Suffering of Women

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Suffering of Women in Developing Countries

Morgan Carrick

Bayside High School

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Suffering of Women in Developing Countries

A Thousand Splendid Suns, set in Afghanistan, captures the ongoing issue of how women

are being treated in other parts of the world. As Americans, we are often unaware of these basic

issues that are so common for many other cultures. The book, written by Khaled Hosseini, tells

the story of a girl named “Mariam,” and her journey through life. Her marriage to Rasheed was

like a prison until we meet “Laila”, Rasheed’s second wife. Through their trials with Rasheed,

we see the characters grow in a need to assert their independence and be free. Khaled Hosseini

brings to light the ongoing suffering that women encounter in other parts of the world through

different characters, setting, and emotion.

Through different characters, we see friendships, relationships, and hardships. Laila and

Mariam, who were initially enemies, eventually become almost sister-like in their behavior,

following the ongoing abuse that they suffer from Rasheed. “Have I married a pair of statues?

Go on Mariam, gap bezan, say something to her. Where are your manners?” (Hosseini, 2007, pg.

222) Once Laila arrived, Mariam was pushed aside and treated even more unfairly. “If she was a

car, she would be a Volga.” “You, on the other hand, would be a Benz.” (Hosseini, 2007, p. 222)

Through this, it is interpreted that because Mariam had grown out of the “new and fresh” phase

for him and Laila was that shiny new car that everybody loved. Rasheed was very abusive to

both of them, verbally and physically. “Laila didn’t see the punch coming” (Hosseini, 2007, p.

268). Rasheed beat both girls periodically throughout the book. As sad as this may seem, this is

the daily occurrence for many women in other countries like Yemen, where a health survey in

2013 found 92% of women felt violence was common in the home.
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The book is set in a city called “Kabul,” which, throughout the book, is often the site of

war. In the beginning, there is an ongoing battle, and Mariam loses her two brothers who had

fought and died. Later, Mariam’s father forces her to marry Rasheed after her mother dies. In

other cultures, poor families will marry their female children for the dowry they receive in an

arranged marriage. In Mariam and Laila’s case, it was not any different. However, in this book,

the reader can see how horrible women’s lives are when they have to live in this situation. For

instance, they may not go outside without being accompanied by a man, and when they do, they

often are forced to wear a burqa. In fact, this is true for many cities and countries. According to

the Washington Post: Restrictions on Women’s rights across the world, in Yemen “women can’t

leave the house without their husband’s permission”. In the house, women must do the house

chores and prepare food for the family, all while caring for the young children still at home.

Women often do not get an education unless they are privileged, so they do not know much

outside of what they are taught when they are young or from their husbands.

Lastly, to capture the audience’s attention, Hosseini also uses emotion to tie the whole

book together. By this he is able to show how Mariam and Laila feel suffocated, trapped by

Rasheed’s rule. Eventually, Mariam has had enough of Rasheed’s abuse, leading to her killing

him. Both of the women flee with their children, knowing their actions would be extremely risky.

They knew that life couldn’t get worse then what they dealt with back home. According to the

Washington Post, “even if a crime was committed against a woman, and she acted out for

defense, she was still punishable by law.” Another example from the Washington Post article is

in Ecuador, “if a woman is raped, she is forced to carry the child because abortion is illegal.”

Lastly, it was emotion that led Laila to decide that her unborn child would be named Mariam, if
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it was a girl, in honor of her brave friend. Mariam had taken the risk of committing a crime

punishable by death to free herself, Laila, and the children from continued abuse at the hands of

Rasheed.

A Thousand Splendid Suns is a perfect reminder that there are women around the world

who do not have access to the same standards and laws that we are privileged to have here, in the

United States. Khaled Hosseini brings to life the ongoing suffering that women encounter in

other parts of the world through different characters, setting, and emotion. We often take for

granted the equal rights we are given in the United States and over-look how much more we

might have than those in circumstances similar to Mariam and Laila; those things not measured

in objects or what we see with our naked eye.

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Cited Resources:

Dewey, Caitlyn (2013 October, 27) 7 Ridiculous Restrictions on Women’s Rights around the

World. Retrieved from https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/worldviews/wp/2013/10/27/7-

ridiculous-restrictions-on-womens-rights-around-the-world/?utm_term=.3e5c96d70ba6

Hosseini, Khaled (2007) A Thousand Splendid Suns. New York, New York: Riverhead Books