FINAL TERM ASSIGNMENT

STYLISTICS

Compiled by
Rohib Adrianto Sangia
NIM. 137835102
Phone. 085225555332

UNIVERSITAS NEGERI SURABAYA

PROGRAM PASCA SARJANA
S-2 PENDIDIKAN BAHASA INGGRIS
2015

Table of Contents

Cover

Table of Contents

Introduction

Biography of Khaled Hosseini and novels summary

Biography of Khaled Hosseini

The summary of A Thousand Splendid Suns

Stylistic Analysis of A Thousand Splendid Suns.

13

Hosseini's Style, Technique and Works

13

Figurative Language

16

References

29

Stylistics Analysis of Khaled Hosseini novel

A Thousand Splendid Suns.

I.

Introduction
Stylistics is the study and interpretation of texts from a linguistic
perspective. As a discipline it links literary criticism and linguistics, but has
no autonomous domain of its own. The preferred object of stylistic studies is
literature, but not exclusively "high literature" but also other forms of written
texts such as text from the domains of advertising, pop culture, politics or
religion. Stylistics also attempts to establish principles capable of explaining
the particular choices made by individuals and social groups in their use of
language, such as socialization, the production and reception of meaning,
critical discourse analysis and literary criticism.
Other features of stylistics include the use of dialogue, including
regional accents and peoples dialects, descriptive language, the use of
grammar, such as the active voice or passive voice, the distribution of
sentence lengths, the use of particular language registers, etc. In addition,
stylistics is a distinctive term that may be used to determine the connections
between the form and effects within a particular variety of language.
Therefore, stylistics looks at what is going on within the language; what the
linguistic associations are that the style of language reveals.
This paper eventually is going to involve in stylistics feature analysis
of Khaled Hosseinis A Thousand Splendid Suns. This paper will be contained
several section. The first will be discussed about the theoretical review in
analyzing the novel. Next section will be occupied with the biography of the
authors and the summary of the novel. In the end of body, there will be the
analysis essay of the novel based on the theoretical review that has been
discussed before.

II.

Biography of Khaled Hosseini and novels summary1

In A Thousand Splendid Suns Hosseini returns to Afghanistan and
once more offers his readers a love story. As in The Kite Runner, the
relationships are complicated and diverse. There is first and foremost the
love between two women, supporting each other in their marriage to the
same man. There is also a more traditional love storya childhood romance
that at first seems hopeless and then becomes reality. All of this is set in the
midst of war and famine over three decades in both the cities and
countryside of Afghanistan. The two women are quite different from one
another and were raised in completely different words, although within the
same country. They nonetheless forge a strong bond of family and
friendship.
Later, the author biography and the summary of the novel will be
elaborated in the following subsection.

1. Biography of Khaled Hosseini

Khaled Hosseini was born in 1965 in Kabul, Afghanistan, where
his

father worked for the Afghan Foreign Ministry. In 1970, Hosseinis

family moved to Iran, where his father worked for the Afghan embassy for
three years, before returning to Afghanistan. In 1976, the family moved to
Paris, France, where they remained during the coup of the Peoples
Democratic Party of Afghanistan in 1978 and subsequent Soviet invasion.
They sought political asylum in the United States in 1980, relocating to San
Jose, California.
Hosseini graduated high school in San Jose and went on to study
biology at Santa Clara University. He then entered the medical school at
University of California at Davis, earning his M.D. in 1993. He began writing
his first novel in 2001, while also practicing medicine.

Source : Stuhr (2009)

As a child, Hosseini read mostly Persian poetry, as well as many

Persian translations of Western literature. His memory of childhood in preSoviet Afghanistan is a fond one, and he often borrows from these early
memories in his writing.
His first novel, The Kite Runner, was published in 2003, and has since
become an international best-seller, with more than 10 million copies sold
worldwide. The Kite Runner was adapted into a film of the same name in
2007. His second book, A Thousand Splendid Suns, was published in 2007.
The previous year, Hosseini was named goodwill envoy to the United
Nations Refugee Agency.

2. The summary of A Thousand Splendid Suns

Mariam is five years old when the novel opens. She is waiting for her
father Jalil to arrive for his weekly visit. Mariam is Jalils illegitimate
daughter. Her mother, Nana, was a servant in Jalils household when she
became pregnant. The family was outraged and Nana and Mariam were
thrown out of the house. Nanas life is bitter. She has been discarded by Jalil
and disowned by her father; Nanas mother died when she was two. She
resents Mariams devotion to Jalil and is cynical about his kindnesses to her.
Nana is very harsh with Mariam and tells her that she is an unwanted thing,
a harami. Jalil may come only once a week, but he is kind and gentle and
brings Mariam gifts. Nana warns Mariam not to have faith in her father or
men in general. She tells her, Like a compass needle that points north, a
mans accusing finger always finds a woman (Hosseini, 2009: 7). This
sentence comes back to haunt Mariam throughout the novel.
Mariam and her mother live on the outskirts of her mothers village of
Gul Daman. They receive few visitors because Nana prefers to be left on her
own. One of their regular visitors is Mullah Faizullah. He teaches Mariam to
read and write, to read and recite the Koran, and to say her prayers. He is
attentive and good to her. Mariam asks him to ask her mother if she can go
5

