How are Laila and Mariam connected?

Mariam is an illegitimate child who faces a broken childhood and grows up to be given to a man named Rasheed for marriage. Laila is a child who lives across the street from Mariam and Rasheed. After a tragedy, Laila is taken in by Mariam and Rasheed as Rasheed's second wife.

What do Laila and Mariam have in common?

Mariam was quite, reserved, and took everything that came her way and never stood up for herself. Laila was very intelligent and open. She stood up for herself and was extremely independent. The only similar thing they both had in common was their marriages to Rasheed and the beatings they received from him.

How is Laila related to Mariam?

Mariam becomes a mother figure to Laila—she even frequently identifies herself as Laila's mother to other people. Mariam had already given up on finding happiness, so she's as surprised as anyone when she finds Laila.

How do Laila and Mariam become friends?

Laila shows the first sign of starting a friendship with Mariam and later when Mariam thanks Laila for standing up for her by giving her daughter some clothes that she knitted, they become friends.

Are Laila and Mariam friends?

Hosseini shows the power of female friendship in this chapter through the growth of Mariam and Laila's affection for one another. Through the exchange of peace offerings, Laila and Mariam are able to come to a new understanding.

Mariam and Laila (A Thousand Splendid Suns Tribute)

How is Mariam a mother to Laila?

This helps her understand her own mother better, and Mariam's life changes with the arrival of Laila, Rasheed's second wife. Through her love for Laila and Laila's children, Mariam is able to fulfill her wish to be a mother and to finally give and receive love.

How does Mariam initially feel about Laila?

First, Mariam finds herself warming to Laila because of Aziza's presence. She respects Laila's mothering instincts and that respect begins to replace any jealousy she may feel. Second, Rasheed's reaction to the child influences Mariam's perception of Laila.

What did Laila learn Mariam?

Through her growing relationship with Mariam, Laila not only takes comfort in having a friend and mother figure, but also begins to understand the sacrifices that are necessary to be a good mother by following Mariam's example.

How does the deep friendship between Mariam and Laila help them overcome their situations in A Thousand Splendid Suns?

Aziza's love strengthens the bond between Mariam and Laila. This bond helps Mariam recognize that she is worthy of love. The affection she shares with Aziza and her mother is rooted in respect and dignity, something that both women use to challenge their situation.

What is Laila's relationship like with her mother?

Laila, like Mariam, is definitely influenced by her mother's behavior. For instance, at times both girls resent their mothers, but at other times they are empathetic, even loving, toward their mothers.

How does Mariam treat Laila?

Mariam always blamed herself for Nana's death; Laila blames herself for her father's. Through this shared mix of grief and guilt, Mariam empathizes with Laila and treats her with the kindness she would have lavished on her children. Laila's presence also changes Rasheed and Mariam's routine.

What does Laila symbolize?

Laila represents the new modern face of Afghanistan. Her father, Babi, is a well-educated teacher who holds progressive views about politics and women's rights. Education has always been a priority in Laila's life, and she has always received encouragement from her parents to achieve her dreams.

What is wrong with Laila's mother?

Laila's mother has fallen into manic depression over the loss of her sons to the war. She does not get out of bed every day. Good days are very rare for her. Laila's friend, Tariq, lost one leg to a land mine explosion when he was five.

How are Mariam and Laila the same?

Mariam is an illegitimate child who faces a broken childhood and grows up to be given to a man named Rasheed for marriage. Laila is a child who lives across the street from Mariam and Rasheed. After a tragedy, Laila is taken in by Mariam and Rasheed as Rasheed's second wife.

What is the biggest difference between Mariam and Laila's stories so far in the novel?

Unlike Mariam however, Laila's father insists that she go to school rather than marry young. Thus Laila is already much more independent than Mariam has ever been.

How old was Laila when she married Rasheed?

When she is fifteen, Mariam, forced into marriage with forty-year old Rasheed, moves to Kabul to start a life with her husband. Hopeful at first, she is unable to conceive, and lives a loveless existence with a husband who abuses her regularly.

How do Mariam and Laila endure?

Both Laila and Mariam, although coming from completely different backgrounds in Afghanistan, find each other with very similar hardships. They survive through unimaginable physical and mental abuse, wars and loss in their lives. They endure life with little freedom …show more content…

What do Laila and Mariam attempt to do and get caught doing?

Mariam and Laila attempt to take the children and leave Rasheed, but the women and children are caught. Under the Taliban, it is illegal for women to run away from the husbands. Rasheed beats Laila and Mariam for trying to leave, and he threatens them with worse if they try again.

When Mariam and Laila go to the bus station who do they convince to help them?

Laila tells the man the story she and Mariam have agreed on: that Mariam is her mother and they're both widows traveling to live with an uncle in Peshawar. The man agrees to help and purchases bus tickets for them.

Why is Mariam in jail?

She is in prison, because she had been promised to a man thirty years older than her. So, she eloped with the son of a local mullah with whom she had fallen in love. They were quickly caught and sent back. The mullah's son was flogged until he repented and said that Naghma has seduced him after she cast a spell on him.

How is Laila a victim in A Thousand Splendid Suns?

Rasheed took Laila as his wife because Mariam turns out to be a barren woman. Political uncertainty forced Laila to marry Rasheed as her parents got killed in war. Her fate is linked with the fate of Mariam. Both are the victims of the Taliban cruelty.

Why does Laila have such a strong connection to her father?

Why does Laila feel such a strong attachment to her father? Laila's father is an educated man who feels strongly that women should be educated. He encourages Laila to complete her education before she finds a husband which is uncommon for fathers to want for their daughter.

Why do Mariam and Laila have their first fight?

She had raced upstairs, missing her parents desperately. Suddenly, the baby had kicked for the first time. While Mariam and Laila have for the most part managed the simmering tensions in the household, their first fight allows them to explicitly voice the pain and resentment that each of them feels.

What is the significance of Mariam and Laila having tea together what motif reappears on page 249?

What is the significance of Mariam and Laila having tea together? The significance of Mariam and Laila having tea together is that it allows the women to have time together away from Rasheed. This time allows them to learn more about one another and become close.

Is Laila pregnant with Tariq's baby?

Laila is also informed that Tariq and his family died in a bomb blast on their way to Pakistan. Upon discovering she is pregnant with Tariq's child, Laila agrees to marry Rasheed to protect herself and her baby, whom Rasheed believes to be his.