Varshney1

PriyankVarshney
Mrs.Mann
APLiterature2ndBlock
10December2014
IsitaClassic?:AThousandSplendidSuns

ItalianwriterItaloValvinooncesaid,Aclassicisabookthathasneverfinishedsaying

whatithastosay.Hisclaimcontainsaveryimportantfactortohowclassicnovelsaredefined.
Forolderbooksthathavealreadybeentestedandshowcasedintheliterarycanon,suchasThe
KiteRunnerorTheGreatGatsbyitisrelativelyeasytosaythattheyarevaluableclassicsina
literaryarsenal.Abookthatcanrelayamessagetoitsaudienceoveralongperiodoftimeshows
thatithasthestrengthtoholditsliteraryvalue,andwithnewerandmodernnovelsbeing
questionedfortheirclassicalityitisvaluabletohaveaconcretedefinitionofaclassic:anovel
thatcontainsambiguity,relaysatimelessmessage,andhasawidevarietyofimportantthemes.
AThousandSplendidSuns,byKhaledHosseinimeetsthisdefinitionandcanproveitselftobea
novelthatcanbeconsideredaclassicandwithstandthetestoftimebecauseitaddressesthe
importantthemesofwomensoppressionthatcanbeappliedtobothAfghanandmodern
Americanlife.
AThousandSplendidSunstakesplaceinAfghanistanandisshoweredbyitsIslamic
culture.Thebackgroundofwherethenovelissetallowsforagreaterunderstandingofthestory.
IthasalottodowithforeignrelationsofAfghanistan,andhowthetakeoveroftheTaliban
affectedthewholesocietyandcommunityofAfghans.AnarticleintheWashingtonQuartly
states,Moreover,theyhaveinterferedwiththedeliveryandadministrationofinternational

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humanitarianreliefandeconomicdevelopmentprograms.Theseproblemsarelikelytocontinue
intheabsenceofU.S.pressure(Khalilzad).TheTalibanhadinitiallybeenapositivechangefor
AfghansbecausetheyhadsavedthemfromtheSovietsruleandmadethemindependent.
However,thepositivevibeleftfastasmanypartsoftheQuranbegantobeaddressed,suchas
womenhadtowearburqaswhentheywereoutsidethehouseandthatmenwerethecentralparts
ofsociety.Thismattersbecauseeverycountryisimportantwhenthinkingaboutworldpeaceand
collaborations.ItaffectsthewaytheUnitedStatesreactedbecausemanypeoplefeltwidearray
ofU.S.andregionalsecurityandhumanitarianinterestsshouldcompelWashingtontoplaya
moreassertiveroleinAfghanistan(Khalilzad).ThisshowsthatAfghanistansproblemswere
consideredataninterantionallevelforsolution.Historynormallyrepeatsitselfonewayorthe
othersoitisimportantwetakethemessagefromthisnovelaboutforeignpoliciesand
internationalrelations.
Thetwomaincharactersinthisnovel,MariamandLaila,arebothfemalecharacters.
ThisisanimportantattributeaboutthembecausethetreatmentoffemalesintheAfghanIslamic
cultureisveryoppressive.Inthenovel,MariamisforcedbyherfathertomarryRasheed,aman
shehasnevermetbefore,whoeventuallyendsupbeingabusivetowardher.Anexampleofthis
waswhenMariamwasunabletogivebirthtoason.Hewouldphysicallyabuseherbecauseshe
wasntcapableoffulfillingherwifeduties.ThisshowsthatwomenlivinginAfghanistanare
facedwithterriblelivingconditionsandhavelittlecontroloftheirlives.Circumstancesgeta
littlebetterforwomeninthebeginningbecausewhentheSovietUniontakeovertheygive
womentheopportunityforeducation,andsomemorebasicrights.However,whentheTaliban
tookoveronceagain,therealAfghanistanwasrestored.TherealAfghanistanbeing,where

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womenwererequiredtowearburqas,andwerelimitedtotheirmediaandsocialexposures.This
makesthenovelhistoricallysignificantbecausealthoughtheserulesandoppressionhave
influencedtheliveswomenfromthebeginning.Hosseiniultimatelyrelaysthemessagethat
peopleneedtobechangedfromthestatusquo,anddemolishthegenderinequalitythat
negativelyaffectsliveseveryday.
Thisoppressionreflectsscenariosoftherealworld.Althoughthephysicaltraumawomen
hadtoendurewasthemostdevastatingpartoftheoppressionofAfghanwomen,theoppression
expandsalittleintothefinancialperspectiveofsocietyandshowsalittlebitofhowthisnovel
canbeinterpretedandlearnedfromindifferentways.ItstatesintheBerkeleyJournalofGender,
Law&JusticethatwhentheTalibanwere
forbiddingwomenfromemploymentoutsideofthehome.'Civilservants,teachers,
bakers,andcharwomen'arestillawaitingthesalariespromisedtothembytheTalibanif
theywouldremainathomeoutsideofthepubliceye.Thisisashockingfinancialblow
forAfghanwomenbecausetheyrepresentnearlysixtyfivetoseventyfivepercentofthe
Afghanpopulation(Telesetsky293).
Thisnegativetreatmentofwomenmakesalargeimpactnotjustsocially,buteconomicallyas
well.Afghanistanisathirdworldcountry,andthebettertheireconomybecomesovertheyears
thebetterchancesithastocatchupwiththeideasandmoresofthemoreadvancedcountries.
BecausewomenarentallowedtoworkinAfghanistan,thatallowsforlessmoneytobe
generatedasawhole,resultingintheconsumersputtinglessmoneybackintothemarket.The
authorshowsthisisaprobleminthenovelwhenhedepictstheconversationbetweenLailaand
theorphanageownerabouthowmothersarehavingtroubletakingcareoftheirchildrendueto

