Prof. Linda Lee

Ashwin Maheshwari

Mosaic I

Prof. Linda Lee

4000 Years and Still No Change?

During the Cold War, Afghanistan was a dangerous place to be, the United States and Russia were using it as a grounds to fight a war with one another. A Thousand Splendid Suns helps show the change for worse that occurred in Afghanistan, when the Taliban took over and corrupted society. Comparing this to the Epic of Gilgamesh there are many similarities and difference relating in both texts. The corruption influence was coming from both the Taliban and Gilgamesh in their respected texts. Both groups were the sole power of their lands before being brought down by someone bigger than them, and though one is a tale from 2500 BC and the other from 2007 AD these societies still seem to follow religion heavily and follow it as a guideline of their lives. In A Thousand Splendid Suns and the Epic of Gilgamesh, similarities are seen, whereas a man the absolute power and is dominant in society, but the way power is influenced and used in the respective societies is what differs.

In the Epic of Gilgamesh, Gilgamesh is king, everyone perceives him as god, he sleeps with the women who are about to be married, "Gilgamesh lets no girl go free to her bridegroom, The warrior's daughter, the young man's bride, to their complaint the goddess paid head (175, Tablet I) His power in uncontrollable, and it is only that of a divine source which can stop him. In A Thousand Splendid Suns, as the Taliban take power; women lose rights, stores are burnt, people are tortured. For the majority though, it gives them more power over their woman. Being a man is one of the corrupted influences that the Taliban has instilled in the minds of their followers since they have absolute power of the area. The Taliban enforced women to not be allowed to come out of their homes without a man. These rules are severely enforced by the Taliban, and not following these rules could be fatal. Similarities are seen in both the actions of Gilgamesh and the Taliban. The power that both parties hold in their respective stories relate, this is because those in their society who stand up do not succeed. In Gilgamesh, women are looked at as the downfall of men, Gilgamesh was depressed when Enkidu died saying how if he had not brought the harlot Enkidu would have never been killed. Also, it was a woman who killed Enkidu when Gilgamesh did not want to wed. A quote from A Thousand Splendid Suns says, "Like a compass needle that points north, a man's accusing finger always finds a woman." (7) When Mariam kills her husband, Rasheed, she pleads with the Taliban that she did it out of self-defense. They do not listen to her because they themselves have taken away most of the women's freedom; the Taliban had her publicly executed. The power of the Taliban influences the decisions made in Afghanistan during the novel, while in The Epic of Gilgamesh his power influences those around him. Both powers are met though by challenges that ultimately dwarf their influences.

Muslim means one who submits to god. Islam is dominant in Afghanistan, from the video Return to Kandahar, it is explained how Afghanistan was being more modern, but after a civil war and the Taliban in more power everyone wears traditional Islamic