Author's Note for Picture Book

Sexism is prejudice, stereotyping, or discrimination against women because of their gender. The Muslim/ Islamic religion practices many sexist rules and actions. For example, girls are not allowed to play outside like boys are allowed to do. Women are not allowed to talk back to men. And one of the most sexist and discriminating one of all is the fact that women are not allowed to go to school and get an education like men do. According to the Integrated Regional Information Networks of the United Nations, 87 percent of Afghan women are illiterate.

Even though I am a Muslim and part of the Islamic religion, I have been going to school for 8 years and will continue to attend school all through college. I have dreams to become successful and establish a job and way of life. I see myself  as an independent woman and no rule of my religion or any religion will stop me from having a future. I will not be part of a statistic of illiterate women I will not become dependent on male like most female in the Islamic religion are.

Despite the plight of most women, there has been a rising of equality in education in Afghanistan. Feminist Majority Foundation have stated that “50% of the students and 60% of the teachers in Afghanistan were women and 50% of government workers and 40% of doctors are now women.” I am happy to report these improvements and hope that soon all women are granted an education and can escape the plight of the sexist rules preventing them from getting what is rightfully theirs. It is every person’s right, whether male nor female, that an education is given.

Synthesis Page on Independent Reading Book

A THOUSAND
SPLENDID SUNS
BY
KHALED HOSSEINI

Critical Thinking Question: How does this book help you to think about social issues you care about or causes you are committed to?

(Body Paragraph #1) Modern Slavery- Rasheed is the husband of both Laila and Mariam, even though he is at least 20 years older than either of them. He married Mariam in hopes of a son but she could not labor one. So he married Laila to get a son as well and after she labored one, both wives were useless to Rasheed. Instead of being wives, they became slaves. They had to care every need of Rasheed’s beloved son, even if they had to neglect Rasheed's other daughter. They had to cook and clean and feared if they did not, Rasheed would let out his wrath.

(Body Paragraph #2) Abuse- Rasheed has a very bad temper. He hates mistakes and he liked to vent out his anger on his wives and blame them for anything in order to hit them. Once when Mariam cooked rice, Rasheed forced rocks into her mouth and told her to chew, in order to show her how hard her rice was, even though she took care to make it very soft. She lost teeth because of him. Once when both Mariam and Laila couldn't take another day of Rasheed, they tried to leave and made it as far as the train until someone tattled on them and Rasheed was called. He beat them bloody and almost to death as a warning.

(Body Paragraph #3) Sexism- Rasheed is a man of pride and so called religion. He made both Mariam and Laila wear burqas and made them not show their faces to men when they came to Rasheed's house. He said it is sinful for women to expose themselves to men besides their husbands. However, Mariam had discovered playboy magazines in his drawers. He also does not fast during Ramadan, even though it is sinful not to.

Overall, these social issues that I found in A Thousand Splendid Suns made me angry and emotional. I didn't like the fact that Rasheed took advantage of Mariam and Laila and neglected his daughter because she was a girl. I also hated that when Mariam and Laila tried to run away and got caught, they pleaded to the officials that Rasheed was cruel man and would beat them, but their only response was that: “What a man does in his home is his business, not mine.” It enraged me to read this and also showed me the troubles that happen in these third world countries. I know not every situation can be addressed, but most should be helped.  

Argument Essay: Should the Glass Castle Be Banned?

Under the constitution, freedom of press and speech is every citizen’s right. Therefore, it is unconstitutional to ban books because of the content they contain. In society today, schools across the country are banning books from teens and adolescents from reading them. Parents are getting upset at the “dark” content the book contains and the inappropriate plots and scenes. However, The Glass Castle by Jeannette Walls is a memoir about Jeannette as a young girl, growing up poorly and facing these exact hardships. Jeannette is surrounded with rape, abuse, and alcohol but still is able to get passed all of that and make a career out her life. This book was challenged and banned in several states and was #9 on the banned books list. If parents and schools are banning this book, they are stating that Jeannette lived an inappropriate life, therefore making others who go through these same things, inappropriate as well. Even though this book contains rape, abuse, and alcohol, middle school students should still have access to The Glass Castle because of the important social issues and life lessons it teaches.