to school. She has just heard that her fathers other daughters have begun
school. When her mother hears about Mariams wish she responds harshly
and tells Mariam that it is not her place to attend school. Nana tells her that
she has only one skill to learn, and that is to endure (Hosseini, 2009: 17).
Mariams week is spent in anticipation of Jalils arrival. She imagines
what it would be like to live in Herat with Jalil experiencing the excitement
of the big city, caring for Jalil and attending to his needs. When he visits on
her birthday, Jalil tells Mariam that she can ask for anything. She asks him
to take her to his cinema. They negotiate on this point for some time until
Jalil agrees to meet her the next day at noon. He does not come, and
Mariam decides to walk to Herat to find him. She does this against her
mothers will. When Mariam arrives, she is enchanted with the bustle, the
flowers and trees, the abundance on the streets. Everything is fantastic and
lovely. A kindly taxi driver takes her to Jalil Khans house. When she arrives,
Mariam is not admitted in. She is told that Jalil Khan is away. The family
chauffeur urges her to go home and offers to drive her, but she refuses and
spends the night on the doorstep. In the morning, the chauffeur insists on
taking her home and picks her up and puts her in the car, but not before
Mariam catches a glimpse of Jalil Khan in the window. When she arrives
back at her home, or kolba, Mariam discovers that her mother has
committed suicide.
After the funeral, Jalil Khan takes Mariam back to his house. She is
given a guestroom. Although she is not encouraged to come out of the
room, she also chooses not to. She receives visits from Bibi jo, a family
friend, and Mullah Faizullah. Their genuine care and kindness for her
contrast starkly with Jalils more cautious attention. Mullah Faizullah tries to
comfort Mariam who is disconsolate. He tells Mariam that she need not feel
responsible for her mothers death. At the end of the week, Mariam is told
by one of Jalils wives that she must go downstairs. Jalil and his wives are
waiting for Mariam at the large imposing dining room table. At this meeting,
6

she finds out that the wives have found her a As forewarned, the nikka
takes place the next day. The mullah rushes through the ceremony so that
Rasheed and Mariam can make the bus to Kabul. Looking in the mirror, part
of the traditional ceremony, Mariam sees her own face and the face of her
husband for the first time. Mariam must answer for herself that she will
accept Rasheed, and, although she hesitates, she does answer affirmatively.
At the bus, Mariam lets Jalil know that she is finished with him and that she
never wants to see him again, suitor. His name is Rasheed and he is a
Pashtun who lives in Kabul; he is forty-five and he is a shoemaker. Mariam
is horrified, but when she begs her father to stop this from happening, the
wives tell her that he has already given his consent. Mariam realizes that
they not only want to marry her off to get her out of the house, but they
also want her as far away as possible, because she is a symbol of shame to
them. When Afsoon, one of the wives, walks Mariam back to her room, she
also locks her in. Mariam has lost her freedom and has no say or power to
determine the course that her life will take. Mariam will be engaged the next
day, and she will leave on the bus for Kabul that same afternoon.
As forewarned, the nikka takes place the next day. The mullah rushes
through the ceremony so that Rasheed and Mariam can make the bus to
Kabul. Looking in the mirror, part of the traditional ceremony, Mariam sees
her own face and the face of her husband for the first time. Mariam must
answer for herself that she will accept Rasheed, and, although she
hesitates, she does answer affirmatively. At the bus, Mariam lets Jalil know
that she is finished with him and that she never wants to see him again.
The first year of Mariams life with Rasheed passes with its difficulties
and rewards. Rasheed has moments of kindness and regard, but is also
possessive and ill tempered. He requires Mariam to wear a burqa. It is
heavy, awkward, and stifling, but she feels protected and shielded by it. She
sees it as a one-way window from which she can view the world, but
through which the world cannot see or judge her. She finds Rasheeds
7

desire to keep her away from other men as a sign of his regard and she
feels both treasured and significant. During this first year she experiences
her first restaurant, her first ice cream, sex with her husband, and she
becomes pregnant. Mariam feels so much happiness when he realizes that
she is pregnant. She immediately imagines the blessings of motherhood.
Rasheed is also pleased, but also determined to have a boy. Sadly, Mariam
has a miscarriage, and with this miscarriage goes her happiness and
Rasheeds regard. After four years of marriage, Mariam learns that
Rasheeds moods and tempers are to be feared. She has suffered six more
miscarriages and, with each one, Rasheed becomes more distant and
abusive. It is 1978, and Mariam is nineteen. The Communists take over the
presidential palace in Kabul and massacre President Daoud and his family.
Down the street from Mariam and Rasheed, a woman named Fariba has
given birth to a new baby, a daughter who she and her husband name Laila.
In part two, the story jumps to 1987. Laila is nine years old and she
has become fast friends with the boy next door, Tariq. Lailas mother spends
much of her time in bed, brokenhearted over the absence of her sons who
are fighting in Panjshir with the Mujahideen. In her grief, Fariba has little
time or thought for Laila. When Lailas brothers are killed, a messenger
comes to inform the family. Lailas mother deteriorates further and now
rarely gets out of bed. The household tasks, as well as the care for her
mother, fall to Laila. Lailas father, Babi, as she calls him, is a teacher, but
he is fired by the Soviets and now works in the local bakery. He is quite
loving to Laila and concerned for her education and her future. He points
out how much better it has been for women under the Soviet rule. They
have legislated a higher marriage age and require women to attend school.
In fact, he points out, two-thirds of the students at Kabul University are
women. But, the new laws providing equal opportunity to women have also
angered those in the rural areas who are bound by their traditions and
resent having the Soviets tell them how to treat their women.
8

