Mariam and Laila Relationship in A Thousand Splendid Suns
Based on the examination of the two mother and daughter relationships displayed in the book A Thousand Splendid Suns by Khaled Hosseini, it could be concluded that the liaisons between Laila and Mammy and Mariam and Nana are very similar and are in fact, displayed in various forms. One way the similarities are expressed is through the portrayal of the two different destructive relationships that are later appraised in the book. Throughout the course of the Mariam and Laila relationship essay, it is established that Laila and Mariam both share the commonality of having an unhealthy and/or toxic relationship with their mothers. Both Mammy and Nana could be considered to be abusive, however in different manners and to different degrees. When looking at Mammy's treatment of Laila, it is evident that she perceives her as her peripheral child who she doesn't care for as much as one would for their actual child. It is patently clear that her love for Laila is not as intense as it was for her other sons, Ahmed and Noor. As a result, Laila's childhood was filled with neglect, which ultimately forced her to become more independent.
After coming from school one day, Laila reunites with Mammy who exhibits her numbness to the perception of time. The two then start conversing and Laila starts to think to herself about what is going to be happening next through her knowledge of Mammy's repetitive and unmotivated behaviour. She recalls "The obligatory questions, the perfunctory answers as well as both parties involved pretending to care. " By showing a visible sense of false interest on how Laila’s day was in this dull and insignificant conversation, Mammy is giving off a vibe that expresses the idea that she doesn’t care about Laila nor her wellbeing. This idea is being further exemplified when Mammy forgets to pick Laila up from school and instead just stays isolated in bed all day. Despite this simply being caused by her dark sense of depression after the loss of her sons, Laila is still a victim of dilapidation because of actions that Mammy chooses to commit. In contrast to the way that Mammy neglects Laila, Mariam’s mother, Nana actually abuses and mistreats Mariam through the usage of words.
Over the course of the story, Nana is portrayed as an aggressive, hardened and bitter woman who feels a large sense of distrust for men. A former housemaid by profession, Nana had formerly worked for Jalil, where she had an affair and got pregnant with Mariam. After being disowned and shunned away, Nana who was a victim of disownment and rejection by society, was consumed with hatred and jealousy. As a result, she would often take her anger out on Mariam through the use of emotional and verbal abuse by discounting and belittling her as a person. After Mariam accidentally breaks a hereditary Chinese tea set that had belonged to Nana’s mother, Nana reacts in a melodramatic manner by calling Mariam a harami. Although Mariam didn’t initially understand the meaning behind that word, “she understood what Nana meant … as she interpreted the word to mean an unwanted thing and that she … was an illegitimate person who would never have legitimate claim to the things other people had. ” Nana is arguably taking out the deeply rooted insecurity inside of her regarding her embargo from her family, Jalil and society as well as the idea that Mariam likes Jalil (because of his stories and gifts, which she can't provide) more than her.
Despite being portrayed as different characters in different cities during different timelines, Mammy and Nana are both essentially the same as they are both the embodiment of the negative effects of rejection and/or trauma. Moreover, the two also struggle through the similarized fight of the internalized conflict of isolation.
