I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban

The Quran is a complex and multi-faceted symbol throughout I Am Malala. Reflect upon the moments that the Quran appears throughout the text, and discuss the following questions as a class:

• How does the Quran contribute to Yousafzai’s messaging in the book around Individual Versus Society? As a Muslim-majority nation, consider how the Quran is used in Pakistani citizens’ private lives and how it is used as a mechanism of control/power.
• How does the Quran contribute to the battle of Knowledge Versus Ignorance in I Am Malala? Who is permitted to read the Quran? How is it used as a tool to further knowledge/education? How is it used as a tool to maintain ignorance?
• As a written text, how does the symbol of the Quran emphasize the Power of Words?

Teaching Suggestion: Throughout I Am Malala, the Quran is not only a symbol for control and power; it is also a symbol representing hope, peace, and protection. As a symbol for control/power, Malala documents how certain groups and individuals can interpret the Quran in ways that attempt to sway the community and seize power—for example, see Chapter 9 in the way that Taliban leader Maulana Fazlullah draws on the Quran and Muslim faith in his takeover of Swat Valley.