Redemption: The novel begins with an adult Amir looking back on the events of his childhood. He is trying desperately to ignore his unatoned sins, but realizes that “it’s wrong what they say about the past…about how you can bury it. Because the past claws its way out”(Hosseini 1). Even after Amir and his father flee to America to one afternoon from decades ago still haunts him. Amir’s inaction that day impacts the rest of his life and leads to lies, betrayal, and guilt. He desires to be forgiven for his sin and does everything he can to find redemption. Amir is hopeful that “there is a way to be good again”(Hosseini 2). Social and ethnic tensions: The Kite Runner allows us a look at Afghanistan before the Soviet invasion and then after. The peaceful Afghanistan that Amir was born into is no longer in existence; rival groups now fight amongst each other. “There are a lot of children in Afghanistan, but little childhood”. Throughout The Kite Runner, there is tension on account of religious, ethnic, and economic factors. Amir, a privileged Sunni, struggles to understand his relationship with his Shi’a servant, Hassan. The boys grew up together, but “in the end, [Amir] was a Pashtun and [Hassan] was a Hazara, [Amir] was a Sunni and [Hassan] was Shi’a, and nothing was ever going to change that. Nothing”(Hosseini 25). Hassan and his father, Ali, are discriminated against because of their religious beliefs and physical features. He is bullied because some believe “Afghanistan is the land of Pashtuns…the pure Afghans, not this Flat-Nose here. His people pollute our homeland, our watan. They dirty our blood”(Hosseini 40). The relationship between Amir and Hassan is complicated because of the social pressures. The boys are as close as brot... ... middle of paper ... ...n is to Ali. The acceptance of family and the ties between families greatly draw the novel together which we see longer after the family moves from Afghanistan. Symbols The Kite: Not only is the kite featured in the title of the novel, it also plays a major role in setting the tone of the book. The most important symbol in the book represents both betrayal and redemption. The pomegranate tree: The pomegranate tree symbolizes Amir and Hassan’s relationship. The tree once proved Hassan’s loyalty to Amir and grew fruit. Years later the tree is still there, just like Hassan’s loyalty. However, the pomegranate tree no longer bears fruit. The sling shot: The sling shot represents childhood. Hassan used the slingshot to stand up for Amir and himself. Sorhab also uses this as a means of protection. The slingshot symbolizes standing up for what is right and also innocence.
This novel presents two almost irreconcilable individuals. The main character, Amir, was raised without a mother; therefore, Amir was left with his father, Baba, to please as he grew up. Early on in his life, it became obvious that pleasing Baba would prove to be problematic. They simply did not have similar interests as a consequence of Baba “fathering a son who preferred burying his face in poetry books to hunting” (Hosseini 19). Baba was described as a very dominating figuring standing at a monstrous six feet five inches tall who often enjoyed hunting and ran his own business. Amir, on the other hand, was of insignificant stature even for his young age and often was found reading poetry and stories with his friend and servant, Hassan, who, although being a year younger than Amir, often beats Amir in the area of athletic prowess such as throwing rocks when “Hassan made his stone skip eight times. The most I [Amir] managed was five,” (Hosseini 14) or even simply running when Amir said, “Hassan ran faster than I [Amir] did, and I was falling behind,” (Hosseini 53). The son was simply not very sportive. Inversely, The athletic father also greatly enjoyed playing soccer as a child and later enjoyed being a spectator of this sport; consequ...
Redemption is gaining honor and self-forgiveness through a selfless act that reflects off of one’s regretful actions of their past. In the novel, The Kite Runner, Amir is the main character who goes through many life struggles and mistakes, then finds himself on a road to redemption. Amir and Hassan were best friends throughout their childhood and Hassan was the honorable, trusting best friend, the one to always take a stand for what he believed was right. Amir’s lack of courage caused him to stay silent in the worst of times, letting Hassan get tortured for the things he did not deserve. The themes of sacrifice, honor and redemption are carried out in many ways throughout this novel being shown through the actions of Hassan, Baba, and Amir.
