The themes explored in The Kite Runner and Mister Pip that are heavily revolve around the main characters and their experiences. Indeed, both novels are written in the first-person perspective and go very deep into the psyche of the narrator. The experiences of the respective narrators drive both stories, and it is therefore natural that they explore their own identities through the course of both novels. In fact, both The Kite Runner and Mister Pip demonstrate that identity is a constantly evolving, fluid concept that is as much a response to major life events or decisions as it is a self-regulated characteristic. They show developments in their identities as a response to major live events or decisions. Amir, Baba, Mr. Watts, Dolores, Matilda …show more content…
However, considering Amir objectively in that situation, his motives are driven by two factors: first, that he lives a privileged life and considered upper class, and second, that at this point in the novel, he was not proud to have Hassan as a friend because of the fact that he was a Hazara. Amir goes as far as blaming himself for the assault by equating his inaction with his identity as a whole. Reflecting on the incident at the onset of the novel, Amir says, “That was a long time ago, but it’s wrong what they say about the past, I’ve learned, about how you can bury it. Because the past claws its way out. Looking back now, I realize I have been peeking into that deserted alley for the last twenty-six years.” Amir’s guilt and burden is so heavy from the number of betrayals he has committed to Hassan, Ali, and Sohrab that for the twenty-six years prior to telling this story, Amir has owned his betrayals so much that it has become the primary thing he thinks about. He additionally makes it clear later in the novel that this guilt manifests for Amir with identifying himself as a cheat and a liar. When Hassan and Ali are being fired he says, “I loved him in that moment, loved him more than I'd ever loved anyone, and I wanted to tell them all that I was the snake in the grass, the monster in the lake. I wasn't worthy of this …show more content…
Moving to the United States also presented a new set of challenges for Amir’s identity as an Afghan. When travelling to Afghanistan with Farid, Amir describes seeing the country again; “‘I feel like a tourist in my own country,’ I said, taking in a goat herd leading a half-dozen emaciated goats along the side of the road. Farid snickered. Tossed his cigarette. "You still think of this place as your country?" Farid additionally tells Amir that he has always lived a privileged life and has therefore always been a tourist in Afghanistan. Amir, therefore, faces the identity crisis of many in diaspora communities: not quite being the ideal citizen of the country to which they emigrated, while also not belonging anymore to the country of origin because of the adaptation of customs in the foreign country. For Amir, this is of course how his sense of identity has reacted to maturing in the United States. He proves this further when speaking to Rahim Khan, showing that while he has identified at least partly as Afghan, he is well established in America. Amir says, “I didn't want to understand that comment, but I did. I understood it all too well. ‘I have a wife in America, a home, a career, and a family. Kabul is a dangerous place, you know that, and you'd have me risk everything for…’ I stopped.” Both of these statements display a confused national identity in Amir and this
Actions made in a moment of pain, anger or simple immaturity can take anyone to make mistakes that can change their lives completely. Everyone has something in the past that is shameful, embarrassing and regrettable that is kept present daily. Whether this event happened during childhood, adolescence or early adulthood, this event could haunt and have shaped that person’s life into what he or she is today. In a similar way, in the book The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini is shaped by a tragic and eventful past that has shaped Amir’s, Baba’s, and Hassan’s life. The four literary elements that will be used in this essay that Hosseini strategically uses in this book are: irony, simile, Metaphor, and personification.
The history of Afghanistan influences the way Amir’s life develops by affecting his relationship with himself, Baba, and Hassan. People are greatly influenced by the culture that they grow up in, and a community’s culture is shaped by the events that they go through. Throughout the book, the reader can see that Amir struggles with his self-confidence and often-times looks down on himself as a weak and unworthy human being.
...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.
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 is a man who is haunted by the demons of his past. This is first shown in the opening lines of the novel “I became what I am today at the age of twelve, on a frigid overcast day in the winter of 1975. I remember the precise moment, crouching behind a crumbling mud wall, peeking into the alley near the frozen creek. That was a long time ago, but it’s wrong what they say about the past, I’ve learned, about how you can bury it. Because the past claws its way out.” (Hosseini pg.#) These opening lines of the novel foreshadow what is yet to come. You can see that Amir looking back at the past with an attempt to justify why he is the man he is today. In the winter of 1975 it was the final round of the Kite Running tournament when Hassan choice to run the last kite for Amir. In doing so Hassan is corner by Assef and his gang who question Hassan’s loyalty to Amir. They give Hassan the choice to give them the kite in exchange to do no harm to him or to...
Even when Amir was nasty and cruel to him, he had always been a faithful, kind soul. He never doubted that Amir was his friend and that he held a special place in his heart. When Hassan got raped, Amir did not help Hassan. There were ultimately two options: step up to the bullies and rescue Hassan, or run away. Even after hearing Assef say how Amir would never do the same for him, about how he would never stand up for him, he still chose to run away and pretend like he did not just witnessed what had happend. There is also scene where Amir is feeling guilty and both the boys are around a pomegranate tree. Amir just starts pelting Hassan with pomegranates and threatens to him to throw one back. He exclaims, “You’re a coward,” (...). 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.” Both of the boys were good, but Amir was so young when he made the mistakes that it made the reader question whether there was a way for Amir to be morally good again.
