The Kite Runner Nobody can believe that the innocent activity of kite flying could ever lead to betrayal and eventually redemption yet, in the novel The Kite Runner, Hosseini manages to mend one man’s path through betrayal and ultimately to his redemption. Throughout this novel you will see many acts of betrayal between enemies, loved ones and strangers. When you do something wrong and you know you shouldn't have done it you feel guilty, right ? Well so does Amir, at least his own kind of guilt. Amir watched Hassan get raped and did nothing to stop it. The summer following Hassans painful misfortune, Amir and Hassan spend less and less time together they don’t play outside as much they had before, so when Amir asked Hassan, “What would you do if I hit you with this? ” [ pomegranate] (92) we can all infer that Amir wants Hassan to hit him back so he feels like he has been paid for not helping Hassan that previous winter, but turns out Hassan just let him throw countless pomegranates at him, eventually Hassan stands up, picks up a pomegranate, walks towards Amir and crushes it against his own forehead. “There” he croaked, “ Are you satisfied? “ “ Do you feel better? “ (92) Afterwards, Amir felt ashamed and broke into tears; At that moment he had one choice to make, get Ali and Hassan to move out. At whatever means necessary. Baba betrays Ali, Amir and Hassan by his unfaithful decision to have an affair and steel Hassans right to know the truth about his parentage, Baba does not pursue seeking a strong connection with Hassan because of his regretful actions. In truth, Baba is truly disappointed in both of his sons. In Amir, he is reminded of his deceased princess. In Hassan, he is reminded of the Hazara, Sanaubar, he ... ... middle of paper ... ...take maturely instead of leaving for someone else to clean up her mess. I also did not think that she should have come back into Hassan’s life after all those years; Hassan was having a family of his own and she just walks in his life asking for forgiveness and wanting to be a part of his life when she had that chance, but she made the choice to leave. The only one who redeemed himself was Amir. Amir found Hassan’s son; Sohrab and helped him get the pay back that Assef needed after what he did to Hassan that winter many years ago. All though Hassan and his wife are dead and do not get to be in their son’s life, and see what life Sohrab has at least he eventually made right instead of leaving “what if’s “and doubts of uncertainty in people’s minds. Deep down I do believe Amir wanted to do something that winter but was really just too afraid to stand up for a Hazara.
Amir is, to be put bluntly, a coward. He is led by his unstable emotions towards what he thinks will plug his emotional holes and steps over his friends and family in the process. When he sought after Baba’s invisible love, Amir allowed Hassan to be raped in an alleyway just so that the blue kite, his trophy that would win his father’s heart, could be left untouched. In the end, he felt empty and unfulfilled with the weight of his conscience on his shoulders comparable to Atlas’ burden. Unable to get over his fruitless betrayal, he lashes out and throws pomegranates at Hassan before stuffing money and a watch under his loyal friend’s pathetic excuse for a bed, framing Hassan for theft and directly causing the departure of both servants from his household. Even after moving to America, finding a loving wife, and creating a career for himself in writing, he still feels hollow when thinking of his childhood in Afghanistan. Many years later, he is alerted of Hassan’s death and sets out on a frenzied chase to find his friend’s orphaned son. He feels that he can somehow ease his regrets from all of those years ago if he takes in Hassan’s son, Sohrab. He finds Sohrab as a child sex slave for Assef, who coincidentally was the one to rape Hassan all of those years ago. After nearly dying in his attempt to take back Sohrab, he learns that he can take the damaged child back to the states with him. Sadly, Hassan’s son is so
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
Many books today portray a different world. Few books will make readers think they’ve lived in that world all their lives. The Kite Runner is a tale about betrayal, fear, and redemption. In the book, a young boy, Amir, lives in Kabul, Afghanistan happily, until one fateful day. After that, he’s plunged into fear and regret as his life gets worse and worse. Decades later, a man reminisces on his past mistakes and desperately tries to bury his old life. Khaled Hosseini has captured the minds of many with his book, The Kite Runner. The Kite Runner was published by Riverhead Books in 2003, after Khaled Hosseini had worked on it for two years. The book immediately became an international bestseller, becoming the number one New York Times Best Seller for two years, and its fame sparked the creation of a movie based on the book. The book was inspired by Hosseini’s childhood, and it features significant moral lessons that are embedded into the very text of each chapter.