Amir also committed a sin that affected him negatively throughout his life. This sin occurred when Hassan, Amir’s best friend during his childhood, was getting raped by Assef. This situation occurred when the children were chasing kites. Hassan got the kite first, but Assef insisted that he wanted the kite. Assef also had a racial and religious prejudice against Hassan. Because Hassan did not give the kite, Assef decides to rape Hassan as a “punishment”. Instead of helping his friend out, Amir just walked away from the scene and let Hassan get violated in one of the most vulgar ways. After this incident, Hassan quietly walked back home and gave Amir the kite for which he was confronted by Assef for. The kite in this situation proves to be an important symbol. Whereas earlier in the novel the kite represented happiness and fun to Amir, in this situation it represented sin and guilt to Amir. The only reason that Hassan got raped was that he was trying to get a kite for Amir. Now the kite acts a reminder to Hassan of his wrong-doing and it will now begin to haunt him for a long time. Although when in America, Amir does not get reminded about Hassan, deep inside he still feels guilty. Amir immediately begins to feel the most guilt when he goes to Iran when Rahim Khan, Amir’s childhood friend, asks him to come. He feels that Rahim Khan has reminded him of his “past of unatoned sins”(Hosseini 2).
The Kite Runner focuses on the relationship between two Afghan boys Amir and Hassan. Amir is a Pashtun and Sunni Muslim, while Hassan is a Hazara and a Shi’a. Despite their ethnic and religious differences, Amir and Hassan grow to be friends, although Amir is troubled by Hassan, and his relationship with his companion, one year his junior, is complex. Amir and Hassan seem to have a "best friend" type relationship. The two boys, Hassan and Amir, are main characters in the book titled, The Kite Runner. The two boys have a relationship that is significantly different compared to most. There are many different facets that distinguish the relationship the boys possess. The boys do write their names in a pomegranate tree as the "sultans of Kabul" (Kite Runner 27) but, their friendship is not strong and it is one sided. Hassan has love for Amir. He loves him like a brother. Hassan is exceedingly loyal to Amir. The relationship between the two boys is emotionally wearing and rather gloomy for the most part. The main reason for their complicated relationship is the fact that Amir is Pashtun, and Hassan is Hazara. The Afghan society places Hassan lower than Amir. Hassan is Amir's servant. The placement of Hassan in the Afghan society disenables Amir from becoming Hassan's true friend. Amir sees Hassan as lower than human. Amir ruins the chance for friendship between himself and Hassan because he is jealous of Hassan, he thinks of Hassan as a lower human, and because Amir possesses such extreme guilt for what he has done to Hassan. Amir is an unforgivable person overall.
We all are heroes of our own story, and it is a quality seen in many movies and books. The hero's journey is about progress and passage. This journey involves a separation from the unknown, known world, and a series of phases the hero must go through . Each stage of the journey must be passed successfully if the person is to become a hero. In “The Kite Runner” by Khaled Hosseini, the main character Amir faces a series of trials and goes through obstacles where the concept of his childhood dies. Amir's mother passes away during his birth, and his left with the suspicion that his father blames him for her death. Amir longes for his father's attention and approval, but does not receive any affection as a son. He grows up with his Hazara best friend, Hassan. In Afghanistan culture, Hazaras are considered lower class and inferiors in society. Amir describes his friendship with Hassan saying, “then he would remind us that there was a brotherhood between people who had fed from the same breast, a kinship that not even time could break." (20). Amir first refuses the call of action due to being afraid of the adventure ahead of him. Call to action is the very first step of the hero's journey, where the hero is disrupted and the
The pomegranate tree symbolizes Amir and Hassan’s relationship. When they were children, Amir and Hassan played by the tree and even carved their names into its bark naming it their own. However, after Hassan’s rape, Amir uses the fruit of the tree to pelt Hassan in the way he feels he should hurt for not preventing the rape. This is where the beginning of the rift in their friendship starts to be prevalent. Additionally, at the end of the novel after Hassan was murdered, Amir visits the tree and finds it wilting and
In the novel, The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini, Amir and Hassan grow up in Kabul as childhood friends. Their bond seems to be virtually unbreakable, however in the Winter of 1975 an incident significantly alters their friendship. As an adult living in California, Amir is constantly reminded of the incident when he betrayed Hassan's trust. However, upon the unexpected death of Hassan and his wife, Amir returns to Kabul to determine the fate of the couple's son, Sohrab. Yet, Amir's quest to save Sohrab is not entirely self driven. What leads Amir to Afghanistan to determine Sohrab's destiny, is his constant need for attention and acceptance from his elders, Baba and Rahim Khan. Ultimately, throughout the novel Amir attempts to seek redemption
Kite Runner depicts the story of Amir, a boy living in Afghanistan, and his journey throughout life. He experiences periods of happiness, sorrow, and confusion as he matures. Amir is shocked by atrocities and blessed by beneficial relationships both in his homeland and the United States. Reviewers have chosen sides and waged a war of words against one another over the notoriety of the book. Many critics of Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini, argue that the novel would not have reached a lofty level of success if the U.S. had not had recent dealings with the Middle East, yet other critics accurately relate the novel’s success to its internal aspects.
