been malfunctioning recently. Maybe your mother is right. Maybe you can think of another present, Mariam Jo.’”). It seems like as in Pinocchio, Mariam isn't “real”, she lives in a Kolba without any contact with people besides three, she is kept hidden not really living a normal human life. However, after overcoming many obstacles like marrying Rasheed, going through six miscarriages, she finally found love and a place in a family with Laila and Aziza. Mariam finally becomes a person, she feels real and loved, just like when Pinocchio turns into a real life boy. In the end of the book, Jalil left Mariam a Pinocchio videocassette as a forgiving gesture for hiding her for all of her childhood. It's the closure that Mariam would've received for the grudge that she had against Jalil.
In Pride and Prejudice, the symbol that Austen used