This book should not be banned because of the social issues it teaches. Jeannette experiences rape several times during the story. Her first time was at the age of 9 when a boy that liked her got jealous and tried to shove his hand in her pants. Another time was when a man crept into her house and ran his hands over her. Rape is a serious issue in the real world and no one is sure of who is capable of it or when. This means that children should be aware of this and not trust every person who comes there way. Another social issue that is taught in this book is poverty. Jeannette spends most days hungry and dirty because of lack of water and food. She lives among many and the hardships are brutal. It cause stealing and abuse for the things that are not owned. These events have happened to Jeannette and were not made up. This teaches the reader to be careful because these things do happen. If a teenager did not know the things that go on in the real world, then they wouldn’t be prepared for these unfortunate events.

The Glass Castle also teaches about life lessons. One lesson is responsibility. In the memoir, Jeannette’s father is an alcoholic drunk, that wastes the money that the family barely has, on alcohol that makes him get angry and abusive. Because of all his spending on alcohol, it leaves the family broke and too poor to afford food. Because of his irresponsibility, he becomes hungry most nights and leaves his kids scrounging for food in the garbage: “I’m pretty sure Brad also looks for food in the garbage at lunch as well. We just don’t like to admit it to each other.” However, Jeannette takes responsibility of her life and goes to New York to settle down and start a career in writing. As you can see, The Glass Castle shows the consequences of irresponsibility and the damages it does. But the book also teaches the outcomes and benefits of being responsible as well, in order to show the relation to one another. This helps the reader understand how important it is to make the right decisions to be responsible. Another life lesson The Glass Castle teaches is forgiveness. Even though Jeannette’s father disappointed Jeannette in more ways than one, Jeannette is able to look past his mistakes and still offer her love to him. When she gets to New York, Jeannette has money problems for college and won’t be able to attend. She gives her father a second chance to redeem himself by taking the money he earned from playing pool. She kissed and cried and hugged her father for helping her tuition and he beams at the fact that he could help. This demonstrates how forgiving and giving second chances is worthwhile and will help you in the end. Forgiveness is a big lesson that many cannot do and instead hold grudges but Jeannette beautifully illustrates the positives of forgiveness. This also further shows the negatives of drinking.

Although The Glass Castle benefits readers on learning and preparing for the real world and teaches them life lessons, parents are still labeling its contents as ‘inappropriate.’ They state that they want their child to have a good view on the world and its many opportunities it holds for them and by letting them read these books, it spoils it for them. (What Banned Books Mean to Parents and Kids) But are parents really protecting their kids from the real world, or hiding the truth? The content in the books are true and does happen in reality, so does a teen not have a right to know what is going on? By banning these books, the parents are just delaying the inevitable.

Overall, books that contain inappropriate content, does not mean that this is the only value it has. The inappropriate content the parents only see, is not the purpose of the book, but really, it is the additional content that revolves around a more sensitive and important message that growing teens should be aware of. I don’t mind that parents ban books from their child- they have a right to and as a parent, they can decide for their own child. However, to go to a school and ban books for all students, they have stepped their boundary as a parent. It is not their decision to take away or label books inappropriate for other kids because in reality, this world is not a perfect world and no amount of censorship or banning, will get these children to believe it is. By banning a book, parents are lying about the truth.   

Works Cited

Brunner, Borgna. “Banned Books.” Publish. 2014. Web. December 10, 2014.

Constitution of United States. U.S Constitution- Amendment 1. Print. December 15, 1791.

Rich, Jake. “Can Book Censorship Save Our Children and Their Innocence?” Publish. October 7, 2014. Web. December 10, 2014.

Walls, Jeannette. The Glass Castle. Print. 2005. Publish. Scribner.

Jones. What Banned Books Mean to Parents and Kids. <www.atyourlibrary.org> Publish. Jan, 2011. Web. December 10, 2014.