Comparison Of Amir And Holden In 'The Kite Runner'

As father and son, Baba and Amir have some similarities, but they are both very different people.

There has always been an old question that remains unanswered, sparking interest and arguments: is a person’s nature or nurture more influential on their character? This debate can be directly tied to Amir, the main character of the novel The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini. Amir is a perfect example of how a persons genetics affects their personality more than their environment. Along with several studies done, The Kite Runner shows how your genetic makeup effects the choices you make and the person you become.

A character that is morally ambiguous is unclear and they make rash decisions that make others think differently or confuse them. In the story, The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini, the main character, and narrator of the story, Amir, face harsh realities and dwells on his bad decisions and qualities throughout the story. Amir’s friend and brother, Hassan, is there with Amir throughout the story and experiences tough decisions and horrible tragedies as well. More horrible than Amir experiences. The author put morally ambiguous characters like Amir into the story to represent why it is important to have clear thoughts and good decision making. Amir’s decisions he has made are not bad nor not all good, and that is why Amir is chosen to be a morally ambiguous character in The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini.

The character of Amir goes through drastic changes as he moves from adolescence to adulthood. As a child Amir begins his life in Kabul, where his character is shaped through conflicts with his father and Hassan. Later, when he moves to America he leaves these conflicts behind and is able to create a stronger relationship with his father. However, when Amir is an adult he is called back to Afghanistan by an old friend to confront these earlier conflicts. In The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini, observable changes can be seen in Amir’s character as he moves from Kabul, Fremont, and later back to Kabul.

always buried in those books or shuffling around the house like he’s lost in some dream… I wasn’t like that.” (Hosseini 23). Baba expresses his frustration that his son is not alike his father. He expects his son to enjoy and plays sports tremendously that he forgets that his son is another person with his own likes and hobbies. This shows us the disconnect between Baba and Amir. Moreover, Baba shows more examples that he is not a good father when he criticizes his son for lacking a quality that he thinks is vital. Later in the same conversation with Rahim Khan, he says: “That’s not what I mean, Rahim, and you know it… There is something missing in that boy.” (Hosseini 24). He argues that Amir is lacking a “mean” streak that he thinks is needed for the child. He continues to tell Rahim that Amir does not have the ability to stand up for himself and he sounds as if he is losing patient over the child. This is an example of a terrible father as Baba tries to put what he has in mind unto his son. Furthermore, he displays being an incompetent father

His selfish bias making it impossible for Amir to begin earning redemption. This is again proven when he returns to Pakistan to visit Rahim Khan. Rahim Khan pleads with him to try and get Amir to rescue Sohrab, his nephew, from Kabul, but Amir refuses: “‘you know,’ Rahim Khan said, “one time, when you weren’t around, your father and I were talking. And you know how he always worried about you in those days. I remember he said to me, ‘Rahim, a boy who won’t stand up for himself becomes a man you can’t stand up to anything’ I wonder, is that what you’ve become?’ I dropped my eyes. […] Finally, I settled for this: ‘Maybe Baba was right’” (Hosseini, 221). When given the choice to defend his honour and go rescue a young boy, or insult himself and look at the world through a negative lense, Amir chooses to adopt an incredibly negative persona, as per his past. He chooses to refuse the opportunity to experience empathy and relate to Rahim Khan’s desperation and pain, and instead drives a wedge between their relationship. Pushing himself further away from the redemption he craves so desperately. As a fear of empathy inhibits one’s ability to find redemption and uphold healthy relationships.

Throughout generations, fathers have played an important role in their children’s life; specifically their son’s. A son may learn many life lessons from their father figures, such as morals and how to confront difficult situations. In the novel, The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini, the main character Amir, does not seem to inherit the same morals and common sense as his father, Baba. Both Baba and Amir have sinned a plethora of times, but their individual sins and how they dealt with the guilt, differs greatly. This perspective proves that although a father and son may share the same DNA, they do not always think or react in the same manner.

An individual tends to treat another inadequately when they believe they are more superior than the other. This is sometimes caused by the act of influence. In this book, Amir being a Pashtun makes him “superior” compared to Hassan as he is a Hazara; this causes Amir to do and say uncivil things. However despite all the bad behavior Amir has portrayed, throughout the book he has shown love and care for Hassan, Amir specifies that “history isn't easy to overcome -- “I was a Pashtun and he was a Hazara,” (Hosseini C4) Prior to this Amir was talking about how Baba and his relationship with Ali.. He is implying that “history” is referring to Baba, as he never referred Ali as his friend. Amir may have gotten influenced to not consider Hassan a friend

Amir’s journey starts when Rahim Khan calls him up, telling him, “There is a way to be good again,” (Hosseini 202), provoking Amir to revisit his buried past. The words spoken by Rahim Khan resonates with Amir, because for his whole life, that was exactly what he was looking to do. During Amir’s childhood, Rahim Khan has always been like a father figure to him, filling the holes in his heart that Baba never paid attention to. Rahim Khan has always been the most empathetic towards Amir, understanding his need for affection and motivating him to put his words to action. Years later, Rahim Khan is still seen to have a significant impact on Amir’s life. Despite knowing that Amir was a bystander

