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Essay on Mariam in ‘A Thousand Splendid Suns’
Despite ‘A Doll’s House’ (1879) and ‘A Thousand Splendid Suns’ (2007), being written over a century apart, collectively both texts highlight the oppressing nature of a patriarchal society. Henrik Ibsen explores the journey of the main protagonist Nora, who becomes dissatisfied with her sacrifice to become a wife and fulfil her role as a mother. Eventually, she realizes that to find her own identity, she needs to shake off the chains of oppression. Similarly, in ‘A Thousand Splendid Suns’, Khaled Hosseini presents the main protagonists Mariam and Laila as controlled by their husbands. The oppression they face reflects Afghanistan in the 20th century, during an extended period of Taliban rule.
Ibsen uses the title ‘A Doll’s House’ to emphasize Nora’s perception as a physical doll with no free will. The idea of Nora being a ‘Doll’ is reflected throughout the play, therefore this is symbolic. Nora is constantly confined to the same location, which depicts how she lives her life as a prisoner. This is in stark contrast to the title of Hosseini’s novel, ‘A Thousand Splendid Suns,’ which was borrowed from a poem penned by Saeb-E-Tabrizi, a seventeenth-century Persian poet. The phrase ‘A Thousand Splendid Suns’ is used to characterize Afghanistan’s beauty and achievements, which is ironic given that Hosseini’s novel analyses the damage that occurs in Afghanistan, whether it is due to Taliban rule or not.
The audience is quickly aware of Torvald’s oppressive attitude during Act 1 of ‘A Doll’s House.’ Nora’s actions are described by Ibsen using the stage direction ‘placed a bag of macaroons into her pocket and wipes her lips.’ Ibsen uses small insignificant objects as multi-layered symbols throughout the play; Nora eating the macaroons depicts her inability to conduct even the most basic of tasks without her husband’s permission. Torvald forbids macarons, symbolizing his dominance over their marriage. Nora is not only verbally oppressed by Torvald, but she is also oppressed by his reputation, which she is continually required to maintain and uphold. This is supported by Torvald’s decision to ban macarons because he does not want Nora’s teeth to be ruined. Nora must maintain her physical appearance to please Torvald, and eating the macaroons will contaminate not only her image but also Torvald’s. Nora needs to fool Torvald to do exactly what she desires, therefore cleaning her lips and hiding the macaroons in her pocket could be interpreted as a subtle act of disobedience, as Nora has to deceive Torvald to accomplish precisely what she desires.
Torvald’s control over Nora is normalised supporting that oppression becomes the ‘new normal.’ This is exemplified through Torvald’s use of employment and finance as a form of oppression towards Nora. Money is a sign of power and money is a recurring motif presented in ‘A Doll’s House’ since it influences all of the play’s primary characters. In Act 1, Torvald has recently been promoted and is about to earn a ‘big fat income’, this is ironic because even though he has just undergone a pay rise and is financially stable, he still chastises Nora for spending too much. He dictates how much money Nora spends on Christmas decorations; this represents his power over her. Ibsen does this purposely as a sign of irony because Nora uses her own money made by herself to save Torvald’s life. Although Nora is proud that she raised the money for Torvald’s trip to Italy, the debt she owes to Krogstad could bring significant shame to Torvald. Nora’s debt to Krogstad is another way Nora is controlled and oppressed financially.
Like Nora, many women were subjected to financial exploitation. During the nineteenth century, rigid Victorian norms and laws governed Norway, severely restricting most women’s rights, particularly those of married women. The Napoleonic Code gained a lot of traction in Europe. The code was created to keep women from participating in any financial transactions. This is reinforced by Nora’s unemployment, as well as Mrs Linde’s desperate desire for work after her husband’s death. Nora and Mrs. Linde are both unable to earn large sums of money due to their gender; their incapacity to do so is another way in which they are oppressed by the sexism of the time.
