The beautifully described Shabanu, Daughter of the Wind is written by Suzanne Fisher Staples. The features of the book are elaboration of the desert life and conservative thoughts of a Pakistani society makes this book worth reading.
The story of the book offers the readers to know about the illiberal approach of the dwellers of Cholistan desert in Pakistan who try really hard to survive and lead a life of a nomad. The book describes some aspects which are basically beyond social sense. It reflects the idea of young marriages, sexual harassment and conservative cultures which are still followed in some regions of Pakistan. The author has tremendously described the life of desert dwellers. The way the writer has elaborated their miseries is wonderful.
To derive a conclusion, if we go through the story then as entitled, the story is about an eleven year old girl Shabanu who is wild like a wind. She is independent, strong and sensible. She is the personification of gallantry. But her life is not as good as her qualities as she had to subject herself to the slings and arrows of misfortune (Staples).
Shabanu and her family were preparing for the wedding of her elder sister Phulan who is just one year older than her. As Shabanu was engaged too with the cousin she scarcely knew so she was trying to confront her fears.
Everything seemed smooth but Shabanu and her sister then faced a tragedy before the ceremony which led Shabanu to take a strong decision. After the accident the family was blackmailed by the landowners due to whom Shabanu got the only option of getting married to the elder brother of the landowner who was old enough to be her father (Staples).
Women rights suppression and their compulsion to do things against their will is something widely observed in East specially since they are considered as the weaker sex. The theme of novel mentions the fact that women have to experience miseries and then they also have to compromise.
This reminds me about the realistic school of thought in which the strong is allowed to pressurize the weak and the weak is supposed to tolerate the injustice and accept that he is weak. Apart from this the author gives a clear picture to the people in United States that what is going on in small conservative families of Pakistan. It is providing them an insightful thought to analyze various cultures, norms and values in such societies (Staples).
In Pakistan, most of the families still practice the conservative thoughts which result in the disrespect of women. These women related issues include abuse of women rights, early marriages, sexual harassment, etc.
On my analysis of the thematic structure of the author, I would say that even in this 21st century, many eastern women are not allowed to go to the educational institutions freely or do a job, in many families the girls are not supposed to present their views, likes and dislikes before marriages. If they are out to study or for job then they are teased and humiliated, they are not given any respect in offices they work and are immensely treated rudely by not giving them their due share of participation and credit for their achievements (Staples).
On my analysis, I believe that the reasons behind the conservative thought and authoritative attitude over women are many. For example, in small regions there is a concept of feudalism. The feudal lords pressurize the dwellers by the name of religion and culture and people have to obey them otherwise they will not be considered as the part of their society. They even resolve the personal family issues unjustly and impose their views over the weaker people (Staples).
Another reason is that the people in villages are not strong socially, morally, educationally and financially. They lack resources and they have no confidence of expressing their views and will so their daughters are pushed to accept the hard realities. This novel inspired a large number of audiences as the life of Shabanu reflects the lives of many women (Staples).
Through the analysis of the thematic structure of the novel, it can be said that the novel pin points a very imperative issue of eastern societies. In the course of the novel, Shabanu seems to be the voice of many young girls who have become the prey of misfortune.
It explains us to love this lovely creation of God i.e. woman who plays an important part in every man’s life as a daughter, as a sister, as a wife and as a mother. It will not be incorrect to state that the author had proposed the idea that women should be given their share of respect, their freedom of thought and the freedom of expression but unfortunately most of the men deny this truth and continue to insult women.
Works Cited
Staples, S. Daughter of the Wind. New York: Random House, 1984.