Breadwinner

Summary

Literary Devices to Identify

 Metaphors: not literally true but illustrate something

 Similes: metaphors using the words “like” or “as”

 Personification: giving human characteristics to NON-human things

 Foils: characters who are exact opposites (Example: Nooria and Parvana)

 Alliteration: two or more words with the same beginning CONSONANT

sound

 Assonance: two or more words with the same VOWEL sound

 Irony: something that is the opposite of what you would think (Example:
Nooria beautiful on the outside, mean / ugly on inside)
  Symbolism: an object in a story that has a deeper hidden meaning
(Example: storks symbolize good luck)

 Foreshadowing: hints about events that will happen later (Example: hinting
father will come back)

 Flashback: when the author tells about something that happened earlier
(Examples: story of Hossain killed by land mine)

Conflict Types to Identify

 Character vs. Character

 Character vs. Themselves
 Character vs. Nature
 Character vs. Society

Character Analysis

 Dynamic Character: changes throughout the book

 Static Character: does not change throughout the book

About the Author – Deborah Ellis

-1960: born in Canada

-Began writing at age 12
-1997: visited Afghan refugee camp in Pakistan, interviewed Afghan families
-There she met a father with a daughter who dressed like a boy
-Wrote 3 sequels to Breadwinner

Genre: Historical Fiction

Main Characters
Parvana (protagonist), Father, Mother, Nooria, Maryam, Ali, Mrs. Weera, Taliban
(see characterization in Lit Student Book)

Historical Allusions – Afghan History

-Many different people tried to take over Afghanistan (Persians, Alexander the
Great, Greeks, Arabs, Turks, British, Soviets, Tamerland from Samarkand,
Taliban, Americans, now Taliban again).

-Because Afghanistan is an important trade route from Europe to Asia and is rich
in natural resources, other nations want their land.

-1880: Story of Malali (The British had invaded. Afghans were losing the war
when little Malali came out waving her scarf saying, “We can win this battle!” Her
courage inspired the Afghans to win the battle.

Quotes

“A guest to us is king.” – Father

“You are all inheritors of the courage of Malali.” – Father

“You can’t be truly Afghan is you don’t know someone who’s been in prison.” –
Mother

“If all the educated people leave, who will rebuild the country?” – Father

“It’s easy to call someone else scared when you’re safe inside your home all the
time.” – Parvana

“These are unusual times. They call for ordinary people to do unusual things.” –
Mrs. Weera

Themes / Lessons

Courage, Importance of Education, Even Young Children can Make a Difference,

Hope vs. Despair
 Plot Elements to Identify

 Exposition: introduces setting & characters (Chapter 1 and first part of

Chapter 2)

 Inciting Moment: the moment that starts the action (Taliban burst in door)

 Rising Action: contains most of the action and conflict of the book building
up to the climax

 Climax: the moment the reader has been waiting for; the most exciting part
when everything changes (Father comes home.)

 Falling Action: other minor conflicts / problems are resolved and story
moves towards its ending (Shauzia goes with Mrs. Weera.)

 Denouement: the end of the story (Father and Parvana go to find the family
Chapter Events and Vocabulary

Chapter 1
Parvana and Nooria were kicked out of school because they were girls. Mother lost
her job at the radio station because women were not allowed to work outside the
home. Parvana helps Father walk. His leg was hurt when the school where he
taught was bombed. Afghanistan’s long history of war is explained. Parvana’s
family history is explained.

Vocabulary
Talib
Majestically
Scornfully

Chapter 2
Parvana is resentful about fetching the water, but she is the only one who can.
Mom and Nooria clean. Father tells story of the courage of Malali when the British
invaded Afghanistan. As the family laughs, eats, and tells stories, the Taliban burst
through the door beating Mother and Parvana and taking father.

Vocabulary
 Resentful
Parcel
Turbans

Chapter 3
After a sleepless night, Mother says they’re going to get Father out of prison.
Women are not allowed on buses without a man. Parvana and Mother go to prison
to get Father, but the guards just beat them up.