Like ‘A Doll’s House’, oppression is a key theme present within Hossein’s ‘A Thousand Splendid Suns’, this is shown through the characters Mariam and Laila and their dual narrations. The novel begins with ‘Mariam was five years old when she first heard the word ‘harami’. Hosseini uses this purposefully to introduce Afghani phrases that come up on multiple occasions within the novel. The word is stated several paragraphs before it is given any actual definition which allows the reader to determine the meaning. In short, the word ‘harami’ translates as ‘bastard child’. Although brief, the introduction of the book establishes many things early on, for example, Mariam being partly abandoned by Jalil. After being abandoned by Jalil, Mariam grows up in the lowest class. This juxtaposes how Laila is introduced. Differently from Mariam, Laila grows up as a part of a middle-class, well-respected family and is characterized by her physical appearance. She even has some privileges like having access to good, formal education. This is significant because Hosseini uses Mariam and Laila as foils to show two females from completely different backgrounds and life experiences can still end up facing domination and oppression at the foot of a man, whether through physical or emotional abuse. This highlights the vulnerability and powerlessness of multiple women in Afghanistan, especially under the rule of the Taliban. Throughout this time, Afghanistan was subjected to a series of violent, brutal wars and numerous political coups that affected women especially.
Nana goes on to warn Mariam that a ‘man’s accusing finger will always find a woman.’ Nana continuously prepares Mariam for a life with little regard from men, emphasizing that men will always blame women for anything. The adjective ‘accusing’ reinforces the idea that Afghani women are trapped since they cannot escape the never-ending accusations of a man. This is about Nana’s own experience of being blamed for her affair with Jalil and resenting how it affected her life. Nana’s life transitioned from comfortable urban living to complete isolation as a housekeeper with a child. This reflects oppression in twentieth-century Afghanistan because it was normal for men to have multiple wives at one time, and it was normal for many husbands to just abandon their wives and children.
Ibsen and Hosseini both show how women are constantly oppressed due to their physical appearance. Nora suggests dressing up as a ‘Neapolitan fisher girl’ at the fancy dress ball as Act 2 of ‘A Doll’s House progresses. She is immediately restrained because the outfit is Torvald’s suggestion, demonstrating how he holds her in her place and even supervises her party attire. Even though regulating a person’s dress is a visible form of oppression, it is overlooked due to the normality of the gesture.
Torvald continues to treat Nora as if she were a pet in this scene. His only desire is to show her off as a trophy, which is reinforced by her learning to dance the Tarantella. The tarantella, like the macarons, represents a side of Nora that she typically hides. She dances passionately, and for a brief period, she is free of the restraints that come with being the ‘ideal’ Victorian wife. Nora performs an extremely sexual and aggressive tarantella, and Torvald acknowledges that her dancing makes him ‘desire’ her. This implies that Nora is only permitted to be seen in public when Torvald allows her to be and when Nora pleases his image. In conclusion, the tarantella dance could symbolize Nora’s final attempt to save her marriage and her final attempt at being her husband’s perfect, conforming doll.
Dissimilarly, in ‘A Thousand Splendid Suns’, Mariam is ushered to cover up constantly, which is the furthest away from being displayed as a public trophy like Nora. In chapter 10, Rashid makes the comment ‘Where I come from, a woman’s face is her husband’s business only’. In the early 2000s, after the eventual establishment of the Taliban, the fractured government put more pressure on women and oppressed and alienated them further. Burqas were traditionally worn by Pashtuns in Afghanistan. In the novel, Rasheed directs Mariam to wear the burqa. Mariam agrees and In response, states ‘It’s strange seeing the world through a mesh screen’. The adjective ‘mesh’ reflects her distortion and her detachment from the real, outside world, which she now only sees through a ‘mesh screen’. The burqa is proof that women were obliged to hide their identities, exposing their tyranny and lack of basic rights. Girls were also prohibited from attending school under Taliban rule. Females were restricted to the point where they were denied access to even the most basic education which reflects their oppression.
Torvald uses his words to oppress Nora. ‘My little skylark’ and ‘my squirrel’ are two pet-like names he frequently employs. Torvald gives Nora an innocent, childlike demeanor by adding the epithet ‘little’ to her name, which highlights that throughout the entirety of the play, Torvald fails to acknowledge Nora as an equal. Ibsen uses animal imagery to develop Nora’s character further. His choice of words is extremely patronizing, especially because they are pet-like names he is using to address her. This indicates that his treatment of her is similar to the treatment of a little child. Her submission is something Torvald desires because it reinforces his power which means she remains oppressed throughout the play. Furthermore, the possessive pronoun ‘my’ which is frequently used suggests his overall possessiveness and control over Nora. Torvald treats Nora more like a child than a wife, which results in her awakening because she realizes, she desires more.
