Symbolism In A Thousand Splendid Suns

A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini is a very moving and captivating novel that uses a variety of symbols and the technique of imagery to convey important messages and ideas. This is why I chose to have multiple symbols present 2 major themes in my mind map. Firstly, I chose to depict a women’s struggle against the oppression placed upon them. I did this by placing a shovel in my mind map in order to symbolize the protagonists, Mariam’s and Laila’s own fight against oppression. In this case, Mariam uses the shovel to once and for all end the abuse that both she and Laila have suffered by the hands of Rasheed. When he begins to physically abuse Laila, Mariam takes a shovel kills Rasheed. After doing so, Laila and Mariam dig a hole in the backyard and bury Rasheed there, explain the corpse underneath the shovel. By doing this, she symbolizes that though she may not have had a choice of her oppression, she still has the power to end it. Another symbol that I chose to represent Laila’s and Mariam’s fight against the systematic oppression of women by patriarchal institutions, is the burqa. I depicted both Laila and Mariam wearing a burqa since in the novel, both were forced to wear the burqa, and instead of feeling oppressed, they sought comfort and liberation in it. I also made sure to make Mariam and
Firstly I have a poster of the movie Titanic on a kolba, or hut. This poster symbolizes women wanting to be saved (e.g Jack), but realizing that the only person that can save them is themselves. The other symbol that I’ve used to express this idea is the noose hanging from the tree. In Hosseini’s novel, the noose is used by Mariam’s mother to kill herself when Mariam leaves to go to her father’s place. This is significant since it is able to highlight that the battle is almost unbeatable and some women succumb to the pressure, either killing themselves or result in getting