Redemption In The Kite Runner

While Amir is lying in the dark, with nothing but his own thoughts, he feels that his guilt is taking over his life. He realizes that he is going to get away with his betrayal and yet he feels terrible. He decides that the only way he is going to live with his remorse is to ignore Hassan, blot him out, so he does not have to think about his sin. Amir’s guilt is so great that he cannot bear to have Hassan under the same roof, so he commits another sin. He lies to his father and accuses Hassan of stealing. “…I took a couple of the envelopes of cash from the pile of gifts and my watch, and tiptoed out…I lifted Hassan’s mattress and planted my new watch and a handful of Afghani bills under it…I knocked on Baba’s door and told what I hoped would be the last in a long

Amir's entire life had been haunted by what he saw happen to Hassan. Although he was a child at the time, he couldn't accept his shortcoming during a time of need. He was jealous of his father for being able to stand up for himself and others and Hassan's undying loyalty to him. He developed a pattern of behavior - of covering up his mistakes and hiding his past – that he could not rid himself of until he suffered like Hassan did. He made it up to Hassan by saving his son, and he made it up to himself by suffering the way he

Amir later visits his childhood home and finds Hassan’s blood on the floor thinking, “How dark, almost black, Hassan's blood had looked on the snow, dropping from the sweat of his pants. Blood is a powerful thing, bachem. Khala Jamila patting Soraya’s knee saying. God knows best, maybe it wasn’t meant to be.” (Hosseini 310). This shows that Hassan had been there for a very long time for the blood to still be there and for it to become the color black also shows that he still remembered what had happened to him in that alley. The second tragedy for Amir was when his father(Baba) passed away. “I turned around and found Baba on the ground.”(Hosseini 158). In this moment Amir had realized he had lost his Baba to a killer known as lung cancer, in addition, he now has no one left from his family. These tragedies helped shape Amir to save Sohrab(Hassan’s son) from

Amir lets his best friend Hassan get raped by Assef. This will cause Amir guilt that makes him feel anguish. Amirs mindset before his turning point made him a bystander in the situation. Hassan ran to get the kite that Amir cut down in the annual kite tournament. Drastically

While Amir defeats his final obstacle to win Baba’s approval, he reciprocally falls down and fails to show courage in Hassan’s rape. Amir assumes that Hassan “was the price I had to pay, the lamb I had to slay, to win Baba” as he watches Assef sodomize Hassan, and he “actually aspired to cowardice” (77). The atonement of Amir’s sins to Baba sparks the commencement of Amir’s betrayal to Hassan. Furthermore, Amir runs away and hides from his sins in Amerca knowing that he cannot gain the courage to redeem himself and completely fulfill his quest to adulthood. Nonetheless, Rahim Khan provides Amir an opportunity to accomplish his redemption. After decades of hiding, Rahim Khan calls Amir to tell him to “come” back to Kabul since “there is a way to be good again” (192). Amir must successfully accomplish his final obligation to complete his quest to maturity. In addition, Amir must stop hiding like a boy and begin to stand up like a man. As Amir returns to Kabul to save Sohrab, and ultimately redeem himself, he must fight Assef one last time, which results in Amir’s “body being broken – just how badly I wouldn’t find out until later – but I felt healed. Healed at last” (289). Amir now receives his deserved punishment and, most importantly, he learns to stand up and finally matures into a man. Although Amir completes his quest to adulthood, readers must realize that Amir must ultimately grant Sohrab a

In addition, symbolism is shown to portray redemption at the climax of the book. Amir has rescued Hassan's son, Sohrab, from captivity in Kabul. However, a recent life of sexual abuse has rendered his emotions inert. Attending an Afghan summer celebration, Amir notices a kite-fighting tournament taking place. Purchasing a kite for him and Sohrab, they accomplish in cutting another. Looking down at Sohrab, Amir sees the vacant look in his eyes is gone. “Whistles and applause broke out. I was panting. The last time I had felt a rush like this was that day in the Winter of 1975, just after I had cut the last kite, when I spotted Baba on our rooftop, clapping, beaming. I looked down at Sohrab. One corner of his mouth had curled up just so. A smile. Lopsided. Hardly there. But there” (Hosseini, 391). Thus Amir redeems himself, and thus it is shown that symbolism portrays redemption throughout the story.

Upon hearing the news of this Amir feels hurt that Baba had never told him his secret and the fact that the man he had so looked up too had done this. But he also respects the fact that his father had flaws of his own and how hard it must have been having Hassan in the house without him knowing the truth. After all of this and all Amir had been through with his father over the years, Amir knows he wants to be there for his adopted son, Sohrab more than his father had been for him, at first Sohrab is very shy and quite due to what he has recently been through, but Amir does what he can to help him warm up to his new family, home and life. This gives Amir a chance to change his own father’s wrongs, into rights to be a better parent to Sohrab. “For you, a thousand times over,' I heard myself say.”(Chapter 25) Amir says this at the end of the book as he is flying a kite for Sohrab. This is the very same sentence Hassan had said to Amir when Amir had won his own kite competition many years before. This shows how much has changed over the course of Amir’s life and how he is who he is today. It brings the book to end on a good note as it shows Amir in a very shameful moment, to a moment of great joy that Sohrab has finally come out of his

