The Kite Runner Book Review

1151 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Character essay kite runner

The Kite Runner Book Review Summary: The Kite Runner is about the story of Amir, a Sunni Muslim that recalls a series of traumatic childhood events that he claims has defined him to be who he is. The story starts with Amir as an adult in present-day United States and then flashes back to Amir’s childhood in Afghanistan. Amir lived in a nice home Kabul, Afghanistan, with Baba, his father and their two servants, Ali and his son, Hassan. Amir’s mother died while giving birth to him and Hassan’s mother left him a few days after he was born. Amir’s father, Baba, has a close friend named Rahim Khan and he is also around often. Rahim Khan understands Amir better than Baba does and supports Amir’s interest in writing. Baba loves Amir but seems critical of Amir for not being manly enough. Throughout the story, Amir tries to find ways to impress his father and earn his respect One day, Amir and Hassan are playing when they run into three older boys, Assef, Wali, and Kamal. Assef is notoriously mean and violent. Assef threatens to beat up Amir for hanging out with Hassan, a Hazara which is an inferior race according to Assef. Assef goes to strike Amir, but Hassan stands up to him by threatening Assef with is slingshot. The boys run off but Assef says he will take his revenge. The story moves to winter, when the kite fighting tournament occurs. In the tournament, the boys cover their kite strings in glass and battle to see who can cut the string of the opposing kite. When a kite is cut, boys chase after it and retrieve it, this is called kite running. Hassan is a successful kite runner for Amir; he knows where the kite will land without even watching it. When Amir wins the tournament he earns Baba’s praise. Hassan goes to retrieve the last cu... ... middle of paper ... ..., Baba told him that a boy that doesn’t stand up for himself becomes a man who can’t stand up for anything. As a boy, Amir fails to stand up for himself. But, Amir redeems himself as an adult by showing he has the courage to stand up for what is right. Amir travels back to Kabul so that he can right the wrongs of his childhood. In Kabul, Amir stands up to Assef and rescues Hassan’s son, Sohrab. Amir and Soraya were not able to have children despite their many attempts. They were ready for parenthood, but, were not given the chance to become parents until they were given the option to adopt Sohrab. The adoption of Sohrab allowed Amir and Soraya to enter parenthood and allowed Amir to give Sohrab the life that Hassan wanted for him, but could not give Sohrab. If Amir uses the same parenting style as his father, then Amir will have a authoritative style of parenting.

Show More
Related

  • Kite Runner Literary Essay

    641 Words  | 2 Pages

    “It is easier for a father to have a child than for a child to have a real father”; a quote from Pope John XXIII that sums up the relationship between Baba and Amir. Fathers are important in children’s lives, however occasionally a father is not emotionally connected to their child. Relationships are important for learning, especially those with parents. In “Kite Runner”, Amir’s character is shaped and colored by many people. Baba is most responsible for how Amir was shaped.

    Read More

  • Essay Comparing The Kite Runner 'And A Separate Peace'

    1340 Words  | 3 Pages

    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

    Read More

  • The Power of Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini

    2126 Words  | 5 Pages

    Kite Runner depicts the story of Amir, a boy living in Afghanistan, and his journey throughout life. He experiences periods of happiness, sorrow, and confusion as he matures. Amir is shocked by atrocities and blessed by beneficial relationships both in his homeland and the United States. Reviewers have chosen sides and waged a war of words against one another over the notoriety of the book. Many critics of Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini, argue that the novel would not have reached a lofty level of success if the U.S. had not had recent dealings with the Middle East, yet other critics accurately relate the novel’s success to its internal aspects.

    Read More

  • A Cultural Blockade in Khaled Hosseini´s The Kite Runner

    781 Words  | 2 Pages

    “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 – the way he'd stood up for me all those times in the past – and accept whatever would happen to me. Or I could run. In the end, I ran.” In Khaled Hosseini’s, The Kite Runner, Amir, the young protagonist, lives a lavish lifestyle with his father, Baba. Until the Soviets invade and the Taliban become the dominant influence in Afghanistan. Amir’s sumptuous lifestyle comes to an end, and the values of not only his father but also his society begin to impact him and he realizes how much he does not belong in his own culture. Amir is taught the virtues of being a good man, however when the opportunity presents itself to demonstrate his teachings; Amir realizes how different he is from the ways of his father.

    Read More

  • The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini

    1710 Words  | 4 Pages

    On his journey to save Sohrab, Amir discovers that a Taliban official took him from the orphanage. When meeting with that Taliban official, who turns out to be his childhood nemesis Assef, Amir is placed in a situation where he is forced to choose between fleeing from the enemy and saving Hassan’s son. The structure of this scenario is analogous to one earlier in the book when Amir had to choose between saving Hassan by standing up for him and repairing the relationship with his father by bringing the blue kite back. The author uses the similar setting with Assef and the similarities in characterization of father and son in order to provide Amir with the opportunity to make the choice to stand up for what he believes in. When Amir allowed Hass...

