A+Thousand+Splended+Suns+Journal+Entry

Ch. 1-12 (up to page 70)

Why did you select this novel? I chose the novel 'A Thousand Splendid Suns' because it takes place in Afghanistan, and I'd like to learn more about Middle Eastern culture. The main character, Miriam is a girl my age, and I thought that it would be interesting to learn how different her life was from mine. The cover of the book caught my eye, with an illustration of a woman (possibly Miriam) wearing a burka and looking over a city, which I suppose would be Herat.

What has happened before the novel began? I learned from the first few chapters that Miriam, a girl of fifteen, was born to an unmarried house maid, and a rich man. She lived with her mother, Nana, but her father Jalil comes to visit her every Thursday. Her father was the person that Miriam most admired, as her mother had told her that her birth had been a shame and a disgrace. Nana had been told to leave by her father and his three wives after she became pregnant with Miriam. However, her father had built them a small house and regularly brought them food and supplies. Nana and Miriam live just outside the town of Herat, which Miriam had never been to.

Who is telling the story? How does this person’s perspective effect the way the story is told? The story is told in third person, but we're only told the thoughts and feelings of Miriam. From that, I learned that Miriam admires her father more than anyone, and longs to visit the near-by town of Herat. In the chapters following that information, Miriam asks her father to take her to his cinema in Herat as her birthday present, which he grudgingly agrees to. Because of her admiration of her father, she excitedly waits for him in the field where they agreed to meet. However, when he doesn't show up, she ventures into the city of Herat alone and finds his house. Because of the point of perspective, we only know what Nana and Jalil are thinking because of the words and actions.

What is the setting of the novel? Is the setting important or could the novel be happening anywhere? Why? The novel 'A Thousand Splendid Suns' takes place in Afghanistan during the 1970's and 80's, which greatly affects the story line. Because of the setting, it was normal and acceptable for Jalil to have three wives, and completely unacceptable for Nana to have a child out of wedlock, which is why she was shunned. After Nana hanged herself, 15 year-old Miriam is marred off to a 45 year-old man by her father's family, which wouldn't have happened in North America. The setting was vital to the story line.

10/10 PAGES/DATE? What is the initial or first problem faced by the main character? Miriam loses her mother and is sent to live with her father and his ligitimate family. Jalil's wives do not accept Miriam as part of their family, so Jalil marries her off to a forty-five year old man. Miriam is upset about this, and stays in her own room for the first several weeks of her marriage to Rasheed. Rasheed is very old-fashioned, and makes Miriam wear a full Burka. He says that a woman's face is her husbands business only. Miriam becomes more and more reclusive as the novel goes on. How does the author get you to read on or hold your interest? Miriam soon learns that she is with child, so she and Rasheed travel great distances to a hospital. Miriam feels blessed and is full of joy, and Rasheed is even more so, after the loss of his first child many years ago. However, Rasheed is convinced that the child will be a boy, and Miriam feels that he is putting too much pressure on her, as the gender of the child was beyond her control. Rasheed even bought an expensive boy's coat for the child. We also witness the rise of communism in Afghanistan, a man from their town is rumoured to have been murdered by the government. The old ruler is killed, along with his entire family, and all western communication is cut off. Rasheed's radio no longer recieves signal, and the new ruler announces that Afghanistan is to be a happy place of equality, like the Soviet Union. He also states North America to be an unhappy land of inequality. As this is being said, Miriam and Rasheed hear shots going off in the distance. As this is happening, the woman across the street is giving birth to a fair haired, green eyed child, who we are intruduced nine years in the future. What new things are added to the original problem as the novel progresses? Early on in the pregnancy, Rasheed brings Miriam to a crowded bath house. Miriam was scrubbing her arms when suddenly she was overcome with pain. The woman who lives across the street was also at the bath house, and found her in a pool of blood. The mood of the novel changes after that incident; Rasheed is very upset about the misscarriage, and seems to blame it on Miriam. Miriam looks to blame Allah, but realizes her sin and prays for forgiveness. Rasheed becomes very violent and short tempered, and their life together becomes no-longer enjoyable, as it had been for a short time. The novel skips ahead a couple of years, when they've now had six miscarriages, and Miriam is made to feel like a burden to her husband. PLOT OUTLINE FOR THIS SECTION? 7/10