'A THOUSAND SPLENDID SONS': NUANCES OF ETHNICITY AND PREDICAMENT OF WOMEN (Pages 47-55) by Mrs. Madhusmita Pati in THE ENGLISH RESEARCH EXPRESS / ISSN:2321-1164 (Online); 2347-2642 (Print)

This paper discusses the theme of ethnicity and gender in the novel A Thousand Splendid Suns. The paper is divided into five sections: i) discussion of the theoretical postulations surrounding ethnicity ii) the plot of the novel iii) the position of women in Afghanistan and the Muslim world as it emerges from the experiences of Mariam and Laila iv) the way the two women protagonists fight their way through their inflictions in the society – both in the face of ethnicity and their position as a woman in Afghanistan. The intention of the work is to bring to light the status of women prior to the formation of extremist groups and consequently its denigration, subject to variations in ideologies. Through the character of Mariam, Hosseini the predicament of Afghani women and their subjugation: one at the domestic front, second at the political front being victims of the domestic extremist groups. The decline of the status of women has been happening for the status of women various political reasons, especially when the traditionalists and the conservatives became a dominant force hijacking Islamic teachings making traditions instrumental instead of making it an inductive process. Keywords: Thousand Splendid Suns, surrounding ethnicity, women protagonists, domestic extremist, traditionalists etc.