Babi takes Laila and Tariq on a day-long trip to Bamiyan to expose

them to the heritage and rich culture of their country. On their way, they
pass the varied Afghanistan landscape of mountains and deserts. They pass
wheat fields, Koochi nomads, and burnt-out Soviet tanks. Laila realizes that
the war has been going on around her while Kabul seems to be mostly at
peace. When they arrive in Bamiyan, Babi points out Shahre-Zohak, or the
Red City, built nine hundred years earlier and destroyed by Genghis Khan,
evidence of the continuous plight of Afghanistan as a country that has
suffered many invasions. He takes them to the two Buddhas, two thousandyear-old statues that served as a home to up to five thousand Buddhist
monks and as a sanctuary to travelers. They see the rich Bamiyan
countryside, fertile and prosperous, from the height of the Buddhas. As they
look out over the countryside, Babi tells Laila that he dreams of moving to
America, someplace near the sea, to open an Afghan restaurant that can be
a center for the Afghan community in exile and to send Laila to school. They
know that Lailas mother will never leave Afghanistan, and Laila worries
about leaving Tariq. It is not long after this trip, in April 1988, that Babi
comes home announcing that the Soviets have signed a treaty and will be
leaving Afghanistan over the next nine months.
In 1989, the last of the Soviets leave and Kabul celebrates and looks
forward to the new Islamic State of Afghanistan. The victorious Mujahideen
is made up of factions of Pashtuns, Tajiks, Hazaras, and Pashtuns with Arab
connections. The plans are for a shared government gradually leading to
democratic elections. Lailas mother is revived and she plans a big party, but
just as the party disintegrates into fighting over politics and ethnic loyalties,
so does the new government of Afghanistan. Soon, the bombs are falling on
Kabul, and instead of being outside the fighting, Kabul is the center of the
conflict. Meanwhile, Laila and Tariq, now fourteen and sixteen, have fallen in
love and their actions threaten to cross the lines of accepted behavior. Laila
is warned by her mother to be careful. When the fighting in Kabul begins,
9

however, Lailas mother returns to her bed and no longer pays close
attention to Laila.
As the year progresses, Kabul is in a state of chaos. The various
warring parties commit atrocities against each other and the civilian
population, and bombs fall on Kabul. Laila stops attending school and is
taught by her father instead. She spends more time with Tariq until the day
he tells her that his family is leaving for Peshawar. He wants her to go with
him and tells her that he wants to marry her. Although Laila wants to go
with him she cannot abandon her father. As more and more of their
neighbors leave Kabul, and militia men and other strangers move into the
abandoned homes, Lailas father finally convinces his wife that they should
leave as well. But as they are in the process of packing up the house, it is
hit by a shell. Laila is blown away from the house and falls unconscious after
slamming against a wall. Both of her parents are killed in the blast.
Rasheed rescues Laila from the rubble of her house and she is nursed
by Mariam. Shortly after she is able to leave her bed and participate in dayto-day life, a visitor comes to tell Laila that Tariq has died, the victim of a
bomb blast. Before many days have passed, it becomes clear to Mariam that
Rasheed intends to marry Laila. Mariam is devastated, but when Rasheed
asks her to ask Laila for him, she does, and Laila says yes. Laila has become
aware that she is pregnant with Tariqs child and she knows marriage is the
only option for her at this time. This baby, along with the few books that
Rasheed grabbed from the rubble of her house, will be all she has to link her
to Tariq and her past.
Mariam keeps her distance from Laila whose marriage to Rasheed is
the latest in a long string of humiliations for her. Mariam begins to soften
toward her, however, when Lailas baby turns out to be a girl and Laila loses
favor with Rasheed. Mariam begins to pay attention to the new baby and
soon bonds with her and then with Laila. Laila plans an escape and
systematically steals money from Rasheed. However, the latest regime in
10

Afghanistan is hard on women. They are not allowed to travel alone or to be

out on the streets unaccompanied by a male family member. When Laila,
Mariam, and Aziza (Lailas daughter) attempt to escape, they find a man
they believe will help them. However, he takes their money and turns them
in to the police. They are returned to their home and Rasheed punishes
them by locking Laila and Aziza into a room without fresh air, food, or
water. Aziza nearly dies from dehydration before Rasheed lets them out
again.
As the Taliban come to power, Laila is again pregnant. By the time
she needs to go to the hospital, only one hospital in Kabul will take women.
It is horribly understaffed and lacking any of the necessary medicines or
equipment. Laila must have a cesarean section, and she must have it
without anesthetics or antibiotics. She and the new baby, Zalmai, a boy and
the apple of his fathers eye, are lucky to survive the ordeal.
A severe drought begins in 1998 and continues into 2000. The family
is living on very little, but when Rasheeds shop burns down, starvation
becomes a real possibility. Mariam decides to call her father for the first time
since she left on her wedding day more than two decades ago, but when
she locates someone who knows her father, she discovers that he has been
dead for thirteen years. After selling everything and still having no food to
feed her children, Laila is forced to take Aziza to an orphanage. This is the
same orphanage with the same director as the character in The Kite Runner.
Zamans glasses are still broken from the beating he received from Farid.
Because the Taliban do not allow women out without a male relative,
Laila must depend on Rasheed to accompany her to the orphanage to visit
Aziza. When he decides he cannot do this anymore, Laila must figure out
how to do this on her own. It is difficult and dangerous, and she
experiences questions and beatings. After one trip to the orphanage, Laila
returns home to find Tariq waiting outside the house. Laila is amazed and
overjoyed to see Tariq. Mariam and Zalmai go upstairs, leaving Laila to talk
11

