A Thousand Splendid Suns Final Paper/Project

For this assignment you will have to have read “a thousand splendid suns” unless you do option 8, which you will see why you won’t need any info from the book. Feel free to ask me any question.

Pick one of the following prompts to prove your knowledge of the novel “A Thousand Splendid Suns”.  Some of the prompts are more creative than the others and are not just strict essays.  Here are the prompts:

1.  Examine the role of religion in the lives of the main characters.  Note the references to religious training, prayer and the characters’ references to Allah, the Prophet, or the Koran.  Based on this review, write a profile of the character, emphasizing their religious upbringing and orientation.

2.  Compare Mariam and Laila by looking for pertinent passages which describe their family background, education, experiences and character.  Prepare a graphic organizer for each woman.  Once done, discuss the following:  Do the women change in the novel?  How?  Who undergoes the most significant changes?  How are the women similar?  How different?

3.  While Rasheed is the overwhelming male presence in the novel, there are other male characters.  Go back through the novel and identify the personality traits of other men in the novel.  Create lists of the traits for the men other than Rasheed for easy comparison.  Look at Jalil, Babi, Zaman the orphanage director, and Sayeed owner of a small hotel in Murree who is kind to Tariq.  What qualities to they have in common?  How do they compare to Rasheed?  How can you explain Rasheed’s behavior?

4.  Tariq says that he wrote letters to Laila, “volumes” (p. 338).  Knowing Tariq’s history, first in Kabul and then as a refugee, imagine what he might wish to say to Laila from prison.  Write the letter that Tariq would have written.

5.  The novel ends in April 2003.  Research the current situation in Afghanistan in news sources.  Based on your findings, write a brief “sequel” to the novel, describing the circumstances for Laila and Tariq and their children, living in Kabul.

6.  Look up the definition of “patriarchy” and list what patriarchy means in terms of social organization.  Then, outline the social organization that is evident in the families of Mariam and Laila before they marry Rasheed and after they marry Rasheed.  What gives Rasheed authority over his wives?  How is this authority reinforced in society?

7.  How does the proverb, “like father, like son,” fit the novel?  Trace the development of Zalmai.  In outline form, show how Zalmai might have followed his father’s footsteps.

8.  Mariam at first finds it hard to wear a burqa but then finds it “comforting” (p. 73).  Research the history and uses of the burqa.  Where is it commonly worn?  Is it still worn in Afghanistan even after the fall of the Taliban?  Why might some women prefer the burqa?  Why might some women find it oppressive?  Prepare a list of arguments (pro and con) for wearing the burqa.