Was that what it would take? Had he just slipped me a key?” (Hosseini 59). Amir realizes that the key to unlocking Baba’s respect is by winning the kite-fighting tournament. If Amir does this then he believes that Baba will view him as the ideal son: a winner. The kite presents itself as a symbol of hope of as Amir sees it as the only way by which he can finally earn Baba’s respect. As Amir sets his sights on winning the tournament, he envisions a future where Baba embraces him as the ideal son. Amir understands that in order to see this dream become a reality he must first demonstrate that he can be more like Baba because “Baba was used to winning, winning at everything he set his mind to. Didn’t he have a right to expect the same from his son? And just imagine. If I did win...” (Hosseini 59). Amir foresees a future where he wins the tournament and earns Baba’s respect. It is implied that Amir’s vicctory will lead him to become someone who is looked at, not seen, listened to, not heard. This can be seen as an element of forshadowing as this is what happens to Amir after he wins. When Amir tells himself “didn’t he have the a
In Khaled Hosseini’s novel The Kite Runner, the theme, “true redemption is when guilt leads to good” (302) had a major affect on Amir. Feeling endless guilt is tiring; it clings to a person and drags him or her down constantly. Amir felt endless remorse for the way he treated Hassan and tried to find redemption his whole life, but did not succeed until he went back to Kabul to find Sohrab. Throughout the story, Hosseini uses Amir to develop the theme through three different stages, including, cowardice, personality change, and redemption.
As a foreword, the story of The Kite Runner focuses on a man named Amir. In his childhood, he enjoyed a high-class life in Kabul, Afghanistan, living with his father Baba. They have two servants, Ali and his son Hassan. They are Hazaras, a lower class ethnic minority in Afghanistan. In one Winter of their childhood, Amir and Hassan participate in a kite-fighting tournament; the goal is to be the last kite flying. When a kite is cut, boys chase after it as a trophy. Amir wins the tournament, and Hassan flies to catch the losing kite. Later, following Hassan's path, Amir comes upon a neighbourhood bully named Assef about to rape Hassan who has the trophy, the blue kite. Amir does not interject, believing this will secure him the kite. Thus, Amir sets forth a chain of events he must redeem in his adulthood.
Right before he goes to run the blue kite, Hassan says to Amir, “For you a thousand times over!” (Hosseini 67). This is one of the most significant quotes in the novel, The Kite Runner by the number one New York Times bestselling author Khaled Hosseini. This quote means to do anything, no matter what deed or task, however many times for a person. A common phrase exchanged between loyal friends or partners. Speaking of loyalty, this is one of the main themes present within The Kite Runner. Quite frequently and especially in this novel, loyalty often comes with the reality of (ADD MORE) In the novel, The Kite Runner by author Khaled Hosseini, the theme of loyalty is present throughout the book and especially
“Forgive and forget” is a common phrase in our society. However, one may argue that mistakes are never truly forgotten. The Kite Runner suggests that the best way to resolve your past and make up for your mistakes is through doing good. Through Rahim Khan’s wisdom, the actions of Baba, and the journey of Amir, Khaled Hosseini illustrates that the need for redemption, due to unresolved guilt, can haunt someone throughout their life.
Author: Khaled Hosseini published The Kite Runner in 2003. By 2005 it became the number one New York Times Bestseller. Although this book was his first novel, people still couldn’t get enough of his story about the troubled friendship between two boys. Sylvester Stallone, an American actor, once said, “Most action is based on redemption and revenge, and that's a formula. Moby Dick was formula. It is how you get to the conclusion that makes it interesting”. From time to time mistakes are made every day, and however the story ends will describe your mistakes. In The Kite Runner, the kite is the most important symbol that represents Amir’s past; just like a kite flying in the sky full of soars and dives, Amir's life was the same way as a kite flies.
“Don’t listen to that guy, he’s trying to lead you down the path of righteousness. I’m gonna lead you down the path that rocks.” A devil sits on Kronk’s shoulder in the movie, Emperor’s New Groove, and attempts to convince him to make a sinful decision. A devil sits on everyone’s shoulder at some point and creates sin through his taunting demeanour. Though it is not the best choice, sinning has always been a popular decision throughout the world. With sinning, there are many outcomes, one being redemption. Most people regret their choices and decide they would like to be forgiven. In the novel, The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini, the protagonist, Amir, and his father, Baba, commit terrible sins and spend their lives seeking forgiveness; however,