Throughout time individuals have progressed through the collaboration of diverse ethnic groups by developing significant relationships. Although, regardless of exchanging knowledge as well as foreign goods, distinct regions seldom undergo cultural diffusion, as they believe that their cultures may conflict with one another leading to certain tribulations. Plus, many foreign regions do not desire to even interact with other certain regions because they consider them to be barbaric. Likewise, within the novel The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini, one is able to determine that one’s social class within society as well as their religion, ultimately conflict with their affiliation with another individual. Nonetheless, although, the protagonists Amir …show more content…
But in none of his stories did Baba ever refer to Ali as his friend.” (Hosseini 25). Here, the reader is able to comprehend that by considering Ali’s culture in practicing Shi’a Islam, a separate branch of Islam, Baba does not truly Ali to be his true friend regardless of their past experiences as well as Ali’s perspective towards Baba. Additionally, one is conveyed a similar concept between the association of Amir and Hassan, as Amir himself ultimately comprehends that he does not consider Hassan his true companion because of the diverse branches of Islam in which they follow. As seen here, “The curious thing was, I never thought of Hassan and me as friends either. Not in the usual sense, anyhow. Never mind that we taught each other to ride a bicycle with no hands… Never mind that we spent entire winters flying kites, running kites… history isn’t easy to overcome. Neither is religion. In the end, I was a Pashtun and he was a Hazara, I was Sunni and he was Shi’a, and nothing was ever going to change that. Nothing.” (25). Therefore, the reader is able to identify that although Amir and Hassan have progressed throughout their life’s events together, their relationship is impeded by their religion, which causes Amir to socially consider Hassan inferior, as he is a …show more content…
For instance, “We chased the Kochi, the nomads who passed through Kabul on their way to the mountains of the north… We saw our first Western together, Rio Bravo with John Wayne, at the Cinema Park, across the street from my favorite bookstore… After school, Hassan and I met up, grabbed a book, and trotted up a bowl-shaped hill just north of my father’s property in Wazir Akbar Khan. There was a pomegranate tree near the entrance to the cemetery. One summer day, I used one of Ali’s kitchen knives to carve our names on it: “Amir and Hassan, the sultans of Kabul.” Those words made it formal: the tree was ours. After school, Hassan and I climbed its branches and snatched its bloodred pomegranates.” (26-28). Here, one is portrayed that Amir and Hassan significantly value each other as acquaintances as they spend a large quantity of time with each other in performing different activities, therefore revealing that they possess an imperative relationship to one another. Nevertheless, the knowledge in which one individual possess may be greater than their companion, ultimately causing one to consider themselves to be mentally superior leading to the relationship being moderated. As seen here, “What does that word mean? Which one? Imbecile. You don’t know what
At times Amir had trouble realizing that they were best friends because Hassan was a Hazara, he was of Asian descent and of the Shiite tribe, he resembles his ancestors, the Mongols. Amir is a Pashtun, of the Sunni tribe, a majority group in Afghanistan. Hassan was loyal and showed endless amounts of respect and praise to Amir. Though Hassan knew what Amir had witnessed and done to him, he covered up for him. He did not ever let Amir get into trouble with Baba, his father. Hassan was also the half brother of Amir, neither knew until Rahim Khan, a friend of Baba’s informed Amir. He and Hassan had a connection, both as friends but also as brothers.
Throughout an individual's life, many of one’s moral decisions are made based on their experience in race, ethnicity and social class. In Afghanistan, many individuals are judged based on their cultural backgrounds and hierarchy, which has led to the diversity of their own kind. Throughout the novel The Kite Runner, Khaled Hosseini focus on two types of castes: Pashtuns and Hazaras. Pashtuns are considered as the majority race and ethnic group in Afghanistan, while the Hazaras are viewed as the weakest and poorest race in Afghanistan, so they are easily insulted by Pashtuns. In this world, race, ethnicity and social class influences us to make the decisions individuals make. This is evident in the novel The Kite Runner
Life in America for Baba and Amir is much different than their life in Afghanistan. Specifically, Amir adapts well to America. He completes high school and college. Furthermore, he follows his dream of becoming a writer. In American Amir becomes a young man who marries Soraya. The reader witnesses a kinder, non-vindictive Amir.