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thefinancialburdenthatitbestowsuponthem(Hosseini318).Ultimately,Hosseiniistryingto
makethepointthateventhoughhistoricallywomenhavebeentreatedthiswaytheyshouldntbe
treatedlikethisinmoderntimes.
Hosseinisnovelrelaysawidevarietyofthemesandmessagesthroughout.Itissucha
versatilenovelfromthebeginning,anditreallyemulatesitspredecessor,TheKiteRunner,asa
novelthatcanprovideadeepmessagethroughabookplacedinadifferentAmericanculture.
Somethemesthatitaddressesaretheinnerstrengthsofwomen,thediscriminationofwomen,
andtheabuseofpower.Theinnerstrengthofwomenisshownthroughthetwocharactersof
LailaandMariam.Theyareputthroughawidevarietyofteststhroughouttheirdifficultlifetime,
andstilltheyareabletohavetheheartandcouragetostandupforthemselves,showingthetrue
powerofwomen.InacritiqueofAThousandSplendidSunsthewriterclaims,Thewomens
onlyhopeofaffectionorsolidarityiswithoneanother,andtheysurvivenotjustphysicallybut
alsoemotionallybyputtingtheirfaithineachother(Hooda3).Thisshowstheoverallstrength
womenhaveandthateventhoughthemanhasmorepowerandrightspolitically,theycanstill
beovercomeifeveryoneworkstogethertofindasolution.
AnotherthemeaddressedinAThousandSplendidSunsistheoveralldiscriminationof
women.Thisthemeisimportantbecausegenderbiashasbeenprevalentthroughoutnearlyevery
singlecountryandculture,whetherthatstheUnitedStatesorAfghanistan,anyonecanlearn
fromthemessageHosseinisupplies.FormenliketheabusiveandcharacterlessRasheed,he
beatshiswomenandcouldevenkilltheminthenameoftheirhonor.Inthenovelhegetsso
abusivehebreaksMariamsmolars.MeninAfghanistancouldalsokeeptheirwivesfromleaving
thehouseandcouldeventakeawaytheirmostbasicrights.Womenwerentallowedtoleavethe

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housewithouttheirhusbandbeingbytheirsideandtheyultimatelyhadlimitedcontroloftheir
lives.InamoderndayAmericansperspective,womenstreatmentwouldsimilartothatoflikea
historicalAfricanAmericanslaveonaplantation.ByshowingthetortureofMariamandLaila,
theauthorindirectlytellshisaudiencethattheyshouldgiveequalpowertobothgendersfor
thingstobefairandrunsmoothly.Ittrulyisbrutalanditissadtothinkthatwomenmaystillbe
treatedthiswayinsomepartsoftheworld.People,especiallymen,needtounderstandthat
womenareimportantpeopletooandAThousandSplendidSunsrelayshowimportantofarole
theyplayinoursociety.
Athirdthemethatisaddressedinthenovelisabouttheabuseofpower.Firstofall,a
smallgroupofpeopleorindividualsshouldneverbegiventhepowertotakecontrolovera
wholecountryanddictatehowthingswillrun.Inthesameway,oneindividualinahousehold
shouldnthaveallthepoweraswell.TheBerkeleyJournalofGender,Law&Justicealsostates
thatconstitutionallawasitexistedasacentralforceundertheSovietbackedgovernmentof
PresidentNajibullahwasoverthrownwiththerisingtopowerofreligiousgroupssuchasthe
Taliban(Telesetsky).ThissaysthattheTalibancontrolledhowsocietywouldrunandhow
peopleshouldlivetheirlifestyles,affectingwomenmorethanmen.Theyabusedtheirpowerand
werebystanderstothehorrificeventsthatweregoingonthroughoutthecountry.IntheTersian
JournalofEnglishStudies,Dr.Nettosays,Thewomenweresoldandabductedasslaves,forced
intomarriages,draggedintoprostitutionandraped(54).AThousandSplendidSunsaddresses
theseproblemsinacoherentmannerandallofthesethemescombinedformaveryapowerful
novelthatcanstayrelevantthroughalongperiodoftime.Itsmessagesareverysimple,yetthey
holdgreatvalue.

