A Thousand Splendid Suns--Comparative Literary Essay Assignnment
Characters’ dialogue and actions serve to reveal themes in literary works. Reader’s learn
what characters learn from their experiences vicariously. What is learned is a wide variety of
themes. By examining specific actions and speeches of characters throughout A Thousand
Splendid Suns, you should be able to discern distinct themes that develop.
Write a five-paragraph essay (minimum 500 words) comparing one of the following pairs of
characters:
a) Mariam and Laila; OR
b) Jalil and Rasheed.
Compare their character traits and what the two characters learn from their experiences, or
what the reader learns from their experiences. You may choose to explore one theme in depth
throughout the essay, or different themes from paragraph to paragraph. Your comparative
essay will be an integrated analysis of both character and theme.
Sample thesis statements integrating both character traits and theme:
1) _______________, ________________, and _______________ give a person the strength
to endure the most troublesome of times.
2) Sometimes the most horrible treatment brings out some of the best traits in the victims, such
as ______________, __________________, and _____________________.
3) Putting others before oneself can be a difficult sacrifice, but it builds strength of character.
____________ and ____________ demonstrate such selflessness, as well as ____________,
and _________________.
4) What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger. This axiom is reflected in the experiences of
_________________ and ________________ which demonstrate their common traits of
____________________ , ___________________, and ____________________________.
5) The ____________________, ______________________, and ____________________ of
_____________________________ and ______________________ in the face of injustice
serve as a reminder that we must fight against the oppression of human rights.
6) ______________________ and _____________________’s experiences reveal their
____________________, _______________________, and __________________________
reflecting the theme(s) that ____________________________________________________
-some people will mistreat others rather than causing themselves shame
-it is easy to victimize the vulnerable
-lies have the power to destroy lives
-humankind has an excessive capacity to commit brutality against our own
Rough Draft Due: Friday, May 4th, 2012
Essay Due: Tuesday, May 8th 2012
2
To aid your brainstorming, use the chart below to compare your characters:
3
SIMILAR TRAITS
SUPPORT
(select a key speech or action that reveals the
trait in each character; include at least one
quoted passage per paragraph from A
Thousand Splendid Suns; include page #)
THEME(S)
What is learned from the
characters’ experiences?