Mariam’s Sacrifice It has often been said that what we value is determined only by what we sacrifice. The novel A Thousand Splendid Suns, by Khaled Hosseini, includes one specific character who makes a sacrifice that demonstrates what she truly values in life. Mariam, a major character in the book, sacrifices her life in order to save Laila and her children. This sacrifice allows the reader to view what Mariam truly cares about: the survival of Laila, her happiness, and her children. Mariam’s sacrifice highlights her willingness to do whatever it takes to save the ones she loves, allowing for a deeper understanding of Mariam and how sacrifice is a major theme in the novel. Throughout the course of the novel, Mariam makes a variety of sacrifices …show more content…
From start to finish, one could see how much Mariam values Laila, Aziza, and their friendship. The first example is when Mariam vows to help Laila while they are in the hospital for Laila’s unborn child: “I’ll get you seen, Laila jo. I promise” (287). This simple promise is a deep portrayal of Mariam’s desire to help Laila find a doctor and deliver her baby. Additionally, one can see Mariam’s love for Laila when she protects her from Rasheed’s grip of death, “‘Rasheed.’ He looked up. Mariam swung. She hit him across the temple. The blow knocked him off Laila” (348). Rasheed was going to kill Laila, but Mariam steps in and knocks him off of her with a shovel to save her life. Mariam forms a tight-knit bond with Laila, and when Hosseini includes their relationship, one can see how Mariam values Laila enough to kill another man. The author also describes their relationship after Mariam and Laila discuss plans for leaving: “When they do, they’ll find you as guilty as me. Tariq too. I won’t have the two of you living on the run like fugitives.” … “Laila crawled to her and again put her head on Mariam’s lap. She remembered all the afternoons they’d spent together, braiding each other’s hair, Mariam listening patiently to her random thoughts and ordinary stories with an air of gratitude, with the expression of a person to whom a unique and coveted privilege had been extended” (358). The love Mariam has for …show more content…
Sacrifice is a common motif in the work, and it allows the reader to visualize what is most meaningful to each of the characters. Hosseini’s use of Mariam’s sacrifice, along with those of the other characters, gives the reader a taste of what the characters value and how it shapes the meaning of the novel as a
We learn from conflict that sacrifices must be made to help others. In the novel The Devil’s Arithmetic by Jane Yolen, Hannah was an altruistic person that always put others before herself. Because of her heroic nature, she often risked her life for other people. For example, when Commander Breuer visited the concentration camp to choose who would be killed, Hannah risked execution by attempting to save Reuven. When he was caught, Hannah desperately tried to convince the commander to let the child go. The commandant took Reuven away in spite of her pleas. She was unsuccessful; however, this selfless act could have cost Hannah her life. These dire situations force people to jeopardize their own safety for someone else. Hannah’s protective instincts
Essentially, Laila and Mariam protect each other from Rasheed, but they also protect the other important people in their lives when they are threatened also. Equally important, they protect others, in spite of the lack of protection from the power of oppression.
How much are you willing to sacrifice for another? Whether they are a family member or a complete stranger. In the novel The Kite Runner Baba was was willing to risk his life when he had stood up and was trying to stop the Russian soldier from rape the young woman as payment for letting them pass through one of the checkpoints. Then there had been Amir it was when he had suffered extreme injuries, nearly losing his life when he had fought Assef, so that he could save Sohrab for the abuse he was suffering from the Taliban. Both Character Baba and Amir were willing to sacrifice themselves for another person, regardless of who they were. Khaled Hosseini’s novel, The Kite Runner, teaches the reader sacrificing your life can lead to another person’s happiness through Baba saving the woman from the Russian soldier and Amir fighting Assef.
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.