Vocabulary
Lavatory
Regulation
Fortress
Hobbles

Chapter 4
The story flashes back to Father and Mother’s disagreement. Father believed
Afghanistan was their home and they should stay there. Mother believed they
should leave. Now, Mother and Parvana return home bloody. Nooria and Maryam
clean their wounds. Mother continues unresponsive in a deep depression. They run
out of food and Nooria convinces Parvana to go get food.

Vocabulary
Preoccupied
Taliban

Chapter 5
Parvana goes to get food and buys naan, but the Taliba beat her. She runs into Mrs.
Weera who comes home with her, tells Parvana to fetch water, gets mother washed
and dressed and spends the night with them.

Vocabulary
Obediently
Warily
Strides

Chapter 6
Mother and Mrs. Weera decide Parvana should dress like a boy. Mother cuts her
hair and dresses her in Hossain’s shalwar kameez. Parvana buys groceries, but
when she returns, Mother is unresponsive again after seeing Hossain’s clothes.
 Vocabulary
Brusquely
Gingerly
Bristly
Gruff

Chapter 7
Parvana goes to sell Father’s blanket and writing things. A Talib comes and asks
her to read a letter addressed to his late wife. The Talib cries as Parvana reads it.
She realizes the Taliban are people too.

Vocabulary
Embedded
Vibrant
Labyrinth

Chapter 8
Mrs. Weera announces she and Mother are starting a magazine. Parvana sells at the
market, Nooria watches the children, and Mrs. Weera moves in. Parvana sees a
“tea boy” but realizes it was a girl from her class.

Vocabulary
Latrine
Escort
Embroidered
Collided

Chapter 9
The “tea boy”, who is actually a girl named Shauzia from Parvana’s class says
people never come back from prison. Parvana insists her father will come back.
Mrs. Weera tells Shauzia they’re starting a secret school for girls.

Vocabulary
Stunned
Distinguish
Kerosene

Chapter 10
Parvana and Shauzia dig up bones for a bone broker. They make more money than
usual, but Parvana doesn’t tell her family she was digging up graves.

Vocabulary
Objections
Unearthed
Skulls

Chapter 11
Mother demands to know where Parvana has been since she didn’t make it home
for lunch. Parvana tells them she was digging up bones. Mother doesn’t want
Parvana to do it again, but Parvana does it anyway. One day, Parvana and Shauzia
notice a soccer stadium filling up. It is the Taliban cutting off the hands of thieves
in front of an audience. They make a necklace of their arms and laugh.

Vocabulary
Relented
Intimidated
Booty

Chapter 12
Mother and Mrs. Weera start their school, and Parvana keeps receiving gifts from
the Window Woman. She hears an angry man and a woman screaming and crying
inside. When Parvana goes home, she finds out Nooria is getting married

Vocabulary
Ceased
Snippets
Mountain Passes

Chapter 13
Nooria received an offer of marriage from a family in the north where the Taliban
is not in control. She could go to school and get a job after graduating. Mother,
Maryam, and Ali will go with her and return in October. While the family is away,
Parvana spends evenings listening to Mrs. Weera’s stories and reading Father’s
secret books. One day, Parvana was caught in a rainstorm and heard a woman
crying in a bombed out-building.

Vocabulary
Glowered
 Sulking
Wages

Chapter 14
Parvana discovers the crying woman had been without a burqa and was starving.
Parvana sneaks her through the dark streets and brings her home without the
Taliban noticing. Mrs. Weera welcomes her. Homa tells the story of the Taliban
taking over Mazar where Mother, Nooria, Maryam and Ali are. Parvana imagines
them all dead and resolves to stay staring at the wall like her Mother had done.
Then one day, she sees two men helping her Father up the stairs.

Vocabulary
Corridors
Emerged
Forbade

Chapter 15
The Taliban had released Father, but he was too weak to walk home. Two men
helped him. Mrs. Weera nursed him back to health. Shauzia wants to escape before
they force her to marry. Father says he and Parvana will leave to search for their
family. Mrs. Weera takes Homa to Pakistan, Parvana waves goodbye to the
Window Woman, and Shauzia goes to Pakistan to be a shepherdess. Shauzia says
she and Parvana will meet at the top of the Eiffel Tower in Paris 20 years from
today.

Vocabulary
Exile
Trampled
Derision
Fetched
Wilted