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The sense of family theme in the kite runner
Narrative essay on guilt
The sense of family theme in the kite runner
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In “The Kite Runner” guilt and redemption is a prominent theme. The feeling of remorse, one wishing that he/she had done something differently, is a strong feeling that can take over a person. It can mentally destroy one and lead them to lifelong unease. Redemption, however, is a way to deal with guilt and in “The Kite Runner”, Khaled Hosseini portrays that. Hosseini shows the readers that true redemption is when guilt leads to good. In “The Kite Runner” Khaled Hosseini tells a story about a character’s guilt and how the character redeems himself. In this story guilt and redemption is tied to the bigger picture of family and relationships.
Throughout the story, Amir, the main character, struggles with the feeling of guilt. Amir’s feeling
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of guilt surfaces early on in the story when he mentions that he feels at fault for his mother’s death, since she died giving birth to him. (chapter 3) One of the most plot changing scenes where Amir’s guilt arises because of it is when Hassan is raped. Amir could have saved his friend, Hassan from Assef’s actions but he didn’t. He was too scared of Assef, fearing that he would get similar treatment and to temporarily get rid of his guilt, Amir assured himself that Hassan was just a hazara (servant boy). (chapter 7) However, this eventually adds to his guilt in the future. Most of the guilt that Amir feels is because of his actions towards Hassan. Even though they were friends, Hassan was a hazara, and this status difference made Amir feel superior which resulted in him treating Hassan differently at times. From making fun of his illiteracy (chapter 4) to framing Hassan of stealing Baba’s money (chapter 9), Amir did many things that made him feel guilty about how he treated Hassan. Amir felt overall guilty for Hassan’s continuous loyalty and how he never betrayed him, something that Amir did. Hassan protected Amir when Assef was going to hit him, by aiming his slingshot at Assef. (chapter 5) and he admitted to stealing the money even though he knew Amir was framing him. But when Hassan needed help, Amir couldn’t give it to him. This guilt tarnished his conscience. The bigger picture is however, the connection of guilt to family and relationships. Amir always felt guilty for many things but his guilt was heightened when he found out that Hassan was his half-brother. Everything he did to Hassan seemed even worse after finding out he was his father’s son as well and his brother. This revelation shows the importance family holds and how it played into heightening Amir’s guilt. This guilt, in fact, informs the entire narrative. Amir’s guilt for various things lead him to seek redemption and redeem himself.
From a very young age Amir felt as if his father didn’t love him or wasn’t ever proud of him and he felt that because he believed he had killed his mother, because she died giving birth to him. To finally please Baba, Amir felt that he must show him he is like him by winning the tournament and bring home the kite of his opponent. (chapter 7) He believed only then Baba would forgive him for “killing” his mother. Amir’s search for redemption came near the end of the story mainly when he was older and aware of the fact that Hassan was his half-brother. He is motivated to go and redeem himself when he visits Rahim Khan and finds out that the Taliban killed Hassan and his wife. (chapter 17) This is the moment when Amir felt extremely terrible and had an epiphany to redeem himself without any fear to make things right by Hassan. Hassan had a son, Sohrab who was under the custody of a Taliban, and Amir knew that he had to find Sohrab and at least meet him and make sure he was ok. Ironically, when Amir finally found out where Hassan was living, he was under the custody of Assef. Amir knew that he could not let Sohrab live with him; when he saw Sohrab he was wearing a blue silk outfit, with mascara in his eyes, and bells strapped around his ankles. (chapter 22) Amir had no doubt at this point that Assef was abusing Sohrab and this was the moment where Amir had to garner all his courage and stand up for …show more content…
what was right. This was his moment to save Sohrab from more abuse and seek redemption for something he couldn’t do for Hassan. Even though it resulted in Assef beating him up, Amir did not mind. Even though Amir almost died he felt “healed” and “got what he deserved” and he felt redeemed. (chapter 22) After Sohrab’s suicide attempt, Amir sought redemption from Allah. He prayed for the first time in years and made duaa that he would be able to make things right with Hassan for Sohrab. (chapters 24-25) Amir, with the consent of his wife, decided to adopt Sohrab and take care of him as his own son. Once again, relationships and family played a large part in this decision. Soraya, Amir’s wife was eager and willing to take care of Sohrab especially for the fact that he was “qaom” (family). (chapter 24) Amir’s quest to redeem himself was fueled by the fact that Hassan was his brother and Sohrab was his nephew. Amir’s definite decision to take Sohrab back to America was to give him a life of success and happiness. This was the ultimate form of redemption. In “The Kite Runner” guilt and redemption is tied to family relationships.
