Father Son Relationships In The Kite Runner By Khaled Hosseini

Father and Son

The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini is a very in-depth book with so many different ideas to analyze. Father-Son relationships are such powerful matters in the Kite Runner to read about. They are a fundamental part of the book and hold so much meaning. Relationships like Baba and Amir are very different than Hassan and Sohrab’s. Rahim Khan and Baba severely contrast each other when put in an relationship with Amir. Parent-Child relationships are fragile and need to be treated carefully and taken care of well to build a strong bond.

One of the most notable and striking relationships in the Kite Runner is Baba and Amir. Amir is constantly pressing Baba for the love and attention he wants, and needs as a child. Baba has many issues as a parent. He didn’t pay much attention to Amir -and if he did- it was mostly criticism to how Amir lives.

Baba has always said, “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” (23). Towards the middle of the novel, Baba and Amir get closer when they move from Kabul to America. They get much closer and despite the childhood Amir had with Baba not connecting with him, a strong relationship bonded. When Amir tells Baba he was going to school for creative writing, Baba always unsupportive of the career, was disappointed. Even though Baba didn’t want that path for Amir they moved past it and still kept growing their relationship. At the end of the novel it is clear that Amir holds a lot of love for his father, and that he most definitely has held no grudges from his childhood. Baba, knowing Amir is a fragile child, should care for their relationship and cherish his son, especially because his wife is gone. Amir is a reminder of his loving wife, and should be treated like it.
Even though Baba is seen as a more neglecting type of parent in the novel, Rahim Khan is definitely a positive father figure in Amir's life. Unlike Baba, Rahim Khan happily takes Amir’s writing to read, showing how he sees Amir is upset and is almost comforting him in a way. “I cleared it and told him I'd written a story. Baba nodded and gave a thin smile that conveyed little more than feigned interest. "Well, that's very good, isn't it?" he said. Then nothing more… As always, it was Rahim Khan who rescued me. He held out his hand and favored me with a smile that had nothing feigned about it. "May I have it, Amir jan?” (31.) Rahim Khan later told him he loved the story, he was very supportive when Baba wouldn't be.
Hassan and Sohrab’s relationship is juxtaposed with Baba and Amir’s in so many ways.

Hassan listens to Sohrab,spends time with him, and understands him. He acknowledges Sohrab's wants and needs as a kid. In Chapter 16, it says all of the things Hassan did with Sohrab, like teaching hi to read and write so he wouldn’t grow up illiterate like his father. He taught him how to use the slingshot, took him to the zoo, the movies and taught him kite running. “On those days when the rocket fire eased up a bit and the gunfighting was light, Hassan would take Sohrab to the zoo to see Marjan the lion, or to the cinema. Hassan taught him how to shoot the slingshot, and, later, by the time he was eight, Sohrab had become deadly with that thing: He could stand on the terrace and hit a pinecone propped on a pail halfway across the yard. Hassan taught him to read and write. his son was not going to grow up illiterate like he had.” (212.) Sohrab loves Hassan and enjoys the time he spends with him, unlike how in Amir’s relationship with Baba he constantly strives to be the best not for himself but solely for Baba’s love and

affection.
There are so many important relationships in the Kite Runner. Analyzing certain relationships can really open some eyes to themes and structure to the characters lives. Relationships need to be cared for or they could end up damaged and forgotten, which may be hard to rekindle. Amir and Baba, Amir and Rahim Khan, and Hassan and Sohrab’s relationships all have their similarities, all being complex father-son relationships, but that isn’t a bad thing.