The beginning of Amir’s journey causes him to feel guilty enough that he causes a chain reaction where he inflicts more cruelty upon himself and others. Amir and Hassan used to live a simple life with the biggest negative in Amir’s life being the fact that his father liked Hassan more. Right after a kite tournament that Amir won, Hassan goes to run the kite for Amir, and Amir finds him being abused by Assef in an alley. Amir decides to do nothing and feels guilty about it for most of his life. Although the initial cruelty is inflicted upon Hassan, it is Amir who is hurt the most. His guilt causes him to inflict cruelty upon Hassan in order to cause Hassan to “give [Amir] the punishment [he] craved, so maybe [he]’d finally sleep at night” (92). Amir’s cruelty leads Hassan and his father to walk out of Amir’s life, leaving Amir and his father, Baba,

The relationship that grows between Sohrab and Amir reveals a method for Amir to diminish his guilt from his childhood because of how much of Hassan he sees in Sohrab. For starters, their physical characteristics are intensely similar. Amir notices that “the resemblance was breathtaking,” (279) during his first-time meeting Sohrab when he is trying to free Sohrab from Assef’s control. Being able to actually see Hassan, Amir’s childhood best friend, in this boy allows for Amir to feel as if he’s

Khaled emphasizes Baba’s sacrifices to show how they lead Baba to his atonement. First, Rahim Khan attests to Baba’s character and actions in his letter, saying: “He was a good man […] everything he did […] it was all his way of redeeming himself” (Hosseini 302). This reveals that Baba finds peace with his regrets and made up tor them by creating the orphanage and committing other kind deeds (302). Baba protecting the Afghani woman trom a violent rapist on the way to Peshawar also demonstrated Baba’s atonement. Baba protects the woman because he had already committed the worst sin in his own mind- theft of the truth trom Amir and Hassan; he had to continue redeeming himself by sacrificing his safety (115-16). Last, Baba helped so many people that not even was the parking lot tull at his funeral; people were parking blocks away. The mourners taking their time to commemorate Baba illustrate that Baba has truly made up tor his lies by giving all he can to the people around him (173). Baba’s actions are just one way Hosseini explains how devotion to kindness is connected to atonement.

After learning that Amir had no interests in his own interests, Baba had simply given up on trying to immerse Amir in his world. Baba could hardly believe Amir was his child. “‘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’” (23). Consequently, when Amir had witnessed Hassan get raped, Amir locked away his emotions and let them affect him and his relationships negatively .

In the first scene of the book Amir is experiences a flashback of his childhood. As readers we learn that Amir has committed some sort of horrific decision that has forever changed his life. That winter of 1975 had made Amir who he was today, “That was a long time ago[...] but the past claws its way out. Looking back now, I realize I have been peeking into that deserted alley for the last twenty-six years” (1). As readers, we have yet to actually known details about the event that Hassan is referring to, although just knowing how much it has affected him is enough.

Throughout the novel, Amir endeavors to be approved by his father, Baba, who is admired by people in Kabul. Unfortunately, Baba believes that Amir, unlike him, is very unmanly “and [that he] never fights back. He just... drops his head ” (Hosseini 24). Since Baba wishes for a son who would stand up for himself, he can’t help but observe that Amir’s friend Hassan, as the guy who “steps in and fends the [bullies] off” (Hosseini 24) is his idea of the ideal son. Though aware of his father’s expectations, Amir is unable to change himself and instead envies Hassan and the fact that Baba treats him like his own son by“[patting]Hassan on the back. [and even putting] his arm around his shoulder [like a fatherly figure]”(Hosseini 15). Despite the manifestation of this hatred in Amir, he continues to recognize the bond that he shares with Hassan, “ brotherhood between people who had fed from the same breast” (Hosseini 11) which is because both their mothers died during birth. The confusing emotions he feels for Hassan has Amir face a situation in which he acts inappropriately and allows the guilt to manifest upon him. After winning a very important kite tournament for the first time and “seeing Baba on that roof, proud of [him] at last” (Hosseini 71) Amir begins to search for Hassan who had gone to run his kite earlier. Finally, Amir finds him in a dark alley and as he “peeks around the corner” (Hosseini 75) he witnesses a sight that eradicated not only his relationship with Hassan but also Baba’s brotherly relationship with Ali, Hassan’s father. Peeking through the corner of the alley, like a bystander, he watches his one and only friend getting raped. The guilt that came upon him was for two reason; one, his lack of courage to stand up to

After Amir moves away he tries to forget the unfrogiveful situation of not doing anything to help his friend when he needed it. Although he spend much time trying to forget his child friend he is reminded of him when Assef beats him and he is left with a scar on his lip. Hassan was born with a harelip and was never able to fix it because he nevr had the money to. After Amir is beaten he is left with his own harelip which sybolizes hoe he will forver be connected with Hassan.

The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini tells the coming of age story of the main character Amir. Throughout the novel, many themes are apparent as Amir gets older and deals with the events of his past. One of the main themes is regardless of any action there is always a way to redeem yourself. There are many examples of this theme in The Kite Runner, like when Rahim Khan tells Amir that he can redeem himself, another would be when Assef beats up/hurts Amir but he feels healed, finally were Amir is flying a kite with Sohrab and he smiles. The theme of redemption is present throughout the events of the novel.