Symbolism of the Kites
Throughout The Kite Runner, the author, Khaled Hosseini, shows that there are many different kites that relate to important details about the story. From the first kite out in the annual kite flying tournament to the last kite that falls from the sky, they all have meaning. To Amir and Hassan kite flying was both fun and competitive, but they did not realize the problem it would lead to.
Kites are mentioned from the beginning of the book to the end. The book begins with Amir in San Francisco twenty-six years after one of the most scarring issues of his life. Amir is quoted in saying, “Then I glanced up and saw a pair of kites, red with long blue tails, soaring in the sky...like a pair of eyes looking down on San Francisco...And suddenly Hassan’s voice whispered in my head: For you, a thousand times over” (1-2). Hassan was Amir’s servant, a friend, and a very altruistic person. After twenty-six years Amir sees these kites and is reminded of a traumatizing event that left him and Hassan two different people.
The majority of the population in Kabul loved winter the most. “The reason was simple: They shut down school for the icy season...And kites, of course. Flying kites. And running them” (48-49). Every winter there were districts in Kabul that held kite-fighting tournaments. The tournaments were everybody 's favorite part of the cold season. Amir states that he never sleeps before the night of the tournament. Hassan and Amir were very good at kite
The Kite runner is the first novel by Afghan-American author Khaled Hosseini, published in 2003 by Riverhead Books . It takes place before Afghanistan’s revolution and its invasion by Russian forces. The kite runner is a vivid and engaging story that gives a picture of how long Afghanis struggled to triumph over the forces of violence, forces that threaten them even today. In this novel , four themes have been introduced, first of all Redemption is a way to make up sins committed , secondly, Adversities contribute to a person’s personality , thirdly , Fear can lead to severe mistakes and long term consequences, before last, After pain and struggles come survival and lastly, Friendship is the essence of a bond that seek the best mutually.
As in all movies that are based on a book, the movie developers chose to add some scenes to the movie that were not from the original story. These additions were most likely aimed to substitute for the scenes removed, however this, once again, took away from the important details that really made the book what it is. On Hassan’s birthday, he was not given surgery to remove the harelip from his face; instead, Baba took him to a special kite shop and let him choose any kite that he wanted. The decision to replace the surgery with a present failed to show Baba’s appreciation for his ‘secret’ son. Although the love for kite running is clearly shown, David Benioff’s decision to have Hassan explain the concept of kite running to Amir was very unrealistic. This event goes against Hassan’s characteristics of being less intelligent and superior than Amir, and creates an allusion that Hassan had superiority and he knew more than Amir about flying kites. Hassan’s loyalty to Amir, and Amir’s superiority is shown in the quote, “Sometimes, up in those trees, I talked Hassan into firing walnuts with his slingshot at the neighbour’s one-eyed German shepherd. Hassan never wanted to, but if I asked, really asked, he wouldn't deny me. Hassan never denied me anything,” page 4. The day Hassan and Ali decided to leave because of Amir’s betrayal was a very sad moment in the book. Khaled Hosseini described the setting as a very dark day,
The desire to feel loved and wanted by your parents can drive a person to go to extreme limits to get that love. One boy that goes to these extreme limits is Amir. All Amir wants is to have a good, strong relationship with his father. He feels the death of his mother was his fault, and he needed to make it up to his father. In doing so, Amir let’s horrible things happen to his friend Hassan. Many many years later, after fleeing to America, Amir returns to Afghanistan in search of redemption of his actions all those years ago. The theme of The Kite Runner written by Khaled Hosseini is redemption. Through Amir’s life, that’s what he’s been doing to himself, trying to redeem himself from his acts that have brought pain
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
The first section mentions the Winter and why “winter is every kids favourite season in Kabul” (pg 42). The reason is “they shut down schools for the icy season” and “kites, of course. Flying Kites. And running them” , and according to Amir, kites were the “one paper-thin slice of intersection”
The novel comes full circle with the kite running. The spot takes Amir back to when before everything changed with Hassan, and they were just two friends. Since Amir has forgiven himself, he can enjoy this moment and kite flying again. His memories are no longer bringing him pain and he is able to enjoy this with Sohrab and tells him, “Did I ever tell you your father was the best kite runner in Wazir Akbar Khan? Maybe all of Kabul?” (Hosseini 367) Amir runs the kite for Sohrab just like Hassan did for him years ago. The novel comes full circle, however, this time instead of Amir running away from Amir, he is running with freedom.