with Tariq. Zalmai is jealous of his mothers distraction and tells his father
about the visitor. Rasheed goes into a murderous rage, and as his hands are
around Lailas neck, her body and face begin showing signs of lifelessness.
Mariam gets a shovel from the shed and beats Rasheed over the head. She
kills him. Mariam tries to comfort Laila, telling her that she will think of a
way to take care of this new crisis. The next morning, Mariam has made her
decision. She tells Laila to Think like a mother, Laila jo. Think like a mother.
I am (Hosseini, 2009: 319). Mariam has decided to sacrifice herself for the
well-being of Laila and the children; they have been her loving family. She
sends Laila off to visit Aziza, and, by the time Laila is back, Mariam has
disappeared.
Mariam goes to the Walayat Womens Prison. Hosseini describes the
conditions of the prison: the women wear their burqas because of the lack
of privacy and the unwanted stares of the prison guards. They are given no
food and are dependent on food being brought in from outside. Although
Mariam is in prison for murder, the other women are primarily in prison for
trying to run away. They look up to Mariam and help her with food. Mariam
is tried with no legal counsel, no public hearing, no cross-examination, and
no possibility of appeal. Her hearing is fifteen minutes long. Mariam is taken
to Ghazi Stadium. The Talib guard offers her some comfort, telling her that
it is not shameful to be afraid, but Mariam does not break down at the
moment of execution. She imagines the pleasant moments of her life, the
moments during which she experienced love and beauty. Hosseini writes
that One last time, Mariam did as she was told (Hosseini, 2009: 329).
The last section of the novel focuses on Laila, Tariq, and the children.
They go to Murree, a tourist site in Pakistan where Tariq had been living and
working before coming back to Kabul to find Laila. Aziza is finally with a
father who loves her, but Zalmai has difficulty adjusting and misses
Rasheed. They all work together for the hotel until, after September 11,
2001, and the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan, Laila begins to feel that they
12

should return to Kabul to help with the reconstruction. Tariq agrees to

return, and they stop in Herat to visit Mariams birthplace and to see
whether anyone there remembers her.
Back in Kabul, both children are in school. Laila and Tariq work with
Zaman at the orphanage. Laila teaches and Tariq helps with repairs and
other reconstruction work. Laila is pregnant again, but all this happiness is
overshadowed by the return of the warlords to Kabul and evidence that
Afghanistan continues to be an unstable country.

III.

Stylistic Analysis of A Thousand Splendid Suns.

1. Hosseini's Style, Technique and Works
Hosseinis books are not adventure novels, but the action rarely
flags. We are introduced to the main character (Mariam) and one of the
central conflicts (her perceived rejection by the world) in the opening
pages, and Hosseini rarely stops for sensory details or historical
background. But that is not to say that Hosseini skimps on descriptions.
He identifies salient points with such skill that he conjures up images and
evokes character traits in a few powerful words, without slacking the
pace of the plot. And rather than moving back and forth between
narrative and description, he interweaves the two, so that the action only
breaks off when Hosseini shifts the scene to heighten suspense.
Hosseini also builds suspense through foreshadowing. In fact, he
often

goes

beyond

foreshadowing

to

giving

away

future

plot

developmentsa technique that heightens tension, rather than relaxing

it. The Kite Runner opens with the information that some event in an
alley is going to form the future of the main character, though it is many
chapters before we discover the nature of the ill-fated occurrence. And
when Mariam and Laila part at the climax of Suns, we learn that Laila
never saw Mariam again (Hosseini, 2009: 320).

13

The expectation that the end whether Mariams sentence would

actually be carried out or whether some last-minute stay would spare
her; Hosseinis foreshadowing sometimes seems intentionally misleading.
After Laila receives news of Tariqs death, we are told that with time,
Lailas memories of Tariq would fade, Except every once in a long while,
when Laila was a grown woman, ironing a shirt or pushing her children
on a swing set, something, something trivial would set off a memory
of that afternoon together (Hosseini, 2009: 168). We are led to believe
that Laila and Tariq will never be reuniteduntil Tariq turns up again,
contrary to expectation.
Other instances of foreshadowing seem to be only half fulfilled.
Pebbles appear several times in the opening chapters: Mariams mother
pelts her half-brothers with them, Mariam plays with them and names
them after her siblings and carries them around in her pocket. In a later,
wrenching scene, Rasheed makes Laila chew a mouthful of pebbles and
tells her that is what it is like to eat her rice. It should that these
references must be leading up to something, and later, when Mariam
was sentenced to death, It is thought, Ah, this is itdeath by stoning.
Mercifully, it appears this was not the case. It did leave me wondering,
though, if reader would misread the clues or if perhaps the pebbles did
point to death but Hosseini chose to throw in a twistjust to keep the
reader guessing.
Similarly, when Laila and Mariam dig a hole in the yard to hide the
TV from the Taliban, one immediately suspects that this is destined to
become a grave. Laila even has a dream in which Aziza is lowered into
the hole, alive (Hosseini, 2009: 268). And when the women kill Rasheed,
it is believed, Now theyre going to bury him in the holewhich would
have been a very practical thing to do. But instead they put him in the
tool shed, and Mariam gives herself up to die for her crime, knowing that
eventually someone will find the body and the women will be accused of
14

