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The sense of family theme in the kite runner
Narrative essay on guilt
The sense of family theme in the kite runner
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In “The Kite Runner” guilt and redemption is a prominent theme. The feeling of remorse, one wishing that he/she had done something differently, is a strong feeling that can take over a person. It can mentally destroy one and lead them to lifelong unease. Redemption, however, is a way to deal with guilt and in “The Kite Runner”, Khaled Hosseini portrays that. Hosseini shows the readers that true redemption is when guilt leads to good. In “The Kite Runner” Khaled Hosseini tells a story about a character’s guilt and how the character redeems himself. In this story guilt and redemption is tied to the bigger picture of family and relationships. Throughout the story, Amir, the main character, struggles with the feeling of guilt. Amir’s feeling …show more content…
From a very young age Amir felt as if his father didn’t love him or wasn’t ever proud of him and he felt that because he believed he had killed his mother, because she died giving birth to him. To finally please Baba, Amir felt that he must show him he is like him by winning the tournament and bring home the kite of his opponent. (chapter 7) He believed only then Baba would forgive him for “killing” his mother. Amir’s search for redemption came near the end of the story mainly when he was older and aware of the fact that Hassan was his half-brother. He is motivated to go and redeem himself when he visits Rahim Khan and finds out that the Taliban killed Hassan and his wife. (chapter 17) This is the moment when Amir felt extremely terrible and had an epiphany to redeem himself without any fear to make things right by Hassan. Hassan had a son, Sohrab who was under the custody of a Taliban, and Amir knew that he had to find Sohrab and at least meet him and make sure he was ok. Ironically, when Amir finally found out where Hassan was living, he was under the custody of Assef. Amir knew that he could not let Sohrab live with him; when he saw Sohrab he was wearing a blue silk outfit, with mascara in his eyes, and bells strapped around his ankles. (chapter 22) Amir had no doubt at this point that Assef was abusing Sohrab and this was the moment where Amir had to garner all his courage and stand up for …show more content…
Throughout his life Amir does things that he regrets and treats Hassan as if he was less than him. Despite their friendship, Amir recognizes their difference in status and takes advantage of that. Hassan, someone who always stood by Amir’s side and protected him at all costs, was treated the same way by Hassan. Amir failed to protect Hassan as a friend and this is when Amir’s guilt surfaced. He felt guilty for being a witness to something he could have stopped and later in the novel, when he was older sought redemption for all of it. Indeed, all of Amir’s guilt was heightened by Rahim Khan’s revelation to him that Hassan was his brother. This changed everything for Amir. He felt that his whole life was a lie and his guilt for everything that he did to Hassan and what happened to Hassan was increased. Khaled Hosseini showed the importance the characters had towards family. This revelation of Hassan being his brother and Sohrab being his nephew gave Amir even more motivation to seek redemption and finally do the right
It is not often that Amir’s love for Baba is returned. Baba feels guilty treating Amir well when he can’t acknowledge Hassan as his son. Baba discriminates against his son Amir by constantly making him feel weak and unworthy of his father. Baba once said to Rahim Kahn, “If I hadn’t seen the doctor pull him out of my wife with my own eyes, I’d never believe he’s my son” (Hosseini 23). Amir doesn’t feel like a son towards Baba since he seems like such a weakling. This neglect towards Amir causes him to feel a need to be accepted by Baba to end the constant discrimination from his father and he will do anything for it. “I actually aspired to cowardice, because the alternative, the real reason I was running, was that Assef was right: Nothing was free in this world. Maybe Hassan was the price I had to pay, the lamb I had to slay, to win Baba” (Hosseini 77). Amir did not stop the rape of his good friend for one sole purpose. Amir felt that he had to betray his own half-brother to gain th...
