The Kite Runner Analysis

When Khaled Hosseini wrote The Kite Runner, he made several important choices involving narration. He chose to write the story in first person from a limited point of view. This is a very fitting decision because, writing in the first person adds a sense of intimacy that is crucial to this story; writing from a limited perspective allows the reader to make their own conclusions about what the characters are thinking. The way Hosseini writes The Kite Runner makes it very intimate, and feels like a person telling their life story. If The Kite Runner had