While reading the Bookseller of Kabul, we learned a lot about Afghan society. Åsne Seierstad goes in depth about their culture, religion, political system, history, landscape, and education. She shows the Afghans to be deeply rooted in their traditions, and although they are now free from the Taliban rule they are still strict under the beliefs they had. The Afghan society seems like it is trying to modernize, but many are hypocrites in their own homes. An example of this is shown with Sultan and his liberal thinking about women in government positions, but when it comes to his family he wants to be fully in charge of everything. The political shape of the country is changing, but it deeply based off of Muslim beliefs and American backed ideals. Although they are not as oppressive as the Taliban, the new government does not clearly differentiate church from the state. The system of power is also set up on the connections that you have. It is hard to move up in power, and if you get into a conflict with someone with more respect or admiration from the citizens, you are in bad luck. This is shown between Sultan and the carpenter. Even though the carpenter is not proven guilty, he ends up going to jail for 3 years because of Sultan’s authority. The history of Afghanistan is quite lengthy and complicated. Early times had Afghanistan as a prominent society, with religious tolerance and educated people. Other than this, the country has been put through many wars and switching of powers. No government has been stable in the 20th century, even the USSR could not keep their grip on Kabul. Women are oppressed and do not have much freedom in Afghanistan. The only thing they can keep private would be the little box they can lock belongings up in. Men are shown to be spoiled in their actions, and with women they are especially controlling and disrespectful. Seierstad does even create an excuse Sultan, claiming that the only model of a father he has is his own. It is easy to see that the sons, specifically Mansur, are likely to turn out like Sultan himself. Seierstad does seem to have some bias when she is talking about males, as she seems like more of a modern thinker. The whole book went into all of the aspects of Afghan society, when we really only assumed it would tell the story of one family in Kabul in the beginning.
A huge problem that our group had with the authors authority is that she left Afghanistan before she could see the endings that happened in the epilogue. Although it is nice to give conclusion to the story, the ending she writes could be completely made up. The book is basically a memoir, as Seierstad writes about her experiences with each of the characters and it is open to her interpretation. The ending is just troublesome because she only speaks to Sultan, when in reality the story is based on the entire family. Although Seierstad does have a first-hand experience with the Khan family, she does paint the characters as she wants and also does include some of her judgments and opinions. The last part of the epilogue shows this, as she hears that Sonya is pregnant and is asked to pray for a boy. Seierstad exclaims, “what if it’s a girl!” and answers that it will be “another little catastrophe in the Khan family” immediately after (288). Although we have learned the value of women in Afghanistan, how can we be so sure that it is not the same as a typical American family just wishing for a baby boy? We like that the author did address the question of what happened with the family, but it is hard to assume that she actually has all perspectives throughout the story.
The ideal audience for this book would be students. We think that students studying English, journalism, Middle Eastern studies, and also current events would be benefited by reading this book. It does give good discussion, good overview of Afghan culture and society, and an interesting perspective into a family in Kabul. The stories that Seierstad writes about in the book do have many points of view, and she sometimes only focuses on her own, which can be problematic. Seierstad did get sued by the Khan family for slandering, which would be an interesting aspect to look act. This controversy could also help spur sales, although it may not help her credibility.
A huge problem that our group had with the authors authority is that she left Afghanistan before she could see the endings that happened in the epilogue. Although it is nice to give conclusion to the story, the ending she writes could be completely made up. The book is basically a memoir, as Seierstad writes about her experiences with each of the characters and it is open to her interpretation. The ending is just troublesome because she only speaks to Sultan, when in reality the story is based on the entire family. Although Seierstad does have a first-hand experience with the Khan family, she does paint the characters as she wants and also does include some of her judgments and opinions. The last part of the epilogue shows this, as she hears that Sonya is pregnant and is asked to pray for a boy. Seierstad exclaims, “what if it’s a girl!” and answers that it will be “another little catastrophe in the Khan family” immediately after (288). Although we have learned the value of women in Afghanistan, how can we be so sure that it is not the same as a typical American family just wishing for a baby boy? We like that the author did address the question of what happened with the family, but it is hard to assume that she actually has all perspectives throughout the story.
The ideal audience for this book would be students. We think that students studying English, journalism, Middle Eastern studies, and also current events would be benefited by reading this book. It does give good discussion, good overview of Afghan culture and society, and an interesting perspective into a family in Kabul. The stories that Seierstad writes about in the book do have many points of view, and she sometimes only focuses on her own, which can be problematic. Seierstad did get sued by the Khan family for slandering, which would be an interesting aspect to look act. This controversy could also help spur sales, although it may not help her credibility.
No comments:
Post a Comment