Betrayal In The Kite Runner By Khaled Hosseini

The act of getting stabbed in the back. A phrase used frequently when referring to the act of betraying someone. Betrayal seems very simple, but in reality, that is far from the truth. There are many different definitions to define to betray, but the definition that portrays the betrayals in The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini is “to hurt some who trusts you, such as a friend or relative by not giving help or by doing something morally wrong” (Merriam Webster.) With betrayals being a major theme in The Kite Runner, Hosseini shows the effects on the people of both sides of the betrayal, while simultaneously teaching readers important life lessons.

A main betrayal in the book is the instance of Hassan’s rape. This betrayal is one of the main

For Baba, he could not openly show love for one of his sons. If he did this, he would probably harshly have been judged by society. For Amir, this lead to Baba being very hard on Amir. He saw his guilt and his grief when he saw Amir. With Amir not knowing this information, he tried with all his might to get more affection from Baba, but could not get the affection he so longed for. For Hassan, he never learned who is true father was. His whole life was partly a lie. Another key effect was Amir’s treatment of Hassan. Their relationship almost certainly would have been different if Amir had known that Hassan was his half-brother. If someone wanted to get into hypothetical situations, some may say Hassan would not have died. Older Amir definitely had those same thoughts

If a reader were to try to be on the optimistic side of the situation, they would find some positive effects. One is that Ali had the chance to have a child, considering that he himself was not fertile. This effect brought an abundance of happiness to Ali. To go along with the first positive effect, Hassan was able to receive the full love and attention from a father. He would not have gotten this if he had known the

When the Taliban started the attempt to take over Afghanistan, the people were tired of all of the fighting. The people just wanted an end to all of the craziness and chaos. When the Taliban, finally took over, the people were so relieved. Rahim Khan describes this relief with “When the Taliban rolled in and kicked the Alliance out of Kabul, I actually danced on that street...And believe me, I wasn’t alone” (Hosseini, 200). The Afghani people put their trust in the Taliban. Then, the Taliban took advantage of the trust that was entrusted in them. They did many morally wrong acts. Arguably the most horrifying act was the ethnic cleansing of Hazaras in some areas. They treated everyone horribly and turned Afghanistan to an awful place to live. This situation is another great example of betrayal. The Taliban people hurt the Afghani people, their friends and family, people who trusted them by doing morally wrong things. A lesson that Hosseini is trying to teach readers here is to be grateful for the freedom they have, and be mindful to others who may not have the same freedom as