Symbols In The Kite Runner

Khaled Hosseini’s, “The Kite Runner”, uses an abundance of diction and tone, to convey a centralized motif. Hosseini, uses three specific symbols throughout the story, the cleft lip; kites; the lamb. The central symbols, tie into what the overall theme is of the story, the search of redemption, tension and love between father and son. Hosseini expressed his centralized motif of irony and regressing in time by using symbolism and figurative language to make his point more clear “I actually aspired to cowardice, because the alternative, the real reason I was running, was that Assef was right: Nothing was free in this world. Maybe Hassan was the price I had to pay, the lamb I had to slay, to win Baba.”

The Kite Runner is the first novel of Afghan-American author Khaled Hosseini. It tells the story of Amir, a boy from Kabul, Afghanistan, whose closest friend is Hassan, a young Hazara servant. Novel turns around these two characters and Baba, Amir’s father, by telling their tragic stories, guilt and redemption that are woven throughout the novel. Even in the difficult moments, characters build up to their guilt and later on to their redemption. Their sins and faults alter the lives of innocent people. First, Amir and Baba fail to take action on the path to justice for Ali and Hassan. Moreover, Amir and Baba continue to build up their guilt due to their decisions and actions. Although Amir builds up more guilt than Baba throughout the novel, he eventually succeeds in the road to redemption unlike his father. After all, Amir and Baba have many chances to fix their atonements but Baba chooses not to and Amir does. Baba uses his wealth to cover up his sins but never atone himself while Amir decides to stand up and save Sohrab and finally finds peace. Amir and Baba’s reaction to sins essentially indicate their peace of mind and how they react to guilt and injustice.

Amir’s mother, Sofia, dies in childbirth; Amir inherits her love of literature and probably her looks to some extent, but, her being dead, never receives any motherly love or guidance, which could have helped him out of the cowardly hole he later digs himself into. Amir’s father’s best friend and business partner, Rahim Khan, tries to give Amir the motherly love he clearly needs, fostering Amir’s love of writing and steadfastly standing up for him when Amir’s father, Baba, criticizes him, but Rahim Khan does not do enough to instill honesty, courage, and strength of conviction in young Amir. Amir’s best friend, Hassan, a servant a year younger than Amir, is everything Amir is not: athletic, brave, loyal, honest, and kind, inciting jealousy in Amir. Assef, a local bully, poses a real threat to Amir, hating Amir for the crime of befriending a Hazara (oppressed ethnic minority), but Amir is protected by Hassan, allowing young Amir to freeze and not stand up for himself in Assef’s presence. Last, but most importantly, is Amir’s father, Baba, and his views on Amir: he blames Amir for Sofia’s death,

The Kite Runner written by Khaled Hosseini is a novel with multitudes of themes but the theme most integral to the story concerns friendship, guilt, and redemption. This theme was most important to the novel because the conflict in the book is intertwined with this theme, following the life of a man haunted by regrets. The book is told from the perspective of Amir and this is something he deals with for the entirety of the book after the incident with Hassan. Amir, even as a middle-aged man, is still haunted by what he hadn’t done for Hassan all those years ago. Amir’s entire life takes a certain path because of what he did or didn’t do during and after Hassan’s assault. Amir’s decision affected not only himself, but also Hassan. Their lives forever changed. Amir and Hassan were each other’s best friends and they grew together like brothers, though they didn’t know at the time. Amir feels as though he broke the sacred bond they had and he decided to make it right by finding Sohrab. This is the last thing he can do for Hassan. He cannot tell him he is sorry anymore. He doesn’t have any other paths of redemption.

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,

This displays, that his childhood villain, was behind the terror organization the Taliban, which shows how the Protagonist has to overcome his childhood fear, to gain triumph. Correspondingly, the author acknowledges how Amir is finally “cleansed” from what has been holding him back his whole life; he finally felt redeemed. At the end of the novel, he also made up with Hassan’s childhood how he was the Hazara, and finally Amir had switched roles with Sorhab. On page 371 Paragraph 4, When Amir and Sohrab were flying kites in the local park, Amir asks Sohrab if he shall retrieve the kite, he simply nods, and Amir proposed“... For you a thousand times over.”

