All over the world, humans express fear and reply to violence in similar ways. Violence and fear are two recurring themes that appear throughout three novels– The Hate U Give, A Thousand Splendid Suns, and Zeitoun. While each tells a unique story, their protagonists grapple with the same problem: fear. Angie Thomas’ The Hate U Give, tells the story of an adolescent’s moral obligation to speak out in the wake of moral controversy. Zeitoun, by Dave Eggers, follows the story of a man who purportedly claims to be a family-man, but whose actions betray that image. Lastly, Khaled Hosseini’ A Thousand Splendid Suns, by explores the societal pressures of a woman living in an the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, and her attempts escape the confines of the repressive, male-dominated society.
In The Hate U Give, Starr struggles with her racial identity in the aftermath of a police shooting that killed her best friend. . . Ever since she was a little girl her parents told her to do as the police told her: “when I was twelve, my parents had two talks with me. One was the usual birds and bees talk… the other talk was what to do if a cop stopped me” (Thomas 20.) She realizes that racial discrimination is ubiquitous, but is too scared to push herself– even when she knows it’s the right thing to do. Kenya, pushes Starr by saying “So you gon’ let the police stop you from speaking out for Khalili? I thought you cared about him… tell everyone what really happened that night… you’re letting them trash talk him” (Thomas 197,198.)
Despite the consequences, Starr decides no, she must stand up for Khalil because that is what he would have done for her. She speaks on a television interview with a reporter and participates in the rioting in Garden Heights. “Ms. Ofrah said this interview is the way I fight…” (Thomas 290.) Starr is transformed from a meek teen to an activist unafraid to speak her mind as a result of her experience: “Khalil I’ll never forget. I’ll never give up. I’ll never be quiet. I promise.” (Thomas 444.) Throughout the novel, Starr elicits sympathy, but by the end of the novel, Starr discovers that speaking out has emboldened her.
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In Zeitoun, Abulhadram Zeitoun wrestles with two identities: that of a family man and that of a good samaritan. The novel details the story of Zeitoun’s preoccupation to remain in New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina, despite his family’s need to flee the region. Despite the repeated warnings from Zeitoun believes his decision was divinely inspired, and he “was certain he had to been called to stay, that God knew he would be of service if he remained. His choice to stay in the city had been God’s will.”(Eggers 110.) This voice in his head, allegedly from God, is his explanation for staying in New Orleans.
He volunteers around the city– feeding dogs, bringing people to safety, and sends for help when he can’t. His stay in the ghost town once called New Orleans becomes a violent, perhaps racially triggered life altering experience that affects him along with his family. After 9/11, as hostility against Muslims surges, Zeitoun feels increasingly alienated. “He had long believed that the police acted in the best interests of the citizens they served.
That the military was accountable, reasonable, and was kept in check by concentric circles of regulations, laws, common sense, common decency. But now those hopes could be put to rest” (Eggers 243.) Before Hurricane Katrina, Zeitoun had strong faith in law enforcement; but in the Hurricane’s aftermath, he has become increasingly cynical of authority. After his release, “The Zeitouns have lived in seven apartments and houses since the storm. Their Dublin Street office was leveled and is now a parking lot.
The house on Dart is still unfinished. They are tired.” (Eggers 295) Zeitoun states,’Kathy has lost her memory. It’s shredded, unreliable. The wiring in her mind have been snapped in vital places, she fears, and now the strangest things have been happening’ (Eggers 303.) As Kathy and Abdulrahman suffer from post traumatic stress disorder, Kathy is losing her ability to function alone, while both are tired and being treated unfairly. Their once- happy marriage has deteriorated, saddled with parental responsibilities and remorse.
In A Thousand Splendid Suns, Mariam struggles with gender stereotypes in Afghanistan battles against the stigma that relegated her to life as merely a homemaker. She is expected to be subservient and passive towards men, allowing them to treat her with impunity In the novel, she is conflicted regarding her father; her mother incessantly complains about the horrible treatment she faces from him and his ignorance of them. Her whole life, she had been seen a certain way, “She understood then what Nana meant, that a harami was an unwanted thing: that she, Mariam, was an illegitimate person who would never have legitimate claim to the things other people had, things such as love, family, home, acceptance” (Hosseini 4.)
Not only does her family dismiss her as “weed,” but she sees has come to internalize this contemptuous label. Through her experiences, she is able this epithet and grow into a mother, friend, and hero. She is not a weed; she is a flower in full bloom, and thrives as a principled and courageous adult. Her dream is to become a mother,’When Mariam thought of this baby, her heart swelled inside of her. It swelled and swelled until all the loss, all the grief, all the loneliness and self abasement of her life washed away’ (Hosseini 89.) Motherhood symbolized happiness and due to her many miscarriages she lost hope. She was always seen, and saw herself as unwanted– a weed (harami).
A baby made her feel loved and gave her someone to love. As Mariam discovers herself and what she wants, she learns and advises to Laila,’Marriage can wait, education cannot. You’re a very, very bright girl. Truly you are. You can be anything you want, Laila.’ (Hosseini 114) Mariam learns the real meaning of life, she knows now that there is importance to education and after a woman finds herself she can become a wife. Ultimately, through her ordeals, she breaks out of tradition and discovers herself — and perhaps equally importantly, she transmits her optimism to a new generation.
Each of these books feature a protagonist who, in their attempts to effect change, fights formidable external and internal forces. The psychological toll that anxiety exacts on the protagonists is profound, but it somehow, it is not enough to control their destinies. Each protagonist thinks they can change the world around them for a more decent and equitable way of living. Instead, our protagonists summon the resilience to understand that while they cannot change the worlds around them, they can transform themselves.