    Read More

  • The Kite Runner Shame Analysis

    1541 Words  | 4 Pages

    On the day of the kite running competition, Amir vows to win the entire competition in Baba’s honor. To end the competition, Amir cuts down the last remaining kite in the air, at which point in time Hassan runs after the falling blue kite. In hopes of retrieving the last cut kite for Baba, Amir follows Hassan on the run. However, Assef and his two sidekick bullies corner and rape Hassan. Amir watches the entire occurrence in

    Read More

  • Redemption in The Kite Runner

    1028 Words  | 3 Pages

    As a foreword, the story of The Kite Runner focuses on a man named Amir. In his childhood, he enjoyed a high-class life in Kabul, Afghanistan, living with his father Baba. They have two servants, Ali and his son Hassan. They are Hazaras, a lower class ethnic minority in Afghanistan. In one Winter of their childhood, Amir and Hassan participate in a kite-fighting tournament; the goal is to be the last kite flying. When a kite is cut, boys chase after it as a trophy. Amir wins the tournament, and Hassan flies to catch the losing kite. Later, following Hassan's path, Amir comes upon a neighbourhood bully named Assef about to rape Hassan who has the trophy, the blue kite. Amir does not interject, believing this will secure him the kite. Thus, Amir sets forth a chain of events he must redeem in his adulthood.

    Read More

  • The Kite Runner Compare And Contrast Essay

    2060 Words  | 5 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • The Kite Runner Redemption Analysis

    1185 Words  | 3 Pages

    ...ominent in this novel and is set from the very beginning of the book. Amir knows that when he failed to stand up for himself as a child; so in his adulthood, he has to prove himself by standing up for what he knows is right, no matter how hard it will be. He learned this from when Baba told him in his childhood that a boy who does not stand up for himself can never and will never stand up for anything.

    Read More

  • The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini

    1457 Words  | 3 Pages

    To begin, The Kite Runner expresses the continuous redemption of Baba and Amir that they try to achieve. People face their problem in different ways; some people face their problem and errors head on by admitting to or by fixing it while others decide to do so by doing more good to others which may balance out their sins. There are also other ways to accomplish redemption to oneself, in Baba's condition he strives to succeed in doing so by doing more good things to other people and to the Afghan community. Rahim Khan acknowledges the presence of Baba's guilt toward his faults and so he makes up for it by being a benefactor to his son, Hassan. Whom he cannot acknowledge due to the conflict of t...

    Read More

  • with guilt comes a hope for redemption

    1015 Words  | 3 Pages

    As a young boy he made the wrong decision in life by letting Hassan get raped, which led to his guilt. The guilt grew to the point where Hassan and Ali had to move out of Baba’s house and start a new life away from Amir. Hassan’s son Sohrab is a significant character who represents Amir’s hope for redemption. Sohrab led to Amir’s redemption by giving Amir the opportunity to do good for his past actions. On the quest for redemption, Amir achieves the redemption he desired through his fight with Assef.

    Read More

  • The Kite Runner

    1421 Words  | 3 Pages

    The other source of tension in Amir’s life is his relationship with Baba, his hard-driving and demanding father. Desperate to win his father’s affection and respect, Amir turns to the sport of kite flying, and at the age of 12, with the assistance of Hassan, he wins the annual tournament in Kabul. Amir’s victory soon is tarnished when he witnesses a vicious assault against his friend, who raced through the streets of Kabul to retrieve the last kite, Amir had sliced from the sky, and fails to come to his aid. Amir’s cowardness is compounded by a later act of betrayal that causes Ali and Hassan to leave their home, and he now faces the nightmare, bearing the burden of his poor choices for the rest of his life.

    Read More

  • Kite Runner Theme Essay

    1380 Words  | 3 Pages

    Amir’s redemption is a large part of the novel and is carried out almost entirely until the end of the story. He travels to rescue Hassan’s son, Sohrab, from the orphanage he was placed in after the death of his parents. He promises to find him a safe home with someone but after time passes he feels like this is not enough. He then speaks to his wife and decides to take Sohrab back to the United States with him and take care of his as if he was one of his own. Earlier in the novel when Baba is speaking Amir over hears his conversation as he is referring to him stating, “A boy who won 't stand up for himself becomes a man who can 't stand up to anything” (Hosseini, 22). Thus meaning that if he is able to stand up for himself as a young boy, when he is grown he will not be able to stand up for anything that is in his future. This is true throughout the story until he stands up for himself and Sorhab when he is arguing with his life long bully, Assef. Amir lacked the courage to defend himself in the novel until he finally took charge and went against

    Read More

  • Becoming A Man In The Kite Runner By Khaled Hosseini

    1259 Words  | 3 Pages

    Baba struggles to adapt to America, while Amir flourishes. Amir stands up for Baba is when Baba is accused of stealing at the store. Baba was quite childish in the way that when he was blamed for stealing,-the only true sin in his mind- he threw a tantrum. This provides an opportunity for Amir to strengthen his fortitude. In this reversed role Amir takes care of the damage, asking the store owners for forgiveness and promising that he will pay the bill for any expenses, just as any responsible adult would do. The tables continue to turn as Amir brings Sohrab into his life. When he first stands up to Assef he fights back and doesn’t let Assef take care of his unfinished business. “ In the end he’d get us both. He’s kept that promise with Hassan. Now it was my turn (pg. 286). Instead of letting him take him down, Amir fights back, to the point of almost killing himself. By standing up for Sohrab, he makes up for not standing up for Hassan in the alleyway. He continues to stand up for Sohrab when he travels back to America. “You will never refer again to him as ‘Hazara boy’ in my presence.” (pg. 361), he tells the general. He ends up becoming not only a man, but a father in the way that he takes care of

    Read More

  • The Kite Runner Book Review Essay

    906 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Kite Runner, written by Khaled Hosseini, depicts the life of Amir, a male from Afghanistan, and his maturation through the social and political turmoil that emerged in Afganistan. Although the story is fictitious, the plot and storyline involves political, social, and cultural problems in Afghanistan. The book also provides a small window of contrast to the contemporary problems of terrorism, cultural battles and coup d'etat in the middle east.

    Read More

More about The Kite Runner Book Review

Open Document