Legitimacy and illegitimacy: concepts and distinctions

¶ … Khaled Hosseini's novel A Thousand Splendid Suns, one of the protagonists, Mariam, is perceived as an "illegitimate" child because Jalil does not publically admit that he is her father. Similarly, the relationship between Mariam's mother and Jalil is considered "illegitimate" because she is of a low social class standing and unable to become one of Jalil's many wives. Mariam's "illegitimacy" as a human being haunts her for the rest of her life. She is of an already low socio-economic status, and her being labeled as illegitimate makes Mariam even more of a social outcast. In A Thousand Splendid Suns, Khalid Hosseini argues that legitimacy is completely arbitrary, and the only legitimate acts or statuses are moral ones.

For example, the society that shuns Mariam throughout her life is a society that can be considered morally illegitimate. Mariam's father has several wives and several children with those other wives. There is no morally legitimate reason why Jalil cannot or could not have married Mariam's mother, to ensure the future of his own child. Jalil seems to know deep down that he owes Mariam the opportunity at social legitimacy, which is why he brings her gifts. Therefore, on some level Jalil recognizes that his restrictive social order is illegitimate on a moral level. Mariam, who is innocent, should not be labeled as an "illegitimate" person, but she is. And because Mariam is labeled as an "illegitimate" person she has no political power at all. Other people end up controlling her life, and those other people are always men. Men in the Afghan society that Hosseini describes possess authority and political power. They also possess economic power and control over women. Their power is not legitimate from a moral standpoint, as it makes half of the entire society dependent and subservient to the other half. Nevertheless, the patriarchal order is considered to be legitimate and treated as such by nearly everyone in the society.

When Jalil marries off Mariam because he views her as a problem, his act is morally corrupt. The decision to marry Mariam off ruins her life, as she ends up with an abusive husband. Mariam's husband has socially sanctioned power over her, and in a twisted way, he has the legitimate power in the relationship to do what he wants with his "property," which is how Mariam is viewed and treated. This type of marriage is considered legitimate in the Afghan society. It might be morally incorrect, and entirely depraved, but it is legitimate. Laila sees through the illegitimacy of the Taliban and also of the wife abuse, and it is with her help that Mariam is eventually able to see that she is indeed the only legitimate source of power and strength in her own life.