Amir's Redemption In 'The Kite Runner'

Amir always looked up to him and tried to impress him. EX: (ch.7) When Amir and Hassan won the kite race Amir immediately looked up to where baba was and he said, “I saw Baba on our roof. He was standing on the edge, pumping both fists. Hollering and clapping. And that right there was the single most greatest moment of my 12 years of life, seeing baba on that roof, proud of me at last.” (pg.66) His dad demonstrated all throughout this novel his character; kind, brave, truthful, and loving father. His dad has been nothing but there for him and showed him how a good Afghan man is supposed to be, but, for some reason Amir doesn’t pick up on his father’s character traits or Hassan’s. Amir longed for his father attention, affection, and most of all

The only way to have full redemption is to tell the truth. In The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini, Amir is a boy living in Kabul, Afghanistan, as the son of Baba. Who is a wealthy businessman of great success. He is a very generous person, building an orphanage, giving to the poor, and lending money to friends in need. Baba has a very well acquainted business partner and a good friend Rahim Khan, who gives Amir great attention that Baba does not give to him. They have Ali and his son Hassan, who are servants to them. Amir and Baba flea Kabul when the Soviets invade Afghanistan, leaving everything behind. When they emigrated to America, Amir and Baba live in great poverty. Baba is a manager at a gas station, then gets lung cancer and dies. He has a lot of guilt, giving to people and doing good deeds is not a way to redeem one’s self.

Forgiveness is a necessary part of human existence, although it is rarely easy to give, and sometimes hardest to give to ourselves. The Kite Runner illustrates humanity's tendency, and even willingness, to dwell on past mistakes. The opening sentence sets this theme with "I became what I am today at the age of twelve," as Amir unapologetically relates how he believes one action at that young age defined his entire life. However, as the novel progresses, the reader comes to the conclusion that it was not one action, but a series of choices and events that created Amir's persona as an adult. By holding onto his guilt and fear of discovery, Amir could only bury his past for short periods of time before his own conscience uncovered it and the

One of Amir's prime qualities of his personality is being able to redeem himself. Throughout the story, Amir makes horrible decisions like running away as Hassan is raped, and strives for the affection of his father through jealousy. Although he makes a lot of mistakes, Amir proves that he can be a sharpened person towards the end of the story when he tries to adopt Sohrab, Hassan’s son. Amir and Sohrab eventually go to America, and when Amir and Sohrab talked, Amir told him, “I won’t ever get tired of you, Sohrab...Not ever. That’s a promise. You’re my nephew, remember (Hosseini 324)?” Amir greatly redeems himself by taking care of Sohrab

“True redemption is when guilt leads to good,” Rahim Khan asserts. Khaled Hosseini compels the readers to think in the novel, The Kite Runner, by analyzing Amir’s quests. Additionally, readers must understand Amir’s journey to maturity throughout The Kite Runner, as a Bildungsroman novel. Amir’s journey to redemption ultimately accentuates his quest for adulthood.

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

Another contribution of redemption Amir had for Hassan was when, Amir stood up for Sorab, trying to redeem himself to Hassan and his family. General Sahib states, I said “You will never again refer to him as Hazara boy in my presence. He has a name and its Sohrab” (315). It shows that Amir was trying who give back to Hassan`s family, to regain redemption, but to receive acceptance for all, things he has done in his past. He also feel that he was faithful to Hassan along and removing his guilt. Finally, another factor that contributed to redemption was when Amir won the kite tournament, to show the final like to his father. Amir believed his father does not love him, therefore he thinks winning the final kite would receive him more love, and affection. Ì was going to win, and I was going to run that last kite. “Then I'd bring it home and show it to Baba. Show him once and for all that his son was worthy. Then maybe my life as a ghost in this house would finally be over” (60). In conclusion, Amir received no redemption for winning the kite, and his dad gave him no attention to

Everyone has heard the saying “everyone makes mistakes.” No matter who you are, you are going to experience failure. In The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini, 12- year old Amir learns about mistakes the hard way. By having his best friend taken away due to his own cowardliness and then trying to cover up the guilt he felt by pleasing his father, he thought he would never again be a worthy person. However, Amir learned that even though it may seem impossible to fix your mistakes in the aftermath, there’s always a way to redeem yourself. With the influential words given to Amir by his valued mentor Rahim Khan, Amir discovered that “there is a way to be good again.”

He lives his entire life with the heavy burden of guilt, knowing he should have helped Hassan in the alley. He feels as though he needs to be punished to atone for his sins, causing him to lash out at Hassan. Amir keeps his guilt a secret for decades, even from his own wife. When Amir and Soraya cannot have a child, Amir thinks he might be being punished for his past, thinking to himself "perhaps something, someone, somewhere, had decided to deny me fatherhood for the things I had done. Maybe this was my punishment, and perhaps justly so" (188). Amir lives and thinks this way until he gets a letter from Rahim Khan, telling him there may be a way to right his wrongdoings. Amir goes to Afghanistan to rescue his illegitimate nephew, knowing he must do so alone for the sake of his personal redemption. After being beaten by Assef, saving Sohrab, and admitting his past to Soraya, Amir finally feels as though he has been redeemed. He finally is able to forgive

“It's wrong what they say about the past, I've learned, about how you can bury it. Because the past claws its way out” (Hosseini). In The Kite Runner, Hosseini shares Amir’s journey to atonement. As Amir states, he was unable to bury his past, similar to his father, Baba, who spent the majority of his life haunted by his sins. While both father and son are consumed by guilt, the way in which they atone for their iniquities is dissimilar. While Baba attempts to live his life according to the Afghan saying, “ Life goes on, unmindful of beginning, end...crisis or catharsis, moving forward like a slow, dusty caravan of kochis [nomads]” (Hosseini 356), Amir strays from this traditional perspective. Baba chose to continue his life unmindful of

How, after years of guilt, self-disgust, and deception, is it possible for one person to become good again? Entrapped in a cage of cowardice for so long, can they ever develop and grow as a normal human being? Amir, the anti-hero in Khaled Hosseini’s The Kite Runner, seeks to answer these questions in his own search for atonement through various existential events in his life.

Hosseini shows that it is Amirs immense guilt that drives him to want to make things right and to earn redemption. We learn the basis Amir's guilt through his memories. It is caused by a lack of response at a time when his loyal servant and close friend Hassan is in trouble. Amir makes a conscious decision to hide in the distance and just watch, not because he was afraid. He sacrifices Hassan in order to earn his fathers attention and affection. This decision results in Hassan suffering though a traumatic experience and is the root of Amir's lasting regret.

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

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.

Conflict between guilt and redemption has been one of the big themes of mankind, as it is described in many notable literary pieces and scriptures including the Bible. Similarly, The Kite Runner by Khalid Hosseini vividly depicts a young Afghan man, Amir, suffering between sin and guilt, realizing how he could’ve changed one’s destiny. This story is not merely about repentance, but also about the whole process of realization. Although Amir remains guilty by avoiding Hassan consistently after the betrayal, he seeks true repentance after realizing that apologies towards Hassan are too late.