During this time we learned a lot about him. He grew up with a boy named Hassan who was his servants son. Hassan and him were like brothers, the bestest of friends. But when we truly take a look at their friendship we realize that Amir was a terrible friend. Hassan would do absolutely anything for him, because he loved him so much. Amir teased him and never included him with the other kids. Hassan never let that bother him though becasue that is how much he cared for Amir. During the kite tournament Hassan was beaten and abused and Amir saw it all. He did not help, he did not scream, he did absolutely nothing which shows just how low he is. This poor boy was assaulted so that Amir would have his kite. Amir was a coward and would not confess to what he saw. He did not comfort Hassan or even allow things to go back to normal. He was racked with so much guilt that it pushed him away from Hassan because he did not want to deal with the consequences. This shows how immature Amir was an how inconsiderate he was towards Hassan and all that he endured for
After the entire faithful years of serving Amir’s household Ali has been betrayed by Amir. After the abhorrent incident Hassan had experienced Ali encountered Amir if anything had happened the night before and Amir lied to his face. Not even hesitating Amir lied to him without thinking on what Amir was going through after the rape. Amir betrayed Ali’s trust knowing what his son has experienced. Not even once in Amir’s thought on what Baba had told him "When you tell a lie, you steal someone's right to the truth…” (18) which he had remotely taken away from Ali. The day Hassan was being framed for stealing Amir’s watch and envelopes with money he caused pain knowing Hassan would ever steal. Ali has lived for years in Baba’s home to spot Amir when he was lying “[he] was a lair, a cheat, and a thief” (105) but at the end Ali was glad that it was all over at the end of the day he was only a servant.
In the Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini, Amir told the story of his life in the past that eventually lead up to his present life. In his childhood he had things he struggled with both physically and mentally.
In conclusion, the historical events that took place in “The kite runner” affected multiple characters in different ways, some had no way of changing the result they are put into while others are given the resources to change their life for the better like never before. However both sides have their lives changed drastically like never before.
In Khaled Hosseini’s The Kite Runner, the author follows the development of protagonist Amir through a life filled with sorrow, regret, and violence. Amir encounters numerous obstacles on his path to adulthood, facing a new test at every twist and turn. Amir embarks on the long journey known as life as a cowardly, weak young man with a twisted set of ideals, slowly but surely evolving into a man worthy of the name. Amir is one of the lucky few who can go through such a shattered life and come out the other side a better man, a man who stands up for himself and those who cannot, willing to put his life on the line for the people he loves.
When Amir returns to Afghan to help Hassan's son he promises Sohrab that he will not put him back into the orphanage (324). When trying to make a foreign adoption the lawyer said the only way to put him back in orphanage was the only option to help with paperwork. Amir tells this is Sohrab and he tries to commit suicide because Amir could not keep his promise (343). Amir realizes that he shouldn't have used the word “promise” and instead said that he should do everything he can to help Sohrab. While Amir is still living with the guilt of Hassan's rape, he thinks it has come back to haunt him. After he faces a terrible tragedy with Hassan's son, Sohrab he thinks this is the consequence of never confessing what he saw in alley back in 1975 (346). He he continues to pray that this is not linked with what happened and prays that his lies have not caught up with
A major point to this argument is when Assef attacks Hassan in the alleyway. Instead of standing up for and protecting Hassan, Amir just watches as Hassan is brutally beaten and raped. When Amir recalled his options, he says, “ I had one last chance to make a decision. One final opportunity to decide who I was going to be. I could step into that alley, stand up for Hassan-and accept whatever would happen to me. Or I could run. In the end, I ran.” This particular passage shows what exactly it was that plagued Amir’s mind until he grew up. Although Hassan had shown a significant demonstration of allegiance towards Amir when standing up for him against Assef, he was not repaid for that loyalty when he needed it the most. Due to cowardice and fear, He decided that the approval of his father meant more to him than saving Hassan from
To start with, Amir’s first betrayal was not aiding Hassen in the alley where he watched him get raped. This event happens right after Amir and Hassen had won the kite runner contest, his trophy was his opponent's blue kite. Hassen had gone out to retrieve the kite which was the the trophy he had earned, so hard for his father’s respect. Amir had gone out looking for Hassen and the blue kite, once he had found Hassen in an alley with some boys that had bothered him and Hassen previously. Amir does nothing to stop them from harassing his friend. “I felt paralyzed. I watched them close up on a boy I’d grown up with, the boy whose harelipped face had been my first memory” (Hosseini 71). His act had stopped him from trying to help his so called friend that he had grown up with. This would be a sign inner hatred for Hassen that he finally shows towards him. Due to his lack confidence he allowed his friend to get raped.
Amir’s anguish is put on hold after he receives a call from his father’s close friend Rahim Khan who informs him that “there is a way to be good again” (Hosseini 2). This news comes a shock to Amir because at this point in his life he has felt that what he had done in the past will cause his life to continue in disrepair until his death. Amir rushes to Pakistan to meet Rahim Khan and upon his arrival he finds that Hassan, the person whom his guilt is focused upon had been murdered by the Taliban. Amir learns why he has been brought to Pakistan after learning about Hassan’s Sohrab has been orphaned due to his lack of parents. Amir hunts down Sohrab and to do so he must go to the orphanage and find him. After arriving at the orphanage, Amir is told by the Zaman, the head of the establishment, that they regularly sell children to a Taliban leader for extra cash. Amir is shocked by his driver, Farid, in a fit of rage begins choking Zaman. Amir yells for Farid to stop because “the children are watching” (Hosseini 256). This is the first instance of AMir truly asserting himself because it marks the first time that someone is being physically hurt and he stands up for the victim. Once Amir finally tracks down his long lost nephew his final obstacle is to rescue him from Assef, the man who took away Amir’s best