Najmah Under The Persimmon Tree: Character Analysis

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(AGG) Thanks to the news, when we think about the Middle East, all that comes to mind is facts, and it doesn’t really register that these are real people, under tragic and desperate circumstances, trying to make a living. (BS-1) Najmah was initially a somewhat childish girl who couldn’t imagine who she’d become after encountering the ruthless Taliban. (BS-2) Najmah’s thoughts and actions while with Akhtar’s family have been the foundation in tracking her developments, and her silence, if dug into deep enough, portrays some development in her mindset as well. (BS-3) Najmah and Nusrat’s losses have built a connection between both of them, but Najmah still learns, experiences, and develops while spending time with Elaine. (TS) Under The Persimmon Tree
(MIP-1) Najmah’s encounter with the Taliban ignited her initial changes and developments -- We see some development and change of mindset after this encounter, but the source of it all was when Baba-jan told Najmah to “take care of [her] mother” (Staples 14). (SIP-A) There are two major points of interest in Najmah’s maturity and character change, and her encounter with the Taliban was the first step in a journey of a thousand miles. (STEWE-1) A starting point was when we saw how Najmah is frightened and hesitant to go to the stream because her older brother, Nur, tormented her by pretending there was a leopard’s pug marks at that same spot earlier, and she “hesitate[d] where the two paths split’” (Staples 4). (STEWE-2) The spot where all of that changes is when personification takes place with a leopard and a goat. “The bukri cries out in a bleating that sounds like a human baby, and I want to snatch her away from this human leopard” (Staples 17). This changes because the experience of the goat being taken away was almost like losing her childhood, her innocence. (SIP-B) Najmah's encounter with the Taliban changes her role in the family along with her level of tolerance which

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