the murder. Personally, It would have found it more satisfying in a

literary sense if they had buried Rasheed in the hole, even if Mariam had
still found it necessary to give herself up. On the other hand, as it
stands, perhaps the narrative acknowledges that Mariam would have
been unable to live at peace the rest of her life, both in the knowledge of
having killed someone and with the possibility that she and Laila would
forever be fugitives.
Hosseini is a master story teller. Even though It didnt show the
plot of Suns quite as compelling as that of Kite Runner, the abovementioned stylistic devices helped keep my attention fixed on the
progress of the narrative. Based on my knowledge of the region, it is
sure that for most Afghans, shared oral stories, songs, and poetry are
more common experiences than individual reading of books and
periodicals. Persia, which includes Afghanistan, does have a rich literary
tradition, however, and many texts pass in and out of oral and written
form. Layla and Majnun, for example, began as an Arabic folk story, was
recorded in verse by the Persian poet Nizami in the 12th century, and is
still familiar to Iranians young and old today, even though many of them
have not read it. It would be interesting to hear from someone familiar
with both oral and written traditions in Afghanistan as to whether
Hosseinis works represent devices typical of both traditions.

2. Figurative Language
The figurative language present in Khaled Hosseini's novel, A
Thousand Splendid Suns, shows how the Afghan culture is extremely
oppressive in forcing people to follow tradition. The characters in the
novel are constantly pressured by the thought of obeying a traditional
value that it often forces the characters to act in certain ways.
Figurative language is the use of words in an unusual or
imaginative manner (Newman, 1837: 93). Often figurative language
15

involves the use of a metaphor, a simile, personification, hyperbole,

idiom, a euphemism, and pun. However, as the term figurative language
also covers unusual or imaginative word constructions (and not just word
meanings), it also includes alliteration, assonance, consonance, and
onomatopoeia. Here is some figurative languages that have been taken
from the novel:

Simile
1)

Learn this now and learn it well, my daughter: Like a

compass needle that points north, a mans accusing finger
always finds a woman. Always. You remember that, Mariam.
(Hosseini, 2009: 7)
This simile is effective in which it paints a literal image of a
compass, and how men in Afghanistan, in Nanas opinion
have overpowered women. The harshness of the simile
exemplifies Nanas detrimental character and the persuasive
impact she has on her daughter.

2)

They had played it for so long it had become a bedtime

ritual, like brushing teeth (Hosseini, 2009: 110)
This simile describes Laila and Tariqs flashlight game in
which it emphasizes the closeness of their relationship.

3)

Another groan. A hand emerged, like a submarine periscope

breaking surface and dropped. (Hosseini, 2009: 122)
The use of this simile is descriptive in which it portrays
Mammys hand appearing from the other side of the couch,
as it effectively describes the state in which she is essentially
unresponsive and secluded from the outside world.

4)

But were like those walls up there. Battered, and nothing to

look at, but still standing. (Hosseini, 2009: 149)
16

This statement was said by the taxi driver on Laila, Babi, and
Tariq, in which he is comparing that the people of
Afghanistan are symbolic of courage, as the collective may
not be pretty to look at, but they still have dignity to be
standing bravely. This statement is very effective in that it
expresses the accomplishment of survival, which seems to be
an important idea in this novel.

5)

Laila felt like she was no better than these pots and pans,
something that could go neglected, then laid claim to, at will,
whenever the mood struck. (Hosseini, 2009: 164)
This simile is effective with the further development of Lailas
vulnerable feelings around her mother, in which she
compares herself to an inanimate object, which is clearly an
exaggeration, yet a purposeful association.

6)

Her legs felt heavy, as though weights had been tethered to

them. (Hosseini, 2009: 206)
Abdul Sharif visits to deliver devastating news to Laila. This
simile exemplifies Lailas feeling before he even stated the
news, in which she had already realized the purpose of his
visit. The metaphor emphasizes Laila's strong emotions
towards the subject as she is physically affected by her
knowledge of Tariq's death.

7)

Mariam sat watching the girl out of the corner of her eye as
Rasheeds demands and judgments rained down on them like
the rockets on Kabul. (Hosseini, 2009: 224)
Mariam compares Rasheeds demands to be as destructive as
the war, and the comparison she uses effectively defines how
abusive he really is.
17

8)

A woman who will be like a rock in a riverbed, enduring

without complaint. (Hosseini, 2009: 401)
Lailas comparison of Mariam to a rock in a riverbed is
valuable in that it mentally paints of image of literally what
she is describing. This is an expression how similar Mariams
story is to an object that is literally unable to act upon
impact.