...h him; another part to this is because he believes Hassan is just a dirty Hazara boy. “I'd chase the car, screaming for it to stop. I'd pull Hassan out of the backseat and tell him I was sorry, so sorry, my tears mixing with rainwater. We'd hug in the downpour (Hosseini 109).” After Amir causes Hassan to leave, he laments about letting, more like making, his best friend leave him. He sees the dirty Hazara boy as his best friend at that moment. In both of these stories, the main character realizes how similar they are to the other social or religious group.
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.
Throughout the novel, racism is a prominent form of the abuse of power. Particularly, in the novel, as Amir is reflecting on his relationship with Hassan he realizes that he doesn’t consider Hassan to be a friend regardless of all their adventures, similar to Baba and Ali. He concludes that, “In the end, I was a Pashtun and he was a Hazara, I was Sunni and he was Shi'a, and nothing was ever going to change that. Nothing.” This realization highlights the deep roots of racism that are accepted as a society. Through Amir’s reflection, the audience becomes aware of the societal norms and overwhelming presence of racism during daily life. In order to understand the prominence of racism, it is essential to understand the psychological aspects that
In addition, I felt like a porthole while reading these pages for the reason that, the way Amir thought of Hassan; a friend or a servant. While Amir was looking for Hassan, it was almost getting dark outside, Amir was getting worried because he hadn’t seen Hassan, but when he asked an old man If he has seen a young Hazara pass by, the old man asked him, why was a kid like him looking for a Hazara, Amir wanted the old man to respond him fast so Amir said, he is my servants son. I wonder, why couldn’t he just say that it was his friend? Would it have taken the old man a long time to explain where had Hassan headed if Amir just told him he was his
And what does Hassan do? He picks up a pomegranate, but instead of hurling it in Amir’s direction, he smashes it on himself and says, “are you satisfied?” (..). There is this constant pressure on Hassan and Amir’s relationship. The Afghan society would not approve of such “friendship.”
Amir and Hassan had an awkward relationship, unlike normal ones. They blood brothers but neither of the two knew until Amir found out from Rahim Khan when he grew older. Amir carved into a tree, “ Amir and Hassan, the sultans of Kabul.” (27). This writing made them formally the owners of the tree. In most relationships would show a vow to one another, but truly the relationship between them was mostly favored towards Amir. Instead of Amir viewing Hassan as a best friend and a brother like character, he saw him as what he really was, a hazara child. To Amir, Hassan was inferior, but to his Baba, Amir's dad, they were both seen as equal. This is where the relationship met its conflict. Amir had done bad things to Hassan because Hassan was liked by Baba equal to how much Amir was liked. Amir had a lack of self-confidence which interfered with his ability to have a true relationship with Hassan. Also Amir's jealousy of Hassan because of Baba rejected his chance to ever be on good terms with Hassan again. This haunted him throughout the rest of the
Although Amir is a Pashtun he continuously associates himself with Hazara's which affects his pride based on the religious beliefs of the people around him. Hossaini opens up the story with a boy named Amir who lives in Afghanistan with his father and their servants. One of his servants, Hassan, was born at about the same time as Amir and although they might be considered worlds apart, they act as if they are close friends. Early in the book Amir is hanging out with Hassan near a pomegranate tree when they are confronted by a notorious bully named Assef. Assef soon starts to ask Amir questions about why he is friends with a Hazara when he is a Pashtun. To which Amir almost responds with, “‘But he’s not my friend!’ I almost blurted. ‘He’s my servant!”’ (41). Through this quote we are able to see how Amir is acting differently when he is exposed the others from his culture that are outside his immediate family. By almost using the phrase “my servant” Amir displays how he wants to show his true feelings for how he thinks of
