Symbolism In A Thousand Splendid Suns

In his book, A Thousand Splendid Suns, Hosseini writes about two women, Mariam and Leila in Kabul. Throughout the story, there are many symbolic representations. Some of these include the signing of a contract, the popular culture the people of Kabul enjoy, and the well known book, The Old Man and the Sea. One of the more clear symbols in the story is when Mariam signs her name on her marriage contract, as well as her own death warrant. On page 326, Hosseini writes, “After Mariam was punished with a sentence of death, she was led out to sign a document while the Taliban watched. . . . remembering the last time she signed her name to a document, twenty-seven years before at Jahil’s table.” As Mariam signs the death warrant, she is reminded of the only other time she has written her name, when she was pressured into marrying Rahim. This brings about the idea that the signing of each contract was a symbol of death. One for her ending of her physical body, but the marriage contract represented the death of her freedom and eventually, willpower and happiness. It is also notable …show more content…
“That summer, Titanic fever gripped Kabul. People smuggled pirated copies of the film from Pakistan . . . everyone locked their doors . . . and wept tears for Jack and Rose [187].” During this time, Kabul had taken a dramatic turn in politics, and was an uncertain and unsafe place to be. The citizens were suddenly trapped within, unable to leave or escape. Just like the passengers of the Titanic, the problem was not spotted until it was too late and the ship, or city, began to fall apart. Jack symbolized a hero, someone who came and rescued someone else in danger. The people’s obsession with the movie, and Jack in particular, represents their slight hope that there will be some savior or someone to at least comfort them through the