Laila:
“Back there so much is happening, a lot of it good. I want to do something. I want to contribute” (390).
In contrast to Mariam, Laila was raised to believe in her own potential to shape her own future and that of her country. As Laila grows up in a politically-shifting country, she is informed that “Afganistan is going to need you as much as its men, maybe even more” (103). Her father enforces her self-confidence and progressive values, sharing his firm belief that women have a valuable role in society, and Laila “can be anything you want” (101). Raised to prioritize education, Laila attends school daily, where she is taught that men and women are equal. In her mind, women are not merely destined for marriage and child-raising, but careers. Yet, despite her close relationship with her father, she longs for an emotional connection with her detached mother, who rarely acknowledges her existence.
Despite her education and potential, the war and Afghanistan society doom her to the same fate as Mariam as the prejudice against women doesn’t differentiate based on their upbringing. Like Mariam, she loses both parents and is forced to determine her path under male-domination alone. Stuck (as the second wife) in the same abusive marriage as Mariam, they are forced to unite in order to survive. Yet, unlike Mariam, Laila is marked with a firm belief in her self-worth and determination to free herself from her husband’s control. She continues to have optimism and hope—for her own sake, for her children and eventually for Mariam herself. Refusing to bow down under oppression or give way to resentment, she attempts to defy society to prove her own value and that of fellow women. In the process, she defends her values and that of her father against those of her husband, society and Mariam’s mother.
“Laila has moved on. Because in the end she knows that’s all she can do. That and hope” (411).
In contrast to Mariam, Laila was raised to believe in her own potential to shape her own future and that of her country. As Laila grows up in a politically-shifting country, she is informed that “Afganistan is going to need you as much as its men, maybe even more” (103). Her father enforces her self-confidence and progressive values, sharing his firm belief that women have a valuable role in society, and Laila “can be anything you want” (101). Raised to prioritize education, Laila attends school daily, where she is taught that men and women are equal. In her mind, women are not merely destined for marriage and child-raising, but careers. Yet, despite her close relationship with her father, she longs for an emotional connection with her detached mother, who rarely acknowledges her existence.
Despite her education and potential, the war and Afghanistan society doom her to the same fate as Mariam as the prejudice against women doesn’t differentiate based on their upbringing. Like Mariam, she loses both parents and is forced to determine her path under male-domination alone. Stuck (as the second wife) in the same abusive marriage as Mariam, they are forced to unite in order to survive. Yet, unlike Mariam, Laila is marked with a firm belief in her self-worth and determination to free herself from her husband’s control. She continues to have optimism and hope—for her own sake, for her children and eventually for Mariam herself. Refusing to bow down under oppression or give way to resentment, she attempts to defy society to prove her own value and that of fellow women. In the process, she defends her values and that of her father against those of her husband, society and Mariam’s mother.
“Laila has moved on. Because in the end she knows that’s all she can do. That and hope” (411).