Throughout his life Amir does things that he regrets and treats Hassan as if he was less than him. Despite their friendship, Amir recognizes their difference in status and takes advantage of that. Hassan, someone who always stood by Amir’s side and protected him at all costs, was treated the same way by Hassan. Amir failed to protect Hassan as a friend and this is when Amir’s guilt surfaced. He felt guilty for being a witness to something he could have stopped and later in the novel, when he was older sought redemption for all of it. Indeed, all of Amir’s guilt was heightened by Rahim Khan’s revelation to him that Hassan was his brother. This changed everything for Amir. He felt that his whole life was a lie and his guilt for everything that he did to Hassan and what happened to Hassan was increased. Khaled Hosseini showed the importance the characters had towards family. This revelation of Hassan being his brother and Sohrab being his nephew gave Amir even more motivation to seek redemption and finally do the right
thing. In “The Kite Runner” Khaled Hosseini depicts the theme of guilt and redemption and how true redemption is when guilt leads to good. In the novel, Hosseini shows one’s mistakes can always be redeemed and that it never too late to make things right and redeem one’s self. The bigger picture that is displayed by this novel is the importance of family and relationships and how that can shape one’s life. In “The Kite Runner” family and relationships is exemplified through the theme of guilt and redemption.
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
... Finally, Amir chooses to redeem himself by opting to protect Hassan’s son Sohrab. The guilt which estranged Amir from his childhood friend in a way manages to reunite him with Hassan, albeit in a different manner. Thereby, the two works that are Macbeth and The Kite Runner not only present before the humanity, the immense power and potency of guilt, but also emphatically reveal the eventual consequences of the guilt traceable to an evil act or an act of cowardice or betrayal. These two works expose the psychology of guilt in a very vivid and threadbare manner, which explains their appeal and the human interest they accrue.
I wished he would. I wished he’d give me the punishment I craved, so maybe I’d finally sleep at night. Maybe then things could return to how they used to be between us.” (Hosseini 92). The guilt is so deep that Amir is consumed by it and not able to sleep at night.
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...
Sometimes no matter how big a mistake you make is you can try to be forgiven, and make up for your mistakes by seeking redemption. No matter what someone does, if they truly want to be forgiven they can, and will, seek redemption. And more often than not they will succeed and they will be forgiven. The book The Kite Runner, is about a kid named Amir, from Afghanistan, who was rich and privileged until having to move to America. And Amir stands by as Hassan is raped, which causes the guilt he has, and this is why he’s trying to strive for redemption. Amir makes mistakes and hurts his friend Hassan, and immediately afterwards he felt guilt, and wanted forgiveness, but Hassan acted like Amir did nothing, which bothered Amir even worse. And that
(2) The Kite Runner follows Amir on his odyssey to redeem himself for his hurtful actions. Through this journey, Khaled Hosseini delivers the message that sin and guilt can always be atoned for. At the beginning of The Kite Runner, young Amir wins a kite fighting tournament. He feels like he has finally redeemed himself for his father.
