How To Read Literature Like A Professor Character Analysis

Don’t judge a book by its’ cover they say, but don’t we all do it anyway? The same can be said about people, that we shouldn’t judge others based on their appearance. However, in How to Read Literature Like a Professor, Fosters writes that in literature, physical deformities mean something symbolically, emotionally, or thematically. Allowing us to scrutinize these characters to further understand them. Hosseni uses the motif of scars and physical deformities in The Kite Runner to illustrate a character’s purity and goodness.

Deformities and scars function highly in the novel, and the author correlates the characters’ markings with their virtuousness. In most literature “bad guys” posses a physical marking or injury; however, the contrast is true in The Kite Runner. For example, Ali has polio and paralysis, but he exhibits many admirable

qualities: kindness, faithfulness, and humbleness. He marries his cousin to save her reputation, loves Hassan like a son even though he isn’t, and is a loyal servant and friend to Baba. Hassan’s cleft lip symbolizes his innocence, loyalty, and hoensty. Soraya is unable to have children. This also symbolizes her integrity, as she taught her servant how to read and write, becomes a teacher despite the low pay; helps Amir through Baba’s cancer and death; and welcomes Sohrab with open arms. Lastly, Baba’s scraped and scarred hands represents his bravery and loyalty as he sacrifices everything to bring Amir to America: “I’d seen the way he winced and rubbed his wrist […] ‘[b]esides, I didn’t bring us here for me, did I’ ”(130)?
Just as how having a physical deformity signifies a character’s goodness, the opposite is also true.

Characters such as Sanabaur and Amir who have no scars display dishonorable qualities. Sanabaur “in her youth […] was a vision” and “no one who passed her on the street, […] could look at her only once” (210). Despite her beauty, she abandons her family shortly after Hassan’s birth, has an affair with Baba, and treats Ali horribly. Amir also demonstrates shameful traits; he’s selfish, disloyal, and dishonest. He allows Hassan to get raped so he can bring the kite home to Baba and receive his praise, allows Hassan to take the blame for stealing, and treats Hassan unfairly. However, when these two acquire a physical deformity, they find redemption. It’s not until Sanabaur is physically scarred that she becomes the mother Hassan deserved and in the end she has found redemption and Hassan’s forgiveness. Amir’s split lip, gives him a deformity like Hassan’s that allows Amir to feel as though he’s been redeemed of his betrayal and symbolizes he’s become someone like Hassan-brave, selfless, and willing to stand up for what’s

right.
Hosseni demonstrates a character’s integrity through the use of scars and deformities and it’s the characters’ actions that leave a permanent mark whether it’s on the inside or outside. The same can be said for us. We all leave our mark on the world, but whether or not it’s good is up to you.