Amir’s redemption is a large part of the novel and is carried out almost entirely until the end of the story. He travels to rescue Hassan’s son, Sohrab, from the orphanage he was placed in after the death of his parents. He promises to find him a safe home with someone but after time passes he feels like this is not enough. He then speaks to his wife and decides to take Sohrab back to the United States with him and take care of his as if he was one of his own. Earlier in the novel when Baba is speaking Amir over hears his conversation as he is referring to him stating, “A boy who won 't stand up for himself becomes a man who can 't stand up to anything” (Hosseini, 22). Thus meaning that if he is able to stand up for himself as a young boy, when he is grown he will not be able to stand up for anything that is in his future. This is true throughout the story until he stands up for himself and Sorhab when he is arguing with his life long bully, Assef. Amir lacked the courage to defend himself in the novel until he finally took charge and went against
Although Hassan is his best friend, there are many instances where Amir reveals his jealousy, most notable when Baba sees Hassan as the stronger boy, "self-defense has nothing to do with meanness. You know what always happens when the neighbourhood boys tease him? Hassan steps in and fends them off. I 've seen it with my own eyes…” (Hosseini 24). Clearly, Amir hears how his father compares the two, and unlike Hassan who manages to meet Baba’s expectations, Amir grows bitter towards Hassan. He is unable to fight off his envy which later causes him to sacrifice his best friend’s innocence: “Maybe Hassan was the price I had to pay, the lamb I had to slay, to win Baba” (82), and this is all because he realizes “his shame is complicated by his own realization that in part he doesn’t help his friend precisely because he is jealous of him” (Corbett, 2006). From here, Amir develops strong feelings of guilt that induces him to perform even more destructive acts, such as having Hassan and his father evicted from the house. Amir not only loses a close friend, but now he has to continue to live with remorse as he dwells on these memories. The only way for Amir to redeem himself of his repercussions is through a challenging process of sacrifice and self-discovery. Although one is unsure at this point whether Amir succeeds at his endeavors, it is clear that this story
... Finally, Amir chooses to redeem himself by opting to protect Hassan’s son Sohrab. The guilt which estranged Amir from his childhood friend in a way manages to reunite him with Hassan, albeit in a different manner. Thereby, the two works that are Macbeth and The Kite Runner not only present before the humanity, the immense power and potency of guilt, but also emphatically reveal the eventual consequences of the guilt traceable to an evil act or an act of cowardice or betrayal. These two works expose the psychology of guilt in a very vivid and threadbare manner, which explains their appeal and the human interest they accrue.
Amir makes mistakes and hurts his friend Hassan, and immediately afterwards he felt guilt, and wanted forgiveness, but Hassan acted like Amir did nothing, which bothered Amir even worse. And that lasted on, throughout his childhood he’s constantly upset about what he has done to Hassan, he doesn’t feel like it can be fixed. And he strives to do things throughout the novel to achieve that. One good deed he does trying to be good again, was when he goes back home, he is at a house with Farid and
Hassan would do anything for his friends and treat everyone, even bullies, with respect because his respectful dad, Ali, taught him to always be loyal to all, and never hurt anyone. Ali was Baba’s servant and long-time friend, and stayed close to him throughout their childhood and adulthood. Amir's actions showed how much of a coward he was. Amir suffered his whole life living with the guilt of knowing that Hassan was raped, much like Baba lived his whole life in guilt knowing that he stole the truth from Ali by committing adultery.
Guilt is a result of sin, and sin is a result of misaction. In the novel, The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini, the protagonist, Amir, goes on a journey to redeem himself for his sins. When Amir was 12, he witnessed his best friend, Hassan, get raped in an alley. Instead of standing up for his friend, Amir ran away in selfishness and cowardice. The guilt of his choice plagues Amir for the rest of his life, until one day, he gets a call from an old uncle, who tells him that “there is a way to be good again.” (2) The Kite Runner follows Amir on his odyssey to redeem himself for his hurtful actions. Through this journey, Khaled Hosseini delivers the message that sins and guilt can always be atoned for.
As a young boy he made the wrong decision in life by letting Hassan get raped, which led to his guilt. The guilt grew to the point where Hassan and Ali had to move out of Baba’s house and start a new life away from Amir. Hassan’s son Sohrab is a significant character who represents Amir’s hope for redemption. Sohrab led to Amir’s redemption by giving Amir the opportunity to do good for his past actions. On the quest for redemption, Amir achieves the redemption he desired through his fight with Assef.