In Afghanistan, the Pashtuns are the superior race in Afghan society while the Hazaras live in the bottom of the society. To our surprise, Baba treats Hassan as his own son, regarding Ali as his brother, who is the Hazaras. For instance, Baba never missed Hassan’s birthday, and brought gifts to Hassan every year, such as the best kite in the store. Baba hired Dr. Kumar to fix Hassan’s harelip. When he was asked that if he’d ever consider getting new servants. “Hassan’s not going anywhere, he’d barked. He’s staying right
I knew I was being cruel, like when I'd taunt him if he didn't know some big word. But there was something fascinating – albeit in a sick way – about teasing Hassan. Kind of like when we used to play insect torture. Except now, he was the ant and I was holding the magnifying glass.” (Hosseini, Page 47). Hosseini has Amir betray Hassan – or at least be cruel to Hassan – in all sorts of small ways, to display the motif of a corrupt master to his servant. Amir does not defend Hassan from the neighborhood boys, and when asked about their friendship, he almost blurts out that Hassan is only his servant and not a friend, essentially betraying what Hassan may have thought was his loyalty to their friendship. Amir, decades after betraying Hassan’s loyalty, learns Baba also betrayed his own best friend and servant by fathering a child (Hassan) with Ali’s wife Sanaubar. When finding this out, Amir asks Rahim Kahn; “ "Did Hassan know?" I said through lips that didn't feel like my own. Rahim Khan closed his eyes. Shook his head. [...] "Please think, Amir Jan. It was a shameful situation. People would talk. All that a man had back then, all that he was, was his honor, his name, and if people talked...We couldn't tell anyone, surely you can see that." He reached for me, but I shed his hand.”
He would do anything, even as a small child, to please Amir. Even after he grew up and had a son, he told his son about his love for Amir. “And, under the same roof, we spoke our first words. Mine was Baba. His was Amir. My name.” (Hosseini, 12). If this was a teenage romance novel this would be a love triangle. Between Amir, Hassan and Baba. Amir spent his entire life trying to make Baba like him, to forgive him for killing his wife, to understand him, and get that special father to son bonding. Baba instead gave his attention to the servant’s son, Hassan. Later the story we find out that Hassan is Baba’s son too, but this is after both have died and Amir is a grown man. During his childhood Amir would have done anything to gain his father attention like Hassan had. Baba, feeling guilty, gave his attention to Hassan, and treated him kindly, out of guilt for not being able to recognise Hassan as his son. Yet Baba never treated Amir diskindly, other than the fact they never got along. Hassan did not go to school, and spent his time helping Ali with household chores, but got respected by Baba, and given gifts during holidays and a kite for flying season. Amir and Baba did not click in the way both of them wanted too. Amir tried to fake interests in sports for Baba, but after watching a rider get trampled by his horse, and started crying during the one and only sport event Baba took him too. “I cried all the way back home. I remember how Baba’s hands clenched around the steering wheel. Clenched and unclenched. Mostly, I will never forget Baba’s valiant efforts to conceal the disgusted look on his face as he drove in silence.” (Hosseini, 23) This was Amir memory of the sporting event. Amir need for love from Baba, led him standing in the alley watching Hassan get raped, knowing that when he brought that blue kite to Baba he will earn his love. Hassan on the other hand could not love Amir any less. To
Amir may not say he is friends with Hassan but he says they do everything together and they even ride bikes like they are friends. Amir reads this quote in a history book that his mother had and Hassara people have practically been erased from history. The Hazara people were killed off and the history books try to even cover it up. “Her name as Homaira. She was a Hazara, the daughter of our neighbor’s servants… You should have seen the look on my father's face when I told him. My mother actually fainted,”(p.98-99) this quote is from Rahim Khan and he is telling Amir the story of a girl he liked. Rahim Khan told his family about her and said that she was Hazara, his family did not approve at all. His brother even went and got a rifle and was going to go kill her. This just shows how low they think of the Hazara and how they don’t want anyone being associated with them unless they are their servants. “Thanks. Have you seen Hassan? Your Hazara?,” (p.68) Amir asks about Hassan and gets the question “your
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.