Section 1 of Memoir (p.1-82)

The memoir that I am reading is "Love in a Torn Land: Joanna of Kurdistan: The True Story of a Freedom Fighters's Escape from Iraqi Vengeance." Although this memoir is on Joanna al-Askari, the person who wrote this is Jean Sasson. Throughout this section there are several possible themes: racism, survival, family, and love. The first section of this memoir is written on Joanna's childhood. The settings are in Bagndad and Sulaimaniya, Iraq. Joanna and her family are half Arabians and Kurdish. Her father is Arabian and her mother is Kurdish. During this time, numerous of Arabians and Iraqis hated the Kurds. If Kurds were suspected of anything at all by the Iraqi government, they were physically and mentally abused, tortured, sent to jail or prsion, or murdered. This passage shows the risks and punishments for all Kurdish people.
"New draconian laws had been passed by the government: If a Kurd was found with a pair of binoculars, he would be hung. If a Kurd owned a typewriter without special permission, he could be arrested and tried. Cameras had always been suspect, but a camera with a zoom lens could cost a Kurd his life..." (Sasson 19). These are just some of the examples of how Kurds were treated unfairly. Because Joanna and her family were Kurds, they had to be extra precautious of whatever they were doing.
Throughout this section are several similes, images, and foreshadows. A simile that I like is, "My angered hummed like slow, angry bees inside my head" (52). This simile is descriptive and full of emotion: anger and frustration. I can almost feel the anger myself. I love foreshadows! Foreshadows keep the readers stay tuned and anxious. A foreshadow that I like is, "I had no way of knowing that my brother had ventured into a risky arena that would very soon affect all our lives" (39). Instantly, I knew that something was going to happen to her brother and couldn't wait to find out.
Another passage that I like is, "Nothing was more i,portant in the Arab and Kurdish worlds than for the eldest-born son to be educated, for one day he would be responsible for the well-being of the entire family" (55). When I read this, I thought, 'Wow! Same goes for my culture.' I was surprised to have found that we had something in common, which drew me closer to this memoir. It makes me wonder if we have any more things in common.