A Deconstruction of Female Characterization in A Thousand Splendid Suns Based on Structural Functionalism

Abstract

A Thousand Splendid Suns is a successful work of Afghan-American author Khaled Hosseini. A Thousand Splendid Suns was one of the best-selling books in America, and it receives many praises from various media such as The Washington Post. This story happened in the backdrop of Kabul, the capital of Afghan, in the 20th and 21st century. The story happened in the era of war in Afghanistan, women were suffering from the pain of war and male oppression. This thesis will introduce structural functionalism and communication concepts to analyze the female images in A Thousand Splendid Suns.

This thesis consists of three parts, namely the introduction, main body and conclusion. The introduction part introduces the basic information of the book. The main body is divided into three parts. The first part is the brief introduction of A Thousand Splendid Suns, and this novel, at the same time, the subject of the book is discussed in this part. In the second part, this thesis argues about the reasons for the formation of Mariam's tragic image from the perspective of Structural Functionalism, pointing out the influence of religion, war, and family on women. Part three argues about the awakening of women and its significance.

The conclusion part summarizes the formation factors of the mimicry environment and factors contributing to the awakening of women. At the same time, this thesis will point out the importance of education, economy and other factors to women's awakening.

Key Words: A Thousand Splendid Suns; women; awakening; structural functionalism