In contrast, in ‘A Thousand Splendid Suns,’ both Mariam and Laila endure oppression not only through Rashid’s spoken remarks but also through physical oppression. Rashid is an emotionally frigid man who is deliberately abusive to both Laila and Mariam during the novel. Rashid’s violence against Mariam begins when she is unable to conceive a child; this prolongs his desire to have a son, prompting him to abuse Mariam and marry Laila. This demonstrates how women were oppressed due to uncontrolled elements such as their fertility, which they couldn’t change. A turning point for Mariam is in chapter 45, where an accumulation of thoughts, feelings, and emotions flash before her eyes. During this chapter, Laila is whipped, ‘without saying a word, he swung the belt at Laila.’ It then continues to say, ‘He did it with such speed that she had no time to retreat or duck’ The verbs ‘retreat’ and ‘duck’ are both military terms that give the reader a vivid sense of actuality. Rashid’s unrelenting personality is reflected in the fact that Laila doesn’t even have time to scream or speak physically, which relates to how Rashid silences her. This drives Mariam to hit Rashid with a shovel and kill him. The chapter is pivotal because it comes at a point where Mariam contemplates the anguish and oppression Rashid has caused her, in comparison to the love she feels toward Laila. Mariam acts like a mother; she is not afraid to die herself but she will do whatever it takes to protect Laila. Mariam acts differently from how ordinary women in Twentieth-century Afghanistan would’ve acted, many women were silenced and very rarely stood up to their abusive husbands. Most victims were most likely to stay silent because women had very few rights and men were favored. A contemporary reader would deem this as acceptable because abuse within marriage was very normalized. Violence against women in Afghanistan was not only common but expected, this represents the oppressive nature of Afghanistan as a country as a whole. However, a modern-day audience would interpret Rashid’s behavior as extremely shocking especially because equality is more prevalent in today’s society.
Oppression is a reoccurring motif presented throughout ‘A Doll’s House and ‘A Thousand Splendid Suns’. The main protagonists Nora, Mariam, and Laila are oppressed and dominated by their husbands both verbally and physically and are oppressed by the societies they live in. It can be credible to suggest that Nora does escape, which is positive because it means that even oppressed women have the chance to live a better life. As Act 3 of ‘A Doll’s House’ comes to an end, the play concludes with the stage direction ‘the sound of the door shutting is heard from below’. Previously Nora was oppressed by her father, and then by her husband Torvald, who she constantly lived by according to his rules. The closing of the door represents a new sense of opportunity for Nora now she has the chance to be fully free. The ‘slamming’ of the door is significant because it provides a massive shift from Nora’s submissive and dutiful role as a wife and woman at the beginning of the play to her behavior now. Over time, she becomes more aware of herself and the position she plays. Nora leaves her life and her children behind. It can be argued that Nora should have never left her children because that is not a moral act a mother would commit, but to find herself, she had to leave. On the other hand, in ‘A Thousand Splendid Suns’, Mariam never escapes. Director of Academic Engagement at the University of Pennsylvania Rebecca A. Stuhr speaks her truth on Hosseini’s ‘A Thousand Splendid Suns’. She concludes that ‘Laila and Mariam are neither passive nor helpless as they make choices and accept consequences to affect desired ends, both hopeful and tragic’. Mariam accepts the death penalty and says, ‘I always knew I’d die this way,’ indicating her acceptance of loss and the position she plays as a woman in society. Mariam’s death could be interpreted as a representation that sometimes death was the only way for Afghani women to escape the chains of oppression. As a reader, this can be rather distressing because no woman’s only means of escape should be death.
In summary, ‘A Thousand Splendid Suns’ examines every element of Mariam’s life, from her clothing choices to who she married. Nora, on the other hand, was just restricted; although limited, she had some independence. As a result, Nora had a better chance of escaping the chains of oppression, whereas Mariam couldn’t. Hosseini uses Mariam’s figure to represent all the women who never had the chance to escape oppression, reinforcing Focault’s argument that oppression and dominance have become the ‘new normal.’
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