The Proposal, Burning Books, pg. 3-22 Summary and Analysis

Sultan wants to take a new wife and looks for someone to help him. The local custom requires that a female member of the family has to convey the proposal but none of his relatives want to. He has selected three girls, all from his clan, which is also custom. His first wife, Sharifa, is now over fifty and he has three sons and a daughter by her.

Since no one will do his bidding for him, he goes to talk to the parents himself. The first is Sonya, a sixteen year old. Sultan acts as if he is representing someone else and is told she is too young. He keeps returning for the next several days until the parents agree to the deal. Sonya is not happy with the idea...