Symbolism
1)

She noticed that every time she breathed out, the surface
fogged. And she disappeared from her fathers table (Hosseini,
2009: 50)
Mariam is observing her reflection in her fathers coffee table. At
this moment, he has decided that rather than taking in his
abandoned daughter, her will give her away to a business
acquaintance. Mariams breath could be representative of life,
specifically her life, while the coffee table is symbolic of Jalils
precious household. When Mariam breaths out, or imposes
herself upon Jalils life, she essentially disappears, as if she
means nothing to him.

2)

On the bus ride home from the doctor, the strangest thing was
happening to Mariam. Everywhere she looked, she saw bright
colors: on the drab, gray concrete apartments, on the tinroofed, open-fronted stores, in the muddy water flowing in the
gutters. It was as though a rainbow had melted into her eyes.
(Hosseini, 2009: 87)
At this time in the novel, Mariam is finally encountering a happy
and positive experience. Her pregnancy literally has her glowing
to the point that she is seeing the world around her as a
beautiful place. The bright colors are effective in representing
the euphoria Mariam bathes in.
18

3)

Then there was blood and she was screaming. (Hosseini,

2009: 90)
Blood, going

without

saying

often

represents death

or

misfortune. In Mariams dreadful moment in the bathhouse, the

mention of blood automatically indicates that something very
bad has happened. This is an effective way of telling the reader
that Mariam has lost the baby without directly stating it.

4)

This was a game that she played privately from time to time
when Nana wasnt looking. She put four pebbles in the first
column, for Khadijas children, three for Afsoons and three in
the third column for Nargis children. (Hosseini, 2009: 29)
As a young girl, Mariam would play this game with pebbles in
which each pebble would represent a member of Jalils family.
This is Mariams way of making herself feel included in Jalils life,
as she anticipates that one day maybe he and his family will
accept her as one of them. However, later on, Rasheed forces
Mariam

to

chew

on

pebbles

as

punishment

for

her

unsatisfactory cooking, as she ends up breaking two of her

molars. As the pebbles represent a misconception, Mariams
belief that people who may be kind to her is eventually
shattered as they truly ended up harming her.

5)

And when the rockets began to rain down on Kabul, people ran
for cover. Mammy did too, literally. She changed into black
again, went to her room, shut the curtains, and pulled the
blanket over her head. (Hosseini, 2009: 172)
Throughout this section Mammys change in clothing often
represents political and emotional destruction the people of
Afghanistan are experiencing. In this passage specifically,
Mammy wears black and essentially shuts herself from the outer
world, which can also be an expression of the withdrawal and
19

avoidance she undergoes as a result of war.

6)

Its the whistling, Laila said to Tariq, the damn whistling, I

hate more than anything. (Hosseini, 2009: 173)
The whistling Laila describes is directly symbolic of the rockets
that rain down on Kabul, yet it can also have a more artistic
meaning. The noise made by the rockets could also represent
the destruction to emotion people are experiencing as a result.

7)

She thought of Azizas stutter, and of what Aziza had said

earlier about fractures and powerful collisions deep down and
how sometimes all we see on the surface is a slight tremor.
(Hosseini, 2009: 326)
This quote puts Azizas statement into perspective, as her
stutter represents a mask for her grief.

8)

Im sorry Laila says, marveling at how every Afghan story is

marked by death and loss and unimaginable grief. And yet, she
sees, people find a way to survive, to go on. Laila thinks of her
own life and all that has happened to her, and she is astonished
that she too has survived, that she is alive and sitting in this taxi
listening to this mans story. (Hosseini, 2009: 350)
Lailas conversation with the taxi driver puts into perspective the
reality her people face. The story of Afghans is symbolic of what
she describes: loss and imaginable grief. This passage is
effective in that it illustrates how many have experienced pain in
the same way she has, which is symbolic of a collective power.

9)

In it she finds three things: an envelope, a burlap sack, and a

videocassette. (Hosseini, 2009: 403)
The three things Laila finds in the tin box from Jalil to Mariam
effectively represent their relationship. The envelope is a symbol
20

of the unspoken words, the burlap sack containing money is a

gesture of apology, and the videocassette is the relationship Jalil
wished he had with Mariam. The three objects represent Mariam
and Jalils relationship in that it is apparent that it was never
developed into something real.

10) The orphanage playground has a row of apple saplings now

along the east-facing wall. Laila is planning to plant some on the
south wall as well as soon as it is rebuilt. There is a new swing
set, new monkey bars, and a jungle gym. (Hosseini, 2009: 411)
The passage describes Lailas efforts she has put into the
orphanage are symbolic of her childhood, and how she was
constantly reminded of friends and family that she will make a
mark on the world. The orphanage fulfills this destiny.

11) She slides in the key. It takes some rattling and shaking, but
she opens the box. (Hosseini, 2009: 403)
After Laila has been overcome by curiosity, she opens the tin
box that was a gift from Jalil to Mariam. The moment Laila
opens the box symbolizes the moment of Mariams past being
temporarily brought to the present. This is a vital part of Lailas
life as she learns more about her friend than she ever knew
throughout their time together.

