Context

• When is the book set

  In Afghanistan over the course of 4 decades - set between 1960s and early 2000s
• What is Hosseini's writing deeply influenced by

  Afghanistan's history, the impact of war, oppression, and the struggles of women under Taliban rule
• What job did Hosseini's mother have

  Professor at a secondary school in Afghanistan
• Where was Hosseini born

  Kabul, Afghanistan
• When was the book published?

  2007
• Who is in power during Mariam's upbringing

  Mohammed Daoud Khan
• What happens to Daoud Khan

  He is overthrown and killed in a pro-soviet coup and is replaced by the PDPA.
• What was the PDPA

  People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan
• When was Daoud khan in power

  1953-1963

  
  

  (Resigns)

  
  

  1973 - 1978
• Why was Daoud Khan overthrown

  The soviets did not see him as effective enough
• When was Daoud Khan overthrown

  1978
• Who opposes the PDPA

  US-backed mujahideen groups
• When does the soviet afghan war begin

  1979
• Which war does Laila's brothers die in

  Soviet-afghan war
• When does the soviet-afghan war end

  1988
• How long was the Soviet afghan war

  1979 - 1988
• Who led the soviet-backed government

  Najibullah
• What happens after the afghan-soviet war

  The soviet-backed government collapses and the civil war begins as there is a power vacuum within the mujahideen.
• What war does Giti die in

  The civil war
• When was the civil war

  1992 - 1996
• Who was Massoud


  A warlord who took power over part of Kabul. Leader of the main opposition to the Taliban
• What happens to massoud

  He is assassinated in 2001
• How does the civil war end

  The Taliban emerge and seize control of Kabul
• What do the Taliban introduce

  A hard-line version of Islam, banning women from work, and introducing Islamic punishments including stoning to death and amputations
• What happens at the end of the book

  Parliament opens again and the majority of the seats are held by warlords from the civil war
• Name a warlord who becomes a key parliamentary figure at the end

  Hekmatyar - his rocket killed Giti
• What were women's rights like under Daoud khan and the PDPA

  - Women's rights expansion: communist government promoted education and employment for women, granting them rights that were later stripped away under the Taliban

  
  

  - Urban vs Rural divide
• What was the urban vs rural divide

  While women in cities like Kabul experienced more freedom, traditional conservative values persisted in rural areas, showing the tension between progress and deeply rooted patriarchal traditions
• 2007 interview quote from Hosseini on urban rural divide

  "The real oppression of women in Afghanistan occurs in deeply tribal, conservative rural areas"
• When was the Taliban regime

  1996-2001
• Women's rights under the Taliban regime

  - extreme oppression

  - brutal punishments

  - restricted medical care
• Extreme oppression of women

  Women were banned from working, attending school, or even leaving the house without a male guardian. This is reflected in Laila's loss of freedom and independence after the Taliban took over
• Brutal punishments

  Women faced public executions for perceived moral transgressions. Mariam's execution for killing Rasheed highlights the lack of justice for women under Taliban rule
• Restricted medical care

  Women could only be treated by female doctors, yet female doctors were barred from working - leading to inadequate healthcare, as illustrated in Laila's difficult birth.
• What was maternal mortality like at the time

  Highest in the world - 1450/100 000
• What % of women had trained medical personnel at their births

  6%
• How many beds did the single medical facility in Kabul have (reference when laila gives birth to Zalmai)

  35
• What is the main religion

  Islam
• What is Islam


  A monotheistic religion that teaches belief in one God (Allah) and follows the teachings of the prophet Muhammad as revealed in the Quran. Emphasises faith, prayer, charity, fasting, and pilgrimage
• How does Hosseini present Islam

  A source of comfort but also a tool for oppression