The breadwinner
_Deborah Ellis
Parvana was a girl that saw a man with a turban and a rifle that was a Taliban and the
Talib took a letter from his vest. And the story is about a country where women were
forced to be ruled by a man about leaving the house, getting dressed. This happens in
Afghanistan where the Taliban are the members of a religious group that is very
extreme.
They were at the market, called Kabul market and she was sitting on a blanket with her
father, helping him because he lost most of the lower part of his leg when he was
teaching at a high school and it got bombed. In Afghanistan girls weren’t allowed to go
out, so they couldn’t even go to school, but Parvana was there to help her father. Her
sister Nooria left high school and her mother was fired from her job as writer for a
Kabul radio station. So, they were five people in the same room with Maryam (five-
year-old) and Ali (two-year-old) as well. Parvana was eleven years old but she looked
smaller and she used to try to hide when someone was near. So, both her parents
though that education should be able to everybody, they both were to university so
Parvana was one of the lucky ones who knew how to read or write, because most of
the population couldn’t. Her father was reading a letter to a costumer even though
Parvana herself knew how to read. She spoke Dari the best like almost everybody, but
she could understand Pashtu as well. Her father spoke English. She wanted to receive a
letter but most of her friends fled away and maybe they were in Pakistan.
The market was a very busy place and they were stand where they were selling tea.
The tea boys ran all over the market to sell tea to others shoppers who couldn’t leave
their stand. Parvana wanted to do that because she knew the whole market but her
father preferred her to run around a school yard. She knew that it wasn’t her fault that
she couldn’t go to school. Her favourite subject was history, especially Afghan History,
Persians, Alexander the Great, Greeks, Turkish, British and Soviets came there and the
Afghan kicked them all. Both Parvana’s parents were from respected families and they
had good jobs with high salaries, a big house with servants a yard, but a bomb
destroyed it. And bomb after bomb they needed to move until they were living in a
small room the five of them. Afghanistan had been in a war for more than twenty
years; the soviets were bombing everything and when they left the contrary team
needed to shoot at something so they started shooting at themselves.
The Taliban militia was religious scholars that forbade girls to go to school and they
weren’t teaching people how to be better people. Her father decided that it was time
to pack and she helped her. Parvana was useful for him for walking all of this helped by
a walking stick. He used to have this special leg but decided to sell it. While walking,
Parvana saw the Mount Parvana that her father decided to name after her. Their
, house was in the third floor and must of it was destroyed. Parvana helped her father to
go upstairs.
When they arrived there, her mother and Nooria forced Parvana to fill the water tank
with a bucket so she needed to go downstairs and then upstairs again. She did the job
because she was the only able to go out because Nooria and Mother needed to wear
the burqas. She did the job and then her mother and Nooria told her to help them
cleaning the cupboard, there were only two pieces of furniture, and Mother wanted to
sell an outfit of Parvana very beautiful because Nooria still needed her clothes when
she would get married. And they didn’t touch anything of Hossain but the boy died
with fourteen years because of a bomb. Then they had dinner on the floor and father
started to tell story of history (her father was forced by the Taliban to grow a beard). In
1880, Afghans were fighting with the British in Kandahar, and they were going to lose
but a small girl called Malali encouraged the troops, and they won. They needed to be
strong they were laughing all together when the Taliban men entered. They kicked
father out because he studied in England and her mother tried to save him but she was
knocked up. Nooria covered herself with a blanket. And Parvana was terrified, she
tried to help her father but he only said be their Malali. And then the Talibans started
to destroy the house searching for things and Parvana remembered the English books
father had hidden, but they didn’t find them. Parvana screamed that they needed to
stop, and the soldiers hit her. When they left the family was destroyed.
Alli and Maryam were asleep and Mother, Nooria and Parvana prepared everything to
go to sleep, but they couldn’t sleep. Parvana needed her Father’s snore to feel safe, so
she asked Mother to turn on a light so Father would know the way home, even though
he left the walking stick there, because there was an order of painting all the windows
black, but they ignored it. Almost every Afghan knew someone that had gone to jail,
Parvana’s aunt went to jail for protesting. They woke up and they were having
breakfast and her mother said to Nooria that her and Parvana were going to release
her father. Parvana asked Nooria to write a note, because women couldn’t go outside
unless they had a note from their husbands. So, Parvana took the note and her and her
mother went out. Her mother started showing a picture of her husband to everybody
although photos were illegal. When they arrived to the prison, Mother started yelling
at the guards that she wanted them to release her husband. The thing ended up with
the guards hitting both of them. So, Parvana left with her mother.
When they arrived home, both of their feet were sore and aching. So, Nooria and
Maryam took care of them. Mother had a breakdown where she started crying and
Parvana fell asleep. She woke up in the mother, but that night she had dreams about
the guards and these guys beaten her mother. And her feet were still hurting. They
were having breakfast and mother was sleeping all day long. So, they had nothing to
do and they were bored. Nooria and Parvana took care of Maryam and Ali, but they
ended up running off of water and on the fourth day they ran out of food, so Parvana
needed to go out to get some food even though her feet were still sore. One of these
days Parvana remembered the picture that the guards tore up of father and she put
_Deborah Ellis
Parvana was a girl that saw a man with a turban and a rifle that was a Taliban and the
Talib took a letter from his vest. And the story is about a country where women were
forced to be ruled by a man about leaving the house, getting dressed. This happens in
Afghanistan where the Taliban are the members of a religious group that is very
extreme.