Mariam can be seen as the victim of many men’s actions. A victim can be someone who is physically or emotionally hurt from another person’s actions. Because of the choices a person, or a group of people make, people are affected and made victims of the situation. In Mariam’s life, she faced many attacks from men, both physically and emotionally. She was the victim of Jahlil’s actions to send her away in order to keep his reputation. He made her the victim of his lies and actions to make sure society viewed him
This tailored details demonstrate that the author wants to focus on “loving” imperfection as better than “loyal” “sainthood.” This repetition technique emphasizes the author’s key idea that choosing human imperfection for “love” is better sometimes than sticking “loyally” to “sainthood,” no matter what. The author shows his passionate tone and strong feelings about
Lastly Khaled Hosseini looks at a Afghan family and how its each family members commitment and strong bond is what is essential in ones future/identity. In the novel it was evident that Pari’s relationship with her family, mainly her brother, Abdullah was Pari’s source of unconditional love and it was that very thing that kept Pari connected to her roots which is the very thing that shaped her future/identity. Pari’s uncle was the very reason why Pari was sold in the novel and the cause of Abdullah being stripped from his only family. In the novel the separation of Pari and Abdullah caused sever pain as Abdullah was not just a brother rather he played the mother and father figure for Pari. In the novel the author, Khaled Hosseini uses many
An example of this that is related to my life is how my mother had a choice: either take care of me, specifically be my mother, but lose a great deal of her opportunities or say, “I’m not their real mother, I don’t have an obligation to raise them.” but instead, she said, “I love these children and I only want the best for them. Also, I believe it is in the best interest of the children that they have a mother to raise them up to be kind people in this chaotic world.” Her decision lead to several years sacrificed, which I find quite touching the heart; therefore, I could only try to be the best I can be while remaining grateful at the same time being the source of her pride. The characters in “The Gift of the Magi” sacrificed something that is important to them to sell it for money to buy the person they love a gift that would be important to
Not only do sacrifices occur in mothers and daughters, but also in mothers and sons, as presented in “Night Women,” the fourth chapter of the book. The unnamed “night” woman displays
Mariam’s bold and definitive actions expressed in chapter 45, page 349, of A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini, illustrates the exact moment when her fate is sealed. Mariam killed her husband Rasheed while he was beating his other wife Laila. What Mariam did changes everything, and there is a great deal of evidence that her fate has has been sealed.
People endure every single day. Whether physical endurance, or mental endurance, everyone endures. My personal story of endurance is similar Mariam. I was sent to a summer long camp. Much like Mariam, everyday was a struggle in itself. The queasy, sick feeling of missing name, and not knowing what day will bring. When most people are faced with emotional, or physical endurance, they give up. But in the novel A thousand Splendid suns, by Khaled Hosseini, is a story about when you don’t give up. The novel is about a women named Mariam, borna a harabi, who is forced to marry a man she had never previously known. Mariam and Laila use patience, hope, and a strong mental will to endure everyday life.
Dickens notes that in the midst of a revolution, heavy bloodshed must be made in order to achieve the vengeance that the peasants desire. Though the peasants were originally people of good faith, they were forced by the aristocratic government to take drastic actions. Poverty, the mother of all crimes, along with the aristocrats “crushing humanity out of shape once more” gave the peasants no choice.” Dickens conveys here that because of the negligence of the government, the people were forced to sacrifice their good nature and engage in the violent acts that caused a time of great animosity and dejection. Sacrifices are often made to strengthen bonds, and no other bond in the novel is stronger than the one that Lucie Mannette shares with her father, Dr. Manette.
It is a known fact of life that true love is hard to find in this day and age; one could say it is more plausible to find a needle in a haystack. True, sincere love, when found, is a real test to humanity. O.Henry, the author of the short story “The Gift of The Magi”, has written a masterpiece about a young couple who give everything they have for each other in order to show the great magnitude of their love. Della and James Young live in a poor suburb of New York where the young couple resides in a shabby apartment. They do not have much to give; however, it is Christmas Eve, so both are searching for a gift for the other. Both Della and James sacrifice their most valued gifts in order to please the other. O.Henry
I believe in this world we must give up something in the exchange of getting something better. Sacrificing is essential for the solution of everyday problem. Modern American families are surprised at first that a simple principle like sacrifice provided solution to all their problems. We don’t value sacrifice as much as we value self-care. Sacrifice is doing something against your own inclination in order to please someone you love or not doing something that you’d like to do in order to please someone you love. It may seem costly at times, but sacrifice is a gift with many rewards.
In the novel, Mariam never loves anyone outside of her family because of the isolation of her home and the fear that Nana attempted to instill in Mariam. The most recurring lesson Nana tries to teach Mariam is that her father and all men lack devotion and respect towards women. Once, Nana explained, “Like a compass needle that points north, a man’s accusing finger always finds a woman. Always. You remember that, Mariam” (Hosseini 7). Such a statement held true meaning, however, Mariam failed to understand how it applied to her until Jalil, Mariam’s father, pressured her into an arranged marriage. On the contrary, in Osama, while facing sentencing for dressing as a boy to collect income for her family, Osama avoids execution to instead be married to a man significantly older than her (Moinfar, Osama). Unfortunately, situations like these closely resemble the reality of today in which women are forced into marriage, to have children, and are treated as possessions for the rest of their lives. The next example is an instance in A Thousand Splendid Suns where Hosseini forms a relationship of unrealistic circumstances. In the novel, Laila grows up next to her neighbor Tariq. Over the years they grow more and more fond of each other until they fall in love (Hosseini, 113). A true relationship happens to be a very rare occurrence in this society, therefore, including this relationship in the novel might possibly give readers a false-sense that arranged marriages are infrequent