12) One could not count the moons that shimmer on her roofs,
Or the thousand splendid suns that hid behind her walls.
(Hosseini, 2009: 392)
As Laila reflects upon her fathers farewell ode to Kabul, one
cannot help but notice the symbolism this powerful quote bears.
This quote could be symbolic of how in tough times; its difficult
for people to see the light in the situation. The story A
21

Thousand Splendid Suns encompasses the obstacles two women

face, as one may imagine Laila would never be able to move on
or forget her sad memories. However, Laila seems to have
broken down the symbolic walls as she admits Mariams
memory shines within her with the intensity of a thousand
splendid suns.

Foreshadowing
1)

Whats the matter with you?

Youre bleeding, hamshira! (Hosseini, 2009: 68)
Upon Mariams first encounter with her neighbor, Fariba, Mariam
is bombarded with questions regarding how many children she
will have. Mariam quickly evacuates the conversation, and when
doing so, she scrapes her knee badly. This is foreshadowing in
which later on in the novel, Mariam has a miscarriage in a
bathhouse. At this time, there is blood, which indicates the end
of her temporary happiness.

2)

You see? This is what it means to be a woman in this world.

(Hosseini, 2009: 6)
Nana expresses bitterness towards Jalil and how he told his
wives that Nana had forced herself on him. This quote that she
states regarding her conditions foreshadows the way that
Rasheed will treat Mariam in the future.

3)

This was a game that she played privately from time to time
when Nana wasnt looking. She put four pebbles in the first
column, for Khadijas children, three for Afsoons and three in
the third column for Nargis children. (Hosseini, 2009: 29)
As a young girl, Mariam would play this game with pebbles in
which each pebble would represent a member of Jalils family.
22

This is Mariams way of making herself feel included in Jalils life,

as she anticipates that one day maybe he and his family will
accept her as one of them. However, later on, Rasheed forces
Mariam

to

chew

on

pebbles

as

punishment

for

her

unsatisfactory cooking, as she ends up breaking two of her

molars. As the pebbles represent a misconception, Mariams
belief that people who may be kind to her is eventually
shattered as they truly ended up harming her.

4)

Outside, as she was climbing on the carrier pack of Babis

bicycle, Laila spotted a car parked up the street, across from the
house where the shoemaker, Rasheed, lived with his reclusive
wife. It was a Benz, an unusual car in this neighborhood, blue
with a thick white stripe bisecting the hood, the roof, and the
trunk. (Hosseini, 2009: 110)
The excessive use of description may appear to be insignificant;
however, it is being used for a reason. The author is trying to
bring the reader's attention towards the story of Mariam and
Rasheed, suggesting that at some point Laila may become a
part of their lives.

5)

Laila was still shocked at how easily shed come unhinged, but,
the truth was, part of her had liked it, had liked how it felt to
scream at Mariam, to curse at her to have a target at which to
focus all her simmering anger, her grief. Laila wondered, with
something like insight, if it wasnt the same for Mariam
(Hosseini, 2009: 234)
This passage foreshadows how the two women will eventually
discover their similarities, as with our knowledge of both
Mariams and Lailas past adversities, we can predict that these
characters will eventually become close.

23

6)

And for the first time, it was not an adversarys face Laila saw
but a a face of grievances unspoken, burdens gone unprotected,
a destiny submitted to and endured. If she stayed, would this be
her own face, Laila wondered, twenty years from now?
(Hosseini, 2009: 249)
This excerpt does not only foreshadows Lailas future knowledge
she is about to learn about Mariam, but also her intentions to
leave the household, as she appears to be unsatisfied settling
with her current lifestyle.

Situational Irony
1)

He asked about Azizas father, and Laila had the strange

experience of telling a lie that was really the truth. (Hosseini,
2009: 317)
Lailas conversation with the orphanage director leads to an
ironic moment in which she lies about the truth regarding
Aziza's father. This is effective in that it interests the reader in
the complications of Lailas life.

2)

May God grant you a long a prosperous life, my daughter.

(Hosseini, 2009: 407)
This quote is an effective example of irony because Jalils wish
for Mariam does not come true, as his daughter dies at the
hands of the Taliban.

Repetition
1)

When Mariam thought of this baby, her heart swelled inside of

her. It swelled and swelled until all the loss, all the grief, all the
loneliness and self-abasement of her life washed away.
(Hosseini, 2009: 89)
The repetition of the word swelled is used to emphasize
Mariams current happiness. This is effective because the fact
24

that Mariam is so excited about becoming a mother makes her

miscarriage all the more dramatic.

Alliteration
1)

Treacherous daughters did not deserve to be mothers and this

was just punishment. (Hosseini, 2009: 93)
The alliteration in this passage is relevant because it reinforces
the fact that Mariam is very upset and plagued with guilt and
grief that she is unable to deal with. The alliteration is written in
such a way that Mariams thoughts are expressed blatantly and
without emotion. The way in which this is stated almost has a
snide perception, as this is very fitting to Mariams self-doubt
and lack of confidence that is later intensified throughout the
novel.

Personification
1)

He described to her the green wheat fields of Herat, the

orchards, the vines pregnant with plump grapes, the citys
crowded, vaulted bazaars. (Hosseini, 2009: 5)
The use of personification to describe the grapes effectively
paints an image of what they may look like. The use of the word
pregnant also contributes to the image of pleasant weather in
which pregnancy is often associated with spring.