They were at the market, called Kabul market and she was sitting on a blanket with her
father, helping him because he lost most of the lower part of his leg when he was
teaching at a high school and it got bombed. In Afghanistan girls weren’t allowed to go
out, so they couldn’t even go to school, but Parvana was there to help her father. Her
sister Nooria left high school and her mother was fired from her job as writer for a
Kabul radio station. So, they were five people in the same room with Maryam (five-
year-old) and Ali (two-year-old) as well. Parvana was eleven years old but she looked
smaller and she used to try to hide when someone was near. So, both her parents
though that education should be able to everybody, they both were to university so
Parvana was one of the lucky ones who knew how to read or write, because most of
the population couldn’t. Her father was reading a letter to a costumer even though
Parvana herself knew how to read. She spoke Dari the best like almost everybody, but
she could understand Pashtu as well. Her father spoke English. She wanted to receive a
letter but most of her friends fled away and maybe they were in Pakistan.
The market was a very busy place and they were stand where they were selling tea.
The tea boys ran all over the market to sell tea to others shoppers who couldn’t leave
their stand. Parvana wanted to do that because she knew the whole market but her
father preferred her to run around a school yard. She knew that it wasn’t her fault that
she couldn’t go to school. Her favourite subject was history, especially Afghan History,
Persians, Alexander the Great, Greeks, Turkish, British and Soviets came there and the
Afghan kicked them all. Both Parvana’s parents were from respected families and they
had good jobs with high salaries, a big house with servants a yard, but a bomb
destroyed it. And bomb after bomb they needed to move until they were living in a
small room the five of them. Afghanistan had been in a war for more than twenty
years; the soviets were bombing everything and when they left the contrary team
needed to shoot at something so they started shooting at themselves.
The Taliban militia was religious scholars that forbade girls to go to school and they
weren’t teaching people how to be better people. Her father decided that it was time
to pack and she helped her. Parvana was useful for him for walking all of this helped by
a walking stick. He used to have this special leg but decided to sell it. While walking,
Parvana saw the Mount Parvana that her father decided to name after her. Their
, house was in the third floor and must of it was destroyed. Parvana helped her father to
go upstairs.
When they arrived there, her mother and Nooria forced Parvana to fill the water tank
with a bucket so she needed to go downstairs and then upstairs again. She did the job
because she was the only able to go out because Nooria and Mother needed to wear
the burqas. She did the job and then her mother and Nooria told her to help them
cleaning the cupboard, there were only two pieces of furniture, and Mother wanted to
sell an outfit of Parvana very beautiful because Nooria still needed her clothes when
she would get married. And they didn’t touch anything of Hossain but the boy died
with fourteen years because of a bomb. Then they had dinner on the floor and father
started to tell story of history (her father was forced by the Taliban to grow a beard). In
1880, Afghans were fighting with the British in Kandahar, and they were going to lose
but a small girl called Malali encouraged the troops, and they won. They needed to be
strong they were laughing all together when the Taliban men entered. They kicked
father out because he studied in England and her mother tried to save him but she was
knocked up. Nooria covered herself with a blanket. And Parvana was terrified, she
tried to help her father but he only said be their Malali. And then the Talibans started
to destroy the house searching for things and Parvana remembered the English books
father had hidden, but they didn’t find them. Parvana screamed that they needed to
stop, and the soldiers hit her. When they left the family was destroyed.
Alli and Maryam were asleep and Mother, Nooria and Parvana prepared everything to
go to sleep, but they couldn’t sleep. Parvana needed her Father’s snore to feel safe, so
she asked Mother to turn on a light so Father would know the way home, even though
he left the walking stick there, because there was an order of painting all the windows
black, but they ignored it. Almost every Afghan knew someone that had gone to jail,
Parvana’s aunt went to jail for protesting. They woke up and they were having
breakfast and her mother said to Nooria that her and Parvana were going to release
her father. Parvana asked Nooria to write a note, because women couldn’t go outside
unless they had a note from their husbands. So, Parvana took the note and her and her
mother went out. Her mother started showing a picture of her husband to everybody
although photos were illegal. When they arrived to the prison, Mother started yelling
at the guards that she wanted them to release her husband. The thing ended up with
the guards hitting both of them. So, Parvana left with her mother.
When they arrived home, both of their feet were sore and aching. So, Nooria and
Maryam took care of them. Mother had a breakdown where she started crying and
Parvana fell asleep. She woke up in the mother, but that night she had dreams about
the guards and these guys beaten her mother. And her feet were still hurting. They
were having breakfast and mother was sleeping all day long. So, they had nothing to
do and they were bored. Nooria and Parvana took care of Maryam and Ali, but they
ended up running off of water and on the fourth day they ran out of food, so Parvana
needed to go out to get some food even though her feet were still sore. One of these
days Parvana remembered the picture that the guards tore up of father and she put