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AfterKhaledHosseinipublishedthisbook,mostofthereadersbegantosaythatthis
novelcouldbereadfromahighlyfeministpointofview.Acrituqeofthenovelsays,
Hosseinischoicetoaccomplishthiscompromiseforhercharacters,thefeedbackofhisanger
depictshimasthepictureandareflectionofaperfectfeministauthor(Gordan243).This
showsthatAThousandSplendidSunsdoesexaminemanypartsoftheroleofwomen,their
positioninsociety,andtheinfluencetheyhaveoverthedecisionsmadeinthenovel.Mostofthe
problemsarealsoviewedpurelyfromMariamandLailaseyes.IntheInternationalJournalof
AppliedLinguistics&EnglishLiterature,itstates,Whilethroughthefeministviewpoint,the
novelprovidesproblemsofstruggleofAfghanfemalestofindtheirownselfidentity,revealed
fromthepictureidentifiedbypatriarchalcomponentsandprinciples(Gordan240).Becauseof
theuniquepointofview,theauthorisabletocommunicatehismessagetohisaudience
effectively.Ultimately,thenovelcanbereadinafeministperspectiveandhastheabilityto
speakforwomenwhohavelongbeen(andmanyofwhomcontinuetobe)condemnedto
silence.InAfghanistanitisthebeatingsandwhippingsandthreatsthatmakeupthewomen's
dailyexperiences(Bite).
AThousandSplendidSunsisanovelthatcontainsthecharacteristicsofonethathas
potentialtobeconsideredaclassicinthefuture.Firstofallthenovelhasatimelessmessage.It
discussesmanythingsaboutwomenoppressionandpowerstrugglesthroughMariamandLaila.
Secondly,thenovelhassomesortofambiguityattachedtoit.Thisallowsforthenoveltohave
higherliterarymeritbecauseithasthepotentialtobeanalyzedinaclassroomsetting,andcan
containdeepermeanings.Ithasmanythingsregardingpolitics,women,andfamilyrelations,
whichcanbeinterpretedinmanydifferentways.Thispieceofworkalsohastheabilityto

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pertaintoallhumankind.YoudonthavetobeAfghantounderstandthestruggleofMariamand
Laila.OnecanactuallyfeelthepainandsufferingthatLailaandMariamgothrough,both,
duringthetimesoftheSovietsandwhenTalibantookover(Bite).Itcontainsmultipleideas
thatdisplaysympathytoallofhumankind.Allofthethemesdescribedcanbecombinedand
connectedtohistorical,present,andfuturescenarios.Onesourcediscussedthatwiththe
multitudeofviolenceagainstwomencomingoutoftheBosnianwarandtheRwandan
genocides,theproposedcreationofanInternationalCriminalCourt("ICC")isalikelyvenuefor
reviewinglargescalecasesinvolvingviolenceandgenderdiscrimination(Telesetsky).Positive
changeslikethisshowthatwhenamessageisrelayedmultipletimeseitherthroughnewsmedia
oranovel,positivechangescanhappen.Theversatilityofthisnovelshowsthatitwillmost
likelybeaclassic.ItfollowsasimilarpathtoanothernovelbyKhaledHosseini,TheKite
Runner.Byemulatinghispreviousclassic,Hosseiniputthisnovelinastrongpositiontogetthe
sameorevenbetterresults.

AThousandSplendidSunsisapieceofliteraturemostreaderswillbeabletofinda

connectionwith.Ithasagreatplotandcharactersareabletorelayamessageaboutthe
oppressionofwomen.Itspeakstoawidearrayofproblemsandholdsmanycharacteristicsof
beingapartoftheacademiccanon.KhaledHosseinisnovelisaclassicandshouldholdgreat
valueintheworldofliterature.Thenovelpertainstogenderinequalitywhichissucharelevant
topicthatwillbeaproblemwehavebeenfacingandwillcontinuetifaceinthefuture.The
authordiscussestheimportanceoffightingwomenoppressionandprovidesamessagethatis
applicabletoauniversalaudience.Asreadersandcitizensoftheworld,weshouldattemptto

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learnandabsorbthemessagesnovelssuchasthisoneprovideandtakeactiontomakea
difference.

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WorksCited
Almutairi,Areej,andMarziehGordan.Resistance,aFacetofPostcolonialisminWomen
CharactersofKhaledHosseinisaThousandSplendidSunsInternationalJournalof
AppliedLinguistics&EnglishLiterature2.3(2013):240247.Web.19Nov.2014.
Hooda,Archana.PlightofAfghanWomeninKhaledHosseinisAThousandSplendidSuns
TheCriterion4.5(2013):17.Web.19Nov.2014.
Hosseini,Khaled.AThousandSplendidSuns.NewYork:PenguinGroup,2007.Print.
Khalilzad,Zalmay,andDanielByman.Afghanistan:TheConsolidationofaRogueStateThe
WashingtonQuarterly23.1(2000):6578.Web.19Nov.2014.
Netto,Vincent.ViolentGeographiesandBruisedBodies:KhaledHosseinisAThousand
SplendidSunsTeresianJournalofEnglishStudies1.1(2009):5460.Web.19Nov.
2014.
Telesetsky,Anastasia.IntheShadowsandBehindtheVeil:WomeninAfghanistanunderthe
TalibanRuleBerkeleyJournalofGender,Law&Justice13.1(2013):293305.Web.19
Nov.2014.