2)

"Kabul is waiting. Needing. This journey home is the right thing

to do." (Hosseini, 2009: 392)
Kabul expressed in a way that it seems as if it is a human being
with emotions. This effectively illustrates the connection Laila
has to her home.

25

Metaphor
1)

Mammy was now the curator of their lives museum and she,
Laila, a mere visitor. A receptacle for their myths. The
parchment on which Mammy meant to ink their legends.
(Hosseini, 2009: 142)
Three different metaphors are effectively communicated in this
passage. The use of the image of a museum illustrates Lailas
true feelings regarding her mothers worship of her deceased
brothers. Through Mammys actions, she has convinced Laila
that Ahmad and Noor were heroes, and that Laila will never
equivalently impress her. Laila therefore views herself as
unimportant, and a visitor in the museum glorifying her
brothers accomplishments. The metaphors describing Laila as a
receptacle as well as parchment paper is implying that Laila will
never have stories that will live up to the magnitude of their
greatness.

Parallelism
1)

Mammys heart was like a pallid beach where Lailas footprints

would forever wash away beneath the waves of sorrow that
swelled and crashed, swelled and crashed. (Hosseini, 2009:
144)
The use of this simile is very similar to the symbolism regarding
Mariams reflection disappearing from Jalils coffee table. In this
case, Laila is disappearing from Mammys figurative life, as her
footprints are making no permanent impression in her mothers
mind.

2)

Tariq said that one of the men who shared his cell has a cousin
whod been publicly flogged once for painting flamingos.
(Hosseini, 2009: 330)
The use of parallelism is effective due to Tariqs unawareness of
26

what Laila has been experiencing in his absence. The

circumstance of being punished unjustly is a prominent
component in Lailas life regarding abuse received from Rasheed
and the Taliban, and the parallel plots regarding Tariqs story
and Lailas life is worthy of note.

Allusion
1)

It told the story of an old fisherman named Santiago who

catches and enormous fish. But by the time he sails his boat to
safety, there is nothing left of his prize fish; the sharks have
torn it to pieces. (Hosseini, 2009: 152)
The story Babi reads underneath an acacia tree is The Old Man
and the Sea, by Earnest Hemmingway. This story alludes to the
plot of A Thousand Splendid Suns itself, in which both stories
are a battle against complications, implicating hope in situations
of hopelessness, and the demonstration of the unbelievable
capability of the human spirit.

2)

That summer, Titanic fever gripped Kabul. (Hosseini, 2009:

303)
The mention of the movie Titanic in the novel alludes to the
similarities between the two plots. The story of Jack and Rose,
and Laila and Tariq are comparable in that two people fall in
love despite their differences. A Thousand Splendid Suns as well
as Titanic illustrate the life and death the couple faces as their
adversities draw them apart.

Imagery
1)

But her mind was far away free and fleet hurdling like a
speeding missile beyond Kabul, over craggy brown hills, and
over deserts ragged with clumps of sage, past cannons of
jagged red rock. And over snowcapped mountains. (Hosseini,
27

2009: 208)
While Abdul Sharif tells her about Tariqs death, Lailas reaction
is portrayed with the use of imagery, as she appears to be not
exactly present in their conversation. The description is used to
illustrate Lailas mental absence as the devastating news has her
feeling not only far away from her current location, but also far
away from everything she has ever known.

2)

In silence, Laila looked at their reflection, at faces that had

aged beyond their years, at the pouches and lines and sags that
now marked their once scrubbed, youthful faces. (Hosseini,
2009: 376)
This imagery is effective in that it illustrates the time that has
passed in the separation of Tariq and Laila, yet underneath their
changed appearances they are the same people.

3)

Laila likes Murees cool, foggy mornings and its dazzling

twilights, the dark brilliance of the sky at night; the green of the
pines and the soft brown of the squirrels darting up and down
the sturdy tree trunks; the sudden downpours that send
shoppers in the Mall scrambling for awning cover. (Hosseini,
2009: 377)
The imagery portrayed in this passage expresses a change in
Lailas life, as she appreciates her surroundings and notices the
small details. This effectively shows Lailas significant shift from
disorder to serenity.

Irony
1)

She was stunned that hed used that word, in the face of all
that the Mujahideen factions had done the murders, the
lootings, the rapes, the tortures, the executions, the bombings,
the tens of thousands of rockets they had fired at each other,
needless of all the innocent people who would die in the cross
28

fire. Order. But she bit her tongue. (Hosseini, 2009: 266)
Lailas definition of the word order greatly contrasts with the
opinion of the officer. As he is sending her, Mariam and Aziza
back home to maintain this alleged order, Laila cannot help
but to realize the irony of his words. This passage is effective in
that it defines the brutality of the Mujahideens infliction on
society and how corrupt Lailas world has become.

References

Hosseini, Khaled. (2009). A Thousand Splendid Suns. London: Bloomsbury

Publishing.
Newman, Samuel P. (1837). A Practical System of Rhetoric : With an Historical
Dissertation on English Style. London.
Stuhr, Rebecca. (2009). Reading Khaled Hosseini. Santa Barbara: Greenwood
Press.

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