Similarities Between The Kite Runner And The Book Thief

The Kite Runner and The Book Thief are a grasping read epitomizing the intensity of affection, devotion and humanity, the power of good over the evil. In The Book Thief by Markus Zusak, Max, who is Erik’s son, who comes from a Jewish family is being kept with Hans so he can be protected from the Nazis while Hans risks his life. The same thing happens in The Kite Runner when Amir's father allows Hassan's family to live with them while also treating them well, which was a sign of bravery at that time. In The Book Thief and The Kite Runner, both authors were able to create hope through the brave people that stood up to help others who were being discriminated against. As power is in the hands of the wrong people, propaganda also plays a big role

in both novels since people are brainwashed and following others. The Book Thief and The Kite Runner are both excellent novels that give us the glams of the realistic lives people had to go through due to their ethnicity and to learn from history.

In The Kite Runner, Hassan who came from a Hazara family was killed because of his ethnicity. "They made him kneel in the street and shot him in the head. When Farzana ran out of the house, they shot her, too" (Hosseini, 230-231). Hassan’s murder is important for many reasons. When Hassan dies defending Baba's house, he does it because of his loyalty for Baba and Amir; not for his own benefit. Despite the fact that Hassan was a good human being, he was still considered as lower-class and was poorly treated. In The Book Thief and The Kite Runner, both authors were able to create hope through the brave people that stood up to help others who were being discriminated against.

In the Book Thief, Liesel was always exposed to Nazi propaganda and so were the people in Afghanistan, which made the majority to believe that it was normal to feel superior over the others. In The Book Thief, Jews were discriminated and viewed similarity to how Hazaras are in The Kite Runner. Throughout The Book Thief, Jewish homes and stores were destroyed while the Jews were taken away. The Jewish people had very little protection and support which couldn’t allow them to stand up for themselves. Death explains how terrible World War II was, and also shows real emotion about what he has experienced. "I picked up each soul that day as if it were newly born. I even kissed a few weary, poisoned cheeks. I listened to their last, gasping cries. Their vanishing words. I watched their love visions and freed them from their fear” (Zusak 350). Here it describes how relieving death must have been for the Jewish people who were being held in German prison on Polish soil. We can see that Marxist Theory is produced in this novel by contrasting the Germans as the supreme race and the Jews as subordinate class.

The Kite Runner handles issues identified with ethnic segregation in Afghanistan with a case of the connection amongst Hazaras and Pashtuns.

In The Kite Runner, Baba, the father of Amir sets a good example from his kindness to the Hazara individuals, despite the fact that they are historically disparaged and oppressed. Throughout story, it is seen that the status and ethnicity of a person determines who they will be in the community, and little can be changed. The Hazaras are completely oppressed by the Pashtuns and are categorized as less important therefore; they are denied basic rights and have extremely low social status. Amir's Father allows Hassan's family to live with them while also treating them well. "Huddled together in the dining room and waiting for the sun to rise, none of us had any notion that a way of life had ended. Our way of life. If not quite yet, then at least it was the beginning of the end" (Hosseini, 33-34). This quote expresses the fear Amir’s family and Hassan’s family had to face. Hazaras shouldn’t have to go through just because their background is different, rather everyone should work together to create better lives and improve on their selves. Amir's Father allows Hassan's family to live with them while also treating them well. In the end of both novels, Max which was Jewish and Hassan which was a Hazara, they both pass away while not being able to change society or see change in their

life.

Marxist lens can be found throughout The Book Thief since people are treated according to their status and where they come from. In The Book Thief by Markus Zusak, providing shelter to a Jew during the time of the Holocaust was seen as an act of bravery or great stupidity. “You could argue that Liesel Meminger had it easy. She did have it easy compared to Max Vandenburg. Certainly, her brother had practically died in her arms. Her mother abandoned her. But anything was better than being a Jew.” (Zusak, 161). In this quote, Death (the narrator) narrates to us how chaotic it has gotten for Liesel and Max. But Hans still manages to offer Max support and love in contrast to the hatred that was being driven by the people following Hitler. This is important because Hans goes against the majority by helping the Jew which was something very odd at the time of the holocaust and an act of loyalty.

In The Kite Runner, Amir receives a letter from Hassan and in it Hassan tells him that "the Kabul they used to know is gone. One day a man at the market struck Farzana with his wooden stick simply because she raised her voice so another man who was half deaf could hear her, he struck her so hard she fell down" (Hosseini, 228). This shows that woman in Afghanistan had little rights and were not respected amongst men because of their status and role in society. Hazaras were also suffering from the same thing since they were viewed as nothing in that community. Personal life events from the author have leaded him to write this novel. Hosseini, the author of The Kite Runner, tries to address the world by showing them the issues and corruption he had to face while living in Afghanistan throughout his novel. Later on, Hosseini moves to America where he experiences more equality and freedom which he hopes would happen one day to his country.

Zusak, the author of The Book Thief, was also influenced by his parents in the writing of this novel. According to an interview with the Zusak, he says that his parents used to tell him stories that they've had to experience throughout their lives. All of the Jews during that time were considered a "lower class". They were discriminated against and mass majority of the Jews were murdered. Zusak's message is to bring awareness to this generation and for the people to learn from his history and always love each other. He delivers his message by creating characters that help the Jewish people in the novel. Hans Hubermann faces discrimination from his own son as well from his own people for refusing to join the Nazi Party. "Hans Junior had the eyes of his father and the height. The silver in his eyes, however, wasn't warm, like Papa's—they'd been Fuhrered. The young man was a Nazi; his father was not" (Zusak 103-104). Despite the trouble Hans had to face, he still stood up for the Jews. Zusak believed in change and the helping of others so he implemented that through his novel for others to learn from.

In conclusion, throughout both novels The Book Thief and The Kite Runner, power is in the hands of wrong leaders while others have to suffer and are too afraid to stand up. Death, the narrator from The Book Thief, narrates "Even death has a heart” (Zusak, 242). This quote refers to Rudy who didn't deserve to die the way he did and expresses the killings of the innocents. In The Kite Runner Hassan suffers throughout his life just because he comes from a different tribe of people. He gets mistreated and killed in the end because of his status in society. Same situation happens in The Book Thief when Max who comes from a Jewish family and can't do anything about it to change, has to hide every day in the basement so he doesn't get taken by the Germans. Eventually, he suffers and gets sick. It is seen that people who possess more power than others, still believed in the old system, which is judging people from where they come from, despite if they're good individuals or not. These novels are a perfect example to reflect on and learn from the people who had suffered due to their class or ethnicity.