Over the course of the novel, Baba implies that he is not proud of Amir and the only reason he knows Amir is his son, is because he witnessed Amir 's birth. He states to Rahim Khan that he thinks Amir needs to stand up for himself more often. Countless times during the novel, Amir feels like he has to fight for his affection, that he has to earn Baba’s love. In order to prove himself worthy of affection and to redeem himself for not being a son Baba could be proud of, Amir yearns to win the kite runner competition. He reminisces on a memory, when all “I saw was the blue kite. All I smelled was victory. Salvation. Redemption” (65). In the aftermath of Hassan’s rape, Amir got rid of Hassan so he would not have to face the cause of his guilt on a daily basis. Amir buries the secret of the rape deep within him, where he hopes that it will not come back to haunt him, which is not the case. “We had both sinned and betrayed. But Baba had found a way to create good out of his remorse. What had I done, other than take my guilt out on the very same people I had betrayed, and then try to forget it all? What had I done, other than become an insomniac? What had I ever done to right things?” (303). As mentioned earlier, Amir is not one who stands up for himself. In order for Amir to redeem himself for betraying Hassan, and not standing up for him earlier,
Hassan would do anything for his friends and treat everyone, even bullies, with respect because his respectful dad, Ali, taught him to always be loyal to all, and never hurt anyone. Ali was Baba’s servant and long-time friend, and stayed close to him throughout their childhood and adulthood. 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.
“For you, a thousand times over.” In The Kite Runner by Kahled Hosseini, there is a recurring theme of redemption that is portrayed by various literary devices. Kahled excellently juxtaposes devices such as irony, symbolism, and foreshadowing to show redemption within his first novel.
The story The Kite Runner is centered around learning “to be good again.” Both the movie and the book share the idea that the sins of the past must be paid for or atoned for in the present. In the book, Amir can be seen as a troubled young boy who is struggling with a tremendous amount of guilt. It is easy to blame Amir’s actions on his guilt and his father’s lack of love for him.
“The guilty one is not the one who commits the sin, but the one who causes the darkness.” – Victor Hugo. In The Kite Runner, the theme of guilt and redemption is shown through the character development of the protagonist Amir. Hosseini used Amir’s guilt of his past to grow the impression that with regret lies a hope for redemption. Amir is a man who is haunted by the demons of his past.
Betrayal, redemption, and forgiveness are all major themes in The Kite Runner written by Khaled Hosseini. The novel also focuses around the theme of a broken relationship between father and son as well as facing difficult situations from ones past. Amir and Hassan are best friends with two completely different personalities. Each character in the novel faces their own hardships and eventually learns to overcome those difficulties. Beginning with betrayal then the characters have to make their way to gaining redemption and forgiveness from others, as well as their self, is carried on throughout the novel. It is a continuous story of the relationships between Amir and his father Baba and facing their challenges from the past every day of their present.
The themes of the loss of innocence and redemption is used throughout the novel The Kite Runner to make a point that one can lose innocence but never redeem it. Once innocence is lost it takes a part of oneself that can never be brought back from oblivion. One can try an entire life to redeem oneself but the part that is loss is permanently gone although the ache of it can be dampened with the passing of time and acts of attempted redemption. Khaled Hosseini uses characters, situations, and many different archetypes to make this point.
Imagine that you had a final exam the next day and you never studied for it. This is when you may start to experience a feeling of guilt. Guilt is a very powerful emotion to be reckoned with. It can be used to help us, for instance it may motivate you to start cramming for that exam. However,it is usually there to destroy us, if we let it. In Khaled Hosseini’s, The Kite Runner, we see an example of guilt’s destructive power in the life of the main character, Amir. Specifically, guilt plays a major role in the book by influencing Amir’s personality and actions over and over again.
In a lifetime, one will face an abundance of personal battles in their decision making. When bad decisions result negatively, people find peace mentally in redeeming themselves of their sin through redemption. In Khaled Hosseini’s “The Kite Runner”, the main character, Amir, commits a sin and goes through great lengths to find redemption. Using metaphors, personification, and irony Hosseini expresses the theme of sin, suffering and redemption. Achieving redemption is a long journey people seek after suffering the consequences of sin.