New historicism is a lens that looks at how a piece of literature is influenced by the time that the author wrote it. The critics view is influenced by the social, cultural and political environment, prejudice, and beliefs. The Kite Runner is a novel written by Khaled Hosseini and published in 2003. The main character is a Pashtun boy named Amir who has a socially unacceptable relationship with a Hazara boy named Hassan. The Pashtuns are considered as being of much higher class to the Hazara’s and have distinctive differences in appearances. The story starts off set in Afghanistan in the 1970’s, then in 1980 Amir relocates to California. He then makes the decision to return to Afghanistan in 2001 where everything has changed due to warfare. …show more content…
These events are mainly reflected through the main fictional character of Amir. The historical events are inspired by Hosseini’s personal life living in this time. Hosseini began to write The Kite Runner while living in the US he said he wrote “The Kite Runner, hoping to share what life in his homeland had been like.”⁵ This meant that he wanted this to be historically accurate because he wanted to share with people what it was like to be living during warfare in Afghanistan. A historical event that is reflected by Hosseini is during 1988 the Soviet Union start to pull out troops because of the peace accords which were signed by the US, Afghanistan, Soviet Union and Pakistan. He shows this in The Kite Runner "In the summer of 1988, about six months before the Soviets withdrew from Afghanistan, I finished my first novel, a father-son story in Kabul". Hosseini historically writes The Kite Runner as if Amir was a real person living in this time. This is backed up by one of my critics “Hosseini draws heavily on his own experiences to create the setting for the novel; the characters, however, are fictional.”¹ This is telling us that even through Amir is a fictional character most of the historical events that happen are of Hosseini’s own experiences living in Afghanistan and moving to
The Kite Runner, is the first novel written by Khaled Hosseini. The Kite Runner is set in Afghanistan before the war in the city of Kabul, and then eventually in America. The novel relays the struggles of Amir (A young Shi’ boy), Hassan (a young Hazera servant boy) and Baba (Amir’s father) as they are growing up in an ever-changing Afghanistan. The young boys face difficult challenges most adults will never have to experience. Amir, Hassan, and even Baba must overcome cruelty in every aspect of their lives.
Hosseini’s purpose of writing the Kite Runner was to teach the readers the different ethnic groups in Afghanistan. The main character, Amir, is a Pashtun and Pashtuns are Sunni Muslims, then there are Hazara’s that the Pashtuns do not get along with. Hazara’s are not welcomed by the Pashtuns because they are different social classes.
Trying to learn a new language, new customs, and adapt to the new quality of life that the new country has to offer. The kite runner is shaped by how the past torments the character’s present, and also how these past occurrences have shaped their lives. The four literary elements have shown how it ties in to the theme and main idea of the story. The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini was banned due to its underage sexual violence, which was depicted at least twice throughout the book and also homosexuality.
The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini, is a story about a young boy named Amir that begins in 1975 in Kabul, Afghanistan. As a child, he mistreats his servant, Hassan, who is like a brother to him. After failing to intervene in Hassan 's rape, Amir lives with guilt until his late thirties when he is presented with a chance at redemption. Amir 's father’s old friend, Rahim Khan, called from Pakistan to summon Amir to him. Upon his arrival, Amir learns that Hassan is his illegitimate half-brother. Hassan had been killed and his son had become an orphan. Amir then goes to drastic lengths to find and retrieve Hassan 's son, Sohrab. During this time Amir faces the guilt of his past and finds peace with himself while saving Sohrab
Khaled Hosseini incorporates his personal background into the characters and events in his books. In the two novels that he wrote, the main location was in Kabul Afghanistan which is also the same place where he was born in the year of 1965 ("Biography"). Hosseini said that Kabul, Afghanistan seems to be “sort of a cultural island” to him, “since all the Afghanistan has always been sort of a fractured nation, very tribal, where the countryside and the distant provinces have been run by custom, by tribal law and by...
In his first historical fiction novel, Khaled Hosseini tells the story of a young boy growing up in Afghanistan. The Kite Runner is the story of Amir, the young boy, and the path his life takes because of the decisions he makes when he is a young child. Forgiveness is woven throughout the book as it takes Amir to places he might not have gone if he hadn’t been able to forgive.
Khaled Hosseini uses setting as an important element of The Kite Runner. In many ways his characters relate to the place they are in. The novel is divided into three main settings: Kabul, Afghanistan 1963-1981, Fremont, California, and Kabul, Afghanistan 2001. Although Kabul is technically the same place, the changes it overwent between 1981 and 2001 were so extreme that it is essentially a whole new place. The setting of the novel is essential to Amir’s development and choices.
