Theme Of Identity In The Kite Runner

Identities are snowflakes, no two are alike. A person's identity is who they are. In The Kite Runner, multiple characters struggle at times with their identity. But the book pays close attention to the main protagonist, Amir, and challenges he faces about his identity and past. In The Kite Runner, the importance of identity is displayed throughout, the identity of Amir affects other characters and is affected by his society, and point of view plays an important role in the understanding of the novel. Identity is evermore important in The Kite Runner, as displayed before. Amir, the center of this book, comes engulfed in multiple identity crises’ of his own throughout the book. Identity is defined by someone’s personal and behavioral characteristics.

One very important change in identity is Hassan after he was raped. Rape is not something people can just cope with to begin. In the novel, Hassan is an ethnic minority. He is a Hazara, while Amir and the boy who raped him are both Pashtuns. This adds to the obstacles Hassan must overcome when dealing with his past. He would be unable to simply cry wolf as others would not do anything about it based on who he is. “‘You! The Hazara! Look at me when I’m talking to you!’”(7). Hazara’s are not treated the same and put on the same level as others. This has a negative effect on Hassan’s identity as he had this horrible act done on him but is unable to do a single thing about

The novel is entirely a flashback of Amir’s life. Over the course of many years, the 1960s to 2001, we learn of Amir and his struggles through his point of view. While being in Amir’s point of view, we are blind to the feelings and thoughts of others. Until Amir’s return voyage to Pakistan, he, and myself the reader, were unaware of what Hassan and Baba knew. “‘How could you hide this from me? From him?’”(223). Amir learned towards the end of the book things he never knew before. Amir’s life plays out much differently knowing that Hassan was his half-brother, the other son of his father. That is why point of view is so important. That is what makes The Kite Runner the book it is. If we, the readers, knew that Hassan held no grudges with Amir after what happened, if we knew that Hassan and Amir brothers, it is to be believed that we would view each and every situation in the book differently. Not only the point of view important, it is incredibly