A Thousand Splendid Sun Even with the many examples of counter-factuals in A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini, the characters remain strong, positive, and full of loyalty to their family and homeland. One strong example of a counterfactual happens near the beginning of the book. One of the main characters, Mariam makes a decision to go to her father, Jalil, against the pleading of her mother, Nana. Mariam remembers her mother’s words, “I’ll die if you go, I’ll just die.” (p. 27 ). As it turns out, Mariam is rejected by her father, Jalil and when she returns home, she discovers that her mother, Nana has committed suicide by hanging herself. Mariam tortures herself throughout her life with the despair of believing she caused her mother’s death, even though her close friend, Mullah reassured her that her mother was very ill and it was not Mariam’s fault. Another example of a counterfactual is that Laila continues to hope that her mother would acknowledge that she is still alive, despite the fact that both her brothers have died as soldiers in the war. “Laila wishes Mammy would notice that she, Laila, hadn’t become shaheed, that she is alive, here, in bed with her, that she has hopes and a future. But Laila knows that her future is no match for her brothers’ past. They have overshadowed her in life. They will obliterate her in death.” ( p.142 ) Laila continues to try to bring some hope and comfort to her mother despite her mother’s constant rejection. Both mother and daughter wish that there were different circumstances. One of the most powerful parts of the story is the relationship between Jalil and his daughter, Mariam. Even though Jalil does not claim Mariam as a legitimate daughter, one

that lives in his house, he still loves her very much. Laila, who becomes very close to Mariam throughout their abusive life with Rasheed, goes to visit a dear friend of Mariam’s in their home in Herat. At this point, both Mullah and Mariam have died, but Laila visits with
Mullah’s son, and is given a box that Jalil has left in case Mariam ever comes back to visit. In a letter contained in the box, Jalil writes, “I dare, I dare allow myself the hope that, after you read this, you will be more charitable to me than I ever was to you. That you might find it in your heart to come and see your father. That you will knock on my door one more time and give me the chance to open it this time, to welcome you, to take you in my arms, my daughter, as I should have all those years ago…” ( p. 406) What could have been – if only Jalil would have opened his home to his illegitimate daughter all those years ago!
Through all the hardship and despair, this is a wonderful story of the resiliency of the human spirit – how these 2 strong women, Mariam and Laila survive under the most difficult conditions.

Short Response:
Mariam’s mother tells her” “Women like us. We endure. It’s all we have.
This sentiment of Mariam’s mother, Nana impacts her entire life. In a country where women are not valued, the strength of character is all the women have to hold onto. This is especially true for Nana, because she bore a child illegitimately and the father will not acknowledge his daughter. These women are strong and they have pride in their country .