Imagine that you had a final exam the next day and you never studied for it. This is when you may start to experience a feeling of guilt. Guilt is a very powerful emotion to be reckoned with. It can be used to help us, for instance it may motivate you to start cramming for that exam. However,it is usually there to destroy us, if we let it. In Khaled Hosseini’s, The Kite Runner, we see an example of guilt’s destructive power in the life of the main character, Amir. Specifically, guilt plays a major role in the book by influencing Amir’s personality and actions over and over again.
To begin, the first instance of redemption is found and portrayed through irony. As Amir's mother died giving birth to him, he has always felt guilty. Leading up to the annual kite-fighting tournament, Amir feels as if winning will redeem her death, and solidify his relationship with Baba. When he comes upon Hassan who is cornered by Assef, Amir feels as if his rape might be justified: “Maybe Hassan was the price I had to pay, the lamb I had to slay to win Baba. Or was it a fair price?” (Hosseini, 82) If Amir gains the kite, he wins Baba's heart. Ironically, the sacrifice of Hassan is the catalyst to Amir's need for redemption. Instead of redeemi...
I wished he would. I wished he’d give me the punishment I craved, so maybe I’d finally sleep at night. Maybe then things could return to how they used to be between us.” (Hosseini 92). The guilt is so deep that Amir is consumed by it and not able to sleep at night.
Over the course of the novel, Baba implies that he is not proud of Amir and the only reason he knows Amir is his son, is because he witnessed Amir 's birth. He states to Rahim Khan that he thinks Amir needs to stand up for himself more often. Countless times during the novel, Amir feels like he has to fight for his affection, that he has to earn Baba’s love. In order to prove himself worthy of affection and to redeem himself for not being a son Baba could be proud of, Amir yearns to win the kite runner competition. He reminisces on a memory, when all “I saw was the blue kite. All I smelled was victory. Salvation. Redemption” (65). In the aftermath of Hassan’s rape, Amir got rid of Hassan so he would not have to face the cause of his guilt on a daily basis. Amir buries the secret of the rape deep within him, where he hopes that it will not come back to haunt him, which is not the case. “We had both sinned and betrayed. But Baba had found a way to create good out of his remorse. What had I done, other than take my guilt out on the very same people I had betrayed, and then try to forget it all? What had I done, other than become an insomniac? What had I ever done to right things?” (303). As mentioned earlier, Amir is not one who stands up for himself. In order for Amir to redeem himself for betraying Hassan, and not standing up for him earlier,
When people sin they go to great lengths to seek redemption after being tormented from their guilt. In “The Kite Runner”, Hosseini writes about the life of Amir, who sinned at a young age and was left with psychological, emotional, and physical struggles that put him on a journey to find redemption. Betrayal is one of the many sins that can create pain and suffering in a person caused by their guilt which leaves them seeking an important healing process called redemption.
In the book Amir can be seen as a troubled young boy who is struggling with a tremendous amount of guilty. It is easy to blame Amir’s actions on his guilty and his father’s lack of love for him. The movie does not allow this. The movie characterizes Amir as a young boy who is to blind by his owns needs to be a decent and noble friend. The movie does not do a good job of showing that Amir felt horribly guilty about what he did to Hassan. It portrays Amir as uncaring and selfish. The movie also changes the depiction of Amir as an adult. While the book shows Amir as a man who has not yet learned to stand for what is right until he comes face to face with his past all over again, the movie jumps the gun and shows the change earlier with the change of a scene. The scene that is changed is when Amir and Farid visit the orphanage where Sohrab is supposed to be. In the scene Amir is the one to try and kill the orphanage owner instead of Farid which takes away from Amir’s cowardice persona that is portrayed in the book. The movie makes Amir seem stronger before his time while the book keeps up his weakling persona until he is faced with a situation he cannot help but stand up to. Similarly the characterization of Hassan is just as lacking as Amir’s in the movie. In the book, Hassan is shown as being selfless beyond a doubt and loyal to a fault.
The themes of the loss of innocence and redemption is used throughout the novel The Kite Runner to make a point that one can lose innocence but never redeem it. Once innocence is lost it takes a part of oneself that can never be brought back from oblivion. One can try an entire life to redeem oneself but the part that is loss is permanently gone although the ache of it can be dampened with the passing of time and acts of attempted redemption. Khaled Hosseini uses characters, situations, and many different archetypes to make this point.