The Kite Runner Essay

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Introduction
The Kite runner is a story about culture, friendship, hardship, betrayal, desire, brotherhood, family, war and ultimately, redemption and courage. This paper will analyze the journey of Amir from boyhood in Afghanistan to manhood in America. His story is a thrilling tale worthy of exploration. In Afghanistan, kite fighting was very popular. Kite owners crystalized the kite strings so they could sever opponent’s kites upon contact. The opponent’s kite would eventually crash to the ground and now belong to the winner. Each kite owner has a kite runner who is responsible for retrieving the fallen kites. Amir enjoyed kite fighting as a child. It was one of few things he felt that he had in common with his father. His father was a champion fighter at a young age and Amir wanted to make his father proud by following in his steps.
Hassan was Amir’s kite runner and was the best in town at judging the potential landing spot for the falling kites. Hassan simply had an innate ability to project the trajectory of the kites by using his instinct.
Cultural Background
The story begins with Amir and Hassan as young boys in Kabul in the early 1970’s. Although
Smugglers inform Baba that due to the increasing presence of Russian Soldiers, they no longer had enough funds to pay them all off. They had to travel discretely the rest of the way. Baba and Amir had to travel in a construction vehicle tank. When Baba initially sees the vehicle, he thinks the smuggler is being humorous. Soon enough, he understands it is not a joke. The space was extremely small, covered in darkness with little air to breath. Amir informs Baba that he is having trouble breathing. Baba has Amir read his stories to him to distract him from the horrible conditions and help him make it to Pakistan alive. This was the first time that Baba showed any interest in Amir’s stories. This moment forged father and son closer

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