At the beginning, kites are used for Amir to show redemption to Baba. "I was going to win, I was going to run the last kite. Then I'd bring it home and show Baba. Show him once and for all his son was worthy." pg. 45. By winning the kite tournament, Amir would amend for not being a perfect son to Baba. "And that right there was the single greatest moment of my twelve years of life." Amir says once he wins the kite tournament. "Seeing Baba on that roof, proud of me at last." Because of the kites, Amir gets a chance to prove himself to Baba, and reveal the hero in himself. Towards the end of the book, Amir makes up for what happened between him and Hassan, and finds atonement through Sohrab. Kites are shown significantly here too. "He (Rahim Khan) knew about Assef, the kite, the money, the watch with the lighting bolt bands. He had always known. Come, there is a way to be good again." Rahim Khan is telling Amir there is a way to make up for the kite, and many other terrible things that happened. Lastly, kites are used at the very end with Sohrab, showing a way to begin again and repair for the past. "Do you want me to run that kite for you? (Sohrab says)... It was only a smile, nothing more. It didn't make everything alright. It didn't make anything alright. A leaf in the woods, shaking in his he wake of a startled bird’s flight." The kites are showing a sign of hope for Sohrab. The kite

Khaled Hosseini’s The Kite Runner is an award-winning novel and considered one of today’s most popular, contemporary classics. The story is one of familiar themes such as loyalty, forgiveness, betrayal, love, and redemption. It follows the tale of Amir and how he must atone for his sins and find a way to “be good again” (Hosseini 2). The quintessential message of this book relies on the idea of second chances. Themes of redemption, betrayal, loyalty, and forgiveness are not only shown without doubt through this book, but are also common among many literary works and religions. Hosseini is successful in showing the significance of these themes throughout the novel.

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.

In the final chapter, Amir flies a kite with Sohrab and he sees him smile. This is so meaningful to Amir as it gives him hope after feeling guilty for years, not only that he might be able to make him happy, but that “there is a way to be good again.” This phrase at the beginning of the book is shrugged off by Amir, but the relationship between change and the kite makes it evident to the reader that there really is a way. The kite becomes a signal of hope for his broken relationship with Hassan and a new relationship with his son. Then this time it’s Amir’s turn to ask Sohrab if he wants the kite. When he nods Amir's reply is “For you, a thousand times over.” This shows how much Amir has grown to the point where it is no longer him being seen to, but him doing all he can for those he loves. This makes the kite a much happier symbol, a symbol that people can change, and that it’s never too late to correct your unatoned sins. The hopeful feeling this leaves in both Amir and the reader’s hearts is why this kite symbolises a better

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.

The novel was written to remind the audience of what is going on in other countries that need help. The author Khaled Hosseini wrote the novel, “The Kite Runner became a best-seller “On May 5, 2005, when people gathered from all over Rhode Island at the Roger Williams University. There were people’s eyes were all locked in the state as Khaled Hosseini, the author of the bestseller The Kite Runner” (Kohistani 1). Moreover, the theoretical framework of this symbolism literature helps support the historical, and sociological theories are a teaching tool for the kids. This “book is full of love, honor, guilt, fear, redemption” (Agustina 1) and death.

“Now I was the one under the microscope, the one who had to prove my worthiness” (Hosseini 184). This quote demonstrates the role switch that encourages Amir to change the disloyal person he was previously into the person he is at the novel's end. Hassan is constantlyys tormented by Amir's meaningless “tests” to prove Hassan's loyalty. Now, it is Amir who has to prove to the world, and also to himself that he is worthy of Hassan's endless sincerity and devotion. Khaled Hosseini does an excellent job of portraying this transformation in his writing. Hosseini's novel, The Kite Runner, illustrates the value of loyalty in the relationships between Hassan and Amir, Sanaubar and Sohrab, and Amir and Baba.

On a day to day basis, an individual is faced with an obstacle they must overcome, ultimately defining their morals and values. In the literature perspective, the novel The Kite Runner delivers multiple thematic ideas that portray the struggles of characters in their ordinary lives. Khaled Hosseini, author and physician, released his debut novel The Kite Runner in the year of 2003. This novel is written in the first person narration of Amir, a Pashtun boy that lives with his father whom he addresses as “Baba” in a large estate in Kabul, Afghanistan. Hassan and his father, Ali, are servants that works for Amir’s father

The story is based on the life and journey undertaken by Amir, the protagonist. Hosseini expresses essential ideas in his novel through the themes of redemption/atonement, the relationship between father and son and lastly, the theme of degradation/discrimination. The author expresses these themes through the setting and characterization. Hosseini presents characters from different social status in Afghanistan and how this affected their childhood. Amir despite coming from a privileged class had to work hard for his atonement by going back to Afghanistan to face his demons as well as to mend his relationship with his father who had rejected him since his birth. On the other hand, Hassan, from the minority class suffered because of his social status after he was abused and mistreated by those in power. The Kite Runner is a story about two boys who grew up in different worlds because of the presence of various social classes in