It is difficult to face anything in the world when you cannot even face your own reality. In his book The Kite Runner, Khaled Hosseini uses kites to bring out the major themes of the novel in order to create a truly captivating story of a young boy’s quest to redeem his past mistakes. Amir is the narrator and protagonist of the story and throughout the entire novel, he faces enormous guilt following the horrible incident that happened to his closest friend, Hassan. This incident grows on Amir and fuels his quest for redemption, struggling to do whatever it takes to make up for his mistakes. In Hosseini’s novel, kites highlight aspects of Afghanistan’s ethnic caste system and emphasizes the story’s major themes of guilt, redemption and freedom.
The world-renowned novel, The Kite Runner was written by Afghanistan born American novelist Khaled Hosseini. Hosseini was born into a Shia Muslim family in Kabul that later in life decided to move to Paris. Hosseini was unable to return to Kabul due to the Taliban take over, this cause the Hosseini family to seek political asylum in America. The actions that Hosseini witnessed of his beloved home country influenced his novel with the themes of guilt and redemption. “The guilty one is not he who commits the sin, but the one who causes the darkness.” – Victor Hugo. In The Kite Runner the theme of guilt and redemption is shown through the character development of the protagonist Amir. Hosseini used Amir’s guilt of his past to grow the impression that with regret lies a hope for redemption.
It is impossible to separate the events of Hosseini’s life from the plot and implications of The Kite Runner. Hosseini often faces interviewers and readers who wonder how much of his first novel is autobiographical. In a 2005 interview with Todd Pitt of USA Today, Hosseini responds to readers inquiries regarding the autobiographical nature of Amir and Hassan’s story: “When I say some of it is me, then people look unsatisfied. The parallels are pretty obvious, but… I left a few things ambiguous because I wanted to drive the book clubs crazy” (“Kite Runner Catches the Wind”). It is easy find the “obvious parallels” that Hosseini himsel...
In the novel The Kite Runner, author Khaled Hosseini writes about Amir a young Afghan child who is a coward and who later as an adult seeks redemption from past mistakes. These characteristic effects Amir’s live throughout the novel from childhood to present. However, these are just words on a paper without some proof and the novel happily supports this either through the events or the behavior of other characters. Now let’s start with Amir’s past childhood.
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.
Khaled Hosseini, the author of The Kite Runner, grew up in prejudiced Afghanistan during the 1960’s as a middle-class Pashtun living with Hazaras working for his family. His move to America after the Communist Coup proved difficult for his family, especially his father. In his novel, Hosseini writes through a young boy, Amir, very similar to himself, who grows up with his father and two Hazara servants in Afghanistan at the time of the Taliban attacks. Both Amir and his father, Baba, treat their servants, Hassan and Ali, like family. Society, however, does not approve of such relationships between Pashtuns and Hazaras. As Amir hides and watches horrified, another Pashtun boy rapes Hassan. This leads to the continuation of Amir’s internal conflict about the treatment of Hazaras by the public, and also makes him feel guilty and self-conscious throughout his entire life. In addition, Amir strives for affection and attention from his rather indifferent father. Amir’s outward conformity to societal values in his relationships with both Hassan and Baba, as a result of his inner struggle and guilt, contribute greatly to the significance of The Kite Runner.
In both of his novels, Hosseini has both protagonists and antagonists originating from Afghanistan. He depicts the flaws of the broad generalizations many people believe due to a lack of information or insight into the concerning situations occurring in Afghanistan. As awareness about the indecencies taking place in Afghanistan increases, hopefully more individuals will take action to aide those being oppressed and help solve the turmoil occurring due to the presence of the Taliban. Works Cited Hosseini, Khaled. The Kite Runner.
War establishes many controversial issues and problems within society and can often expose an individual to many economic and sociopolitical hardships; thus creating an altercation in the way they view life. Amir, from the novel The Kite Runner and the novel’s author Khaled Hosseini, both saw the harsh treatment toward the people of Afghanistan through a series of wars, invasions, and the active power of a Pashtun movement known as the Taliban. Amir, much like Hosseini, lived a luxurious and wealthy life in Kabul. He is well educated and immerses himself in reading and writing. After transitioning from a life in Afghanistan to a life in the United States, both Hosseini and Amir faced obstacles in order to assimilate to American society. In The Kite Runner, written by Khaled Hosseini, the protagonist Amir parallels the experiences and hardships that Hosseini endured in his own lifetime.