symbols such as kite flying, his mother’s death, and the characters’ facial scars, the author asks readers to question their own internal strifes and if they too have demons. In The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini, the search for redemption is symbolized, time and time again, showing that redemption is the driving force behind selfdiscovery. Everyone is plagued with internal strifes; however, none more that Amir. The author brings Amir and Hassan together by making them fly kites with one another every year. After Hassan’s sexual assault, Amir never flew kites again. That was until Amir saved Sohrab, Hassan’s child. Amir states just how long it has been since he had last flown kites “ I hadn’t flown a kite in a quarter century, but suddenly I was 12 again and all the old instincts came rushing back.” (Hosseini 368). By having Amir fly kites with Sohrab in the end of the novel, the author shows that dishonesty is redeemable,
Kite Runner is a novel written by author Khaled Hosseini. The setting takes place in multiple cities and countries such as California, America specifically Fremont, but the main story is in Kabul, Afghanistan in 1975 through 2001. The story is about the protagonist and the narrator of the story Amir. Amir is a wealthy Pashtun boy who grows up in Kabul along with his father Baba. When Amir is nearly 12 years old along with his friend Hassan they spend their days trying to win the prizes in the tournament by kite-fighting in the hitherto peaceful city of Kabul. After several kites-fighting competition, the tournament is held in Amir’s neighborhood. Amir simply participate and wins that tournament, but he loses his kite, Hassan tells him he
The Kite Runner was originally from a book that were written by Khaled Housseini and the movie version of it was directed by Marc Forster. The story are about a boy named Amir (Young Amir performed by Zekeria Ebrahimi) is a son of a rich Kabul merchant in Afghanistan, whom he called Baba (performed by Homayoun Ershadi), his father. They have two servants, Ali and his son, Hassan (Young Hassan performed by Ahmad Khan Mahmoodzada). They are a Hazara, the minority group of people Afghanistan. Amir and Hassan are close friend, they usually play together very often. One of the important scene in the movie is when the boys join the kite-fighting tournament where they have to fly the kite against the opponent and cut the string of the opponent’s kite
In the same way there are steps to making a good kite fighting kite, there are many obstacles one must face to mend the damage you’ve done after betraying a friend. Amir experiences many obstacles in his search for redemption. The symbol of the kite in The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini is prevalent throughout the story because it illustrates betrayal, guilt, and atonement.
At the end of the novel, the roles are swapped. Amir acts as the kite runner, whereas Sorhab (Hassan’s son who represents Hassan at this point) is the kite flyer. This could be symbolic of Amir completing his journey of redemption and him re establishing his relationship with Hassan. In particular, I feel that in chapter 7, the Blue Kite is used as a symbol of Hassan’s loyalty towards Amir. Hassan will not give up the blue kite which he ran for Amir after winning the kite tournament, even when he is faced with rape as he is afraid that giving up the kite will jeopardize his friendship with Amir. This could be seen as symbolic of the protection and dedication which Hassan shows towards Amir. The blue kite is an object which is in between Hassan and Assef in chapter seven, in the same way that in chapter five, Amir is in between Hassan and Assef. Hassan won’t let the blue kite get torn or damaged by Assef in the same way that he wouldn’t let Assef hurt Amir in chapter 5, in my opinion the blue kite is clearly a symbol of Hassan’s dedication and devotion towards Amir; he would rather endure rape than disappoint him.
Author: Khaled Hosseini published The Kite Runner in 2003. By 2005 it became the number one New York Times Bestseller. Although this book was his first novel, people still couldn’t get enough of his story about the troubled friendship between two boys. Sylvester Stallone, an American actor, once said, “Most action is based on redemption and revenge, and that's a formula. Moby Dick was formula. It is how you get to the conclusion that makes it interesting”. From time to time mistakes are made every day, and however the story ends will describe your mistakes. In The Kite Runner, the kite is the most important symbol that represents Amir’s past; just like a kite flying in the sky full of soars and dives, Amir's life was the same way as a
The Kite Runner was written by Khaled Hosseini and published in 2003. It tells the story of Amir, a young boy from Kabul, Afghanistan, and Hassan, his father’s Hazara servant. The story is set against a backdrop of tumultuous events, from the fall of Afghanistan’s Monarchy, through the Soviet Military intervention, the exile of Pakistan refugees to America, and the rise of the Taliban. The main theme of this book focuses on guilt and redemption. Throughout the novel, Amir is constantly trying to redeem himself. Early on, Amir strives to redeem himself through his father’s eyes primarily because his mother died giving birth to him, and he feels responsible. The more important part of Amir’s search for
The Kite Runner, a book telling a story of betrayal and redemption, is griping work that can make its readers quite emotional and thrilled. In this book, Amir and Hassan, two boys who are close friends to other, both are interested in kite flying. They live in the capital of Afghanistan, Kabul. All they want is to win the kite-fighting tournament, by which Amir will win his father's love. However, war begins in Afghanistan. Life becomes extremely dangerous in there. In this war, Amir is forced to betray his best friend Hassan, which will bother him in the rest of his life. Amir’s father takes him to fly to the United States.
Hosseini also states that Hassan’s lip symbolizes the cultural and social differences throughout the novel, and how Amir's slingshot symbolizes the loyalty, their childhood, and explains standing up for what is right. The Kite Runner is a story of about an AfghanAmerican boy named Amir who has flashbacks that visually depict how his life was when he was just a young boy living in Afghanistan. It was a time of injustice as he searches for a redemption of his past guilts. Hosseini shows readers how Amir matures, and how he felt about different experiences during his life back in Afghanistan. The Kite Runner employs symbolism to show the experiences and moments in Amir’s life that have meaning to him and have left an impact on his life forever. By using symbolism, Hosseini makes readers think about how much earlier experiences and moments have shaped Amir’s life in The Kite Runner.