To atone for his past sins, he embarks on a journey back to Afghanistan to redeem himself to Hassan for not treating him the way he was treated. He redeems himself by saving Sohrab and giving him a safer and enjoyable life in the Untied States. Amir tyres to attain redemption to baba for being the cause of his mother’s death as he believes. Gaining his fathers love and care will make him feel redeemed from all of the resentment and lack of care that his father shows to him. He must prove to Baba that he is worthy of spending time with everyday because he feels the hatred that his father shows to him. One way how he gets redemption from his father is by winning the kite running tournament to prove to him that he is worthy of being his son. Amir’s path of redemption is not only directed to other people but personal redemption for himself. He attempts to redeem himself by building an orphanage with his wife Soraya and giving Sohrab the childhood that is safer and more suitable for a young boy to grow up in. Amir has to realize that the past doesn’t define who someone is although you can’t forget the past, the actions that they decide to do to redeem themselves from the past mistakes defines who someone is. If Amir’s mother did not die at birth would he be resented from his father greatly and have to make great
A reason for this could be that Baba perhaps felt guilty about keeping the brotherhood between Amir and Hassan a secret. Although Baba was distant towards Amir and, at times, Hassan, he appeared to pay attention to the relationship between the two. He possibly knew how poorly Amir treated Hassan and felt he was solely to blame because he had kept their kinship from them. Baba assumed that Amir treated Hassan so poorly because Amir saw himself as better than Hassan. Since in his mind he, Amir, was a Pashtun and Hassan was merely a Hazara, as well as the son of Amir 's father 's servant. Even though Amir witnessed his Baba treating Ali, Hassan 's father, kindly, almost like a brother, he did not follow suit. Since Amir was more influenced by the opinions and views of the children he went to school with rather than his own
Though some may rise from the shame they acquire in their lives, many become trapped in its vicious cycle. Written by Khlaled Hosseini, The Kite Runner describes the struggles of Amir, his father Baba, and his nephew Sohrab as they each fall victim to this shameful desolation. One repercussion of Baba hiding his sinful adultery from Amir is that Amir betrays Hassan for his father’s stringent approval. Sohrab’s dirty childhood also traumatizes him through his transition to America. Consequently, shame is a destructive force in The Kite Runner. Throughout the course of the novel, Baba’s shameful affair, Amir’s selfish betrayal, and Sohrab’s graphic childhood destroy their lives.
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. Baba ran from the truth, and so did Amir to protect the family name, even if that meant betraying the people closest to him. Baba was a man more worried about his image than anything, and that is what he taught his son as well. Slowly that is all Amir knew how to do: protect his family and himself, leading him into a life of guilt, and running from people when situations were challenging, instead of making the admirable decision and help a
Amir’s father claims the worst sin is stealing. He always says that when someone lies, they steal someone’s right to the truth. Knowing this, Baba has committed the worst act of sin and betrayal in the entire story. When Amir goes back to Afghanistan as a grown man, to visit Rahim Kahn, he learns that Hassan is his half-brother; his father had been their father all along. He went back to his home country to redeem and find forgiveness for himself, but now he is faced with also redeeming his fathers’ sins. His whole childhood was spent believing that Hassan was only his servant, barely letting himself believe that he was a friend, and now he has to find out that his father lied to him and that this boy was his brother. Amir is now not only on a journey for himself, but for his dad, and Hassan, determined to prove that he “can be good again” (2).
“There is a way to be Good Again”: Past Actions and Redemption in Hosseini’s The Kite Runner
He was willing to throw pebbles at dogs for him, be pelted by pomegranates, and stand up against every bully for Amir. Hassan involved himself in so many fights for Amir and wouldn’t back down because his devotion to Amir was more important than his own well-being. Unfortunately, while Hassan was being raped, Amir decided to care more about himself than what was happening to Hassan. During his rape scene, Assef questions Hassan about Amir’s loyalty. Assef asks him, “But before you sacrifice yourself for him, think about this: Would he do the same for you? Have you ever wondered...why he only plays with you when no one else is around” (72)? Whether or not Hassan realized what Assef was true, he still stood up for Amir and kept his promise to bring back the blue kite no matter what the consequence was for himself.
Amir’s sense of guilt and wanting redemption was a huge part of his life when he was younger. Amir knew that as soon after he betrayed Hassan, that this would change their relationship forever. Amir let his friendship go in order to release himself from guilt. Amir finds out that because he was able to get away with his sin, he needs to find some way to
Baba is the father of Amir and the illegitimate father of Hassan. Ali is Baba’s friend and stepbrother. After Ali marries a woman named Sanaubar Baba has intercourse with her, completely dishonoring
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...
Baba is a very high standing man in Kabul, but seems to be extremely harsh to Amir when he was a child. He is a very large, tough man who was very well known in the town and as Amir stated in the novel, “Lore has it my father once wrestled a black bear in Baluchistan with his bare hands” (Hosseini 12). This small detail of Baba makes it known to the reader that Baba is a man of great courage and strength. Some may think that an honorable man is one with no flaws, but many disagree. Every human being makes mistakes, including Baba. When Amir grows up and goes back to visit Rahim Khan in Afghanistan, he finds out that his father lied to him his entire life about Hassan being his half-brother. He also finds out from Rahim Khan that all Baba had back then “was his honor, his name” (Hosseini 223). He did not tell Amir and Hassan that they were brothers because they had a different mother and that would have made their entire family be looked down upon in the town. He did it for their own good, and wanted for them both to grow up as honorable men, like himself. There is a difference in making mistakes and trying to do what’s best to fix them, rather than making the same mistakes over and over again, which is what Amir seemed to do in the novel. Amir was the exact opposite of his father, which made it very hard for them to have a
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