In a conversation between Holden and Spencer, Holden is lectured about the importance of “playing by the rules.” Spencer, his former history teacher at Pencey, explains that life should be “played by the rules.” and calls life a game. To himself, Holden goes on to say, “Game, my ass. Some game. If you get on the side where all the hot-shots are, then it’s a game, all right—I’ll admit that. But if you get on the other side, where there aren’t any hot-shots, then what’s a game about it? Nothing. No game” (Salinger 8). Clearly, Holden identifies himself with the people on the other side. He shows that he is sort of isolated from the rest of the world and created this cynical view of everyone and everything. He shows that he has no hope in becoming on of the “hot-shots” and already expresses that he is a lost cause and does not know what to do with his life. It seems as though “Holden 's oversized inferiority feelings are in contrast to his ex­tremely high goals of superiority. Thus he is sure to feel small and inferior”

In the book, Amir burst into laughter while Assef was beating him, but sadly this did not happen in the film. This event was important because Amir at this point finally felt like he had received his punishment for what he had done to Hassan and felt totally at peace.

Amir and his father’s weak relationship in Afghanistan changes when Amir finally accomplishes something Baba can be proud about, spreading light of a possible close relationship in the future. At the beginning of the novel, Baba is talking with his friend, Rahim Khan, about his worries for Amir not standing up for himself, when he is being bullied. Khan responds to Baba saying, ““Children aren’t coloring books. You don’t get to fill them in with your favorite colors””(Hosseini 21). This quote illustrates the difficult relationship Amir and his father have with each other because Baba wants to mold him into the ‘perfect’ son, but Amir does not find appreciation in the same things as Baba, causing this ‘mold’ to be ruined. Amir and Baba being polar opposites causes them to naturally separate from each other because Baba likes building luxury to fit his ego, but Amir values the smaller gestures people do in life. Once Amir finally does something that makes Baba proud and improves ‘their’ ego, Baba starts to appreciate Amir more and tries to do more things with him. This is depicted when Hosseini writes, “Baba and I were finally friends” (Hosseini 85). Although Amir thinks they are close, they are not as close as they could be because Baba usually invites friends and family to join them on their outings. Also, when they are alone it is very awkward for the two of them because they do not know each other very well. The reason Amir feels like he is gaining his father’s acceptance is because he is taking him places, rather than ignoring his existence completely, which is a significant step compared to their relationship before. This step in their relationship illustrates they have a chance at becoming even closer in the future.

At this point Rahim explains to Baba that “Children aren't coloring books. You don't get to fill them with your favourite colors” (Hosseini 46) demonstrating his support for Amir’s aspirations. However Rahim Khan’s most significant role in the novel occurs in the very beginning when he calls Amir and says “There is a way to be good again" (Hosseini 2) It isn’t until later in the novel that we realize that Rahim Khan had summoned Amir to Kabul to rescue Hassan's son, Sohrab, from an orphanage and to ultimately redeem himself from past wrong doings. Rahim Khan also tells Amir about the relationship Baba had with Ali's wife, Sanaubar and that Hassan was actually Baba's son and therefore Hassan and Amir were half-brothers. Overall the impact Rahim Khan has on Amir’s life is equivalent to that of the relationship between my mother and I. Rahim Khan is undeniably a role model for Amir, much the same way in which my mother is a role model for me. Like Rahim, she appreciates my interests and encourages me to peruse my goals. The most important characteristic about my mother is that if I make a mistake she doesn’t just ‘give up’ on me. Instead she requests that I make it up somehow, much in the same way that Rahim Khan tells Amir how to redeem himself. Without the guidance and support I receive from my mom I know that my life would in fact be very different today.

Baba’s influence on Amir can be described in two words, tough love. Baba desperately wants Amir to resemble him in everything he does and do things how he would, but Amir struggles to meet these standards. Baba is reminded by Rahim that he does not get to choose the man that Amir will become, “‘Children aren’t coloring books. You don’t get to fill them with favorite colors”’ (21). It hurts Amir that he does not get Baba’s compassion and love but he stays true to himself and does not change for him. Even though Amir stayed true to himself he would still do what he could to earn Baba’s love. When he won the kite flying tournament Baba shows Amir that love because he did something they can both relate to, sports. It seemed Amir would do anything to be recognized by Baba but Baba did not care about Amir’s thoughts on himself. Baba even said to Rahim “If [he] hadn’t seen the doctor pull [Amir] out of [his] wife with [his] own eyes, [he’d] never believe [Amir’s his] son” (23). This obviously would be heart wrenching to hear and hurt Amir deeply, but he did not let that make him stop trying. The two clearly had a rocky relationship.