Maria Barrera
Professor Knapp
English 1b (Friday)
Week Three prompt 1
The chapter The Shabbat is very important because it represents what the novel is about. Marjane was trying to forget war. For this reason, she involved herself in things that teenagers presumably enjoy: shopping. Nevertheless, it was not enough for Marjane to forget that her life was filled with brutality and tragedy. Once that Marjane bought articles that made her feel a normal girl, she was surprised by the abrupt sound of an explosion. Quickly Marjane forgot the happiness that she felt and she ran away because the missile had exploded in her neighborhood (138). This passage represents the destruction that a war can cause. It is true that during a period of war people can suffer many kind of damage, but the saddest thing becomes with the destruction of the childhood. Children have the right to live in a peaceful place where they can enjoy and feel secure. Even though Marjane was a child, she witnessed the destruction of her country and her childhood.
Without doubt Marjane was the most impacted for the devastating war with Iraq, so she lived in a constant fear. “I don’t want to die,” Marjane said every time she heard the explosion of the missiles (136). However, the worst happened when she saw that Neda, a girl of her age, had died after the explosion. Marjane could see, under the debris, Neda’s bracelet attached to her hand (142). Moreover, Marjane was forced to fly to Austria living behind her country in which she had her treasure: her family. Marjane kept in mind “I will always be true to myself,” yet she knew that maybe it was the last time that she could see her family (151).
I think that war is central theme because Marjane’s life changed completely after the war. In addition, I think that the author wanted to describe in detail the human cost of war: lost of lives, terror, separation of families, and how a child has to mature fast in the middle of this tremendous chaos.
Hi Maria! I like your observations and insight...good post!
ReplyDeleteI agree with your post. No child should have to go through such devastating events. Marjane was able to distract herself by shopping, but she came back to the reality when she heard the explosion. It is really sad to see when a child's childhood is snatched from them. Furthermore, I was really surprised to see her parents send her to Austria. Even though they did it because they loved her and wanted to see her succeed, I can only imagine what Marjane must have gone through to leave her family behind to settle somewhere else.
ReplyDeleteThis is one of the most important parts of the story. It shows the horror's of war do not exclude children. That is the harsh reality of any armed conflict. I know first had what it is like to see the atrocities of war. I was in Iraq in 2005, and worked at an Air Force hospital. We treated injured civilians as well as troops from our military and the Iraq army. And the most challenging times for me, was when it was a child, innocent in all of this, that was injured or killed. These images, they do not leave your mind, ever.
ReplyDeleteYou are right, no child should have to deal with such things, but we can not be blinded that it does occur.
ReplyDeleteThis part of the book was very sad. It's horrible that the day Marjane finally gets to go out and have fun just so happens to be the same day her neighborhood is bombed and on top of that a girl she knows, Neda, is killed. The ending really gets you wanting more. I agree with you about the author, she did a good job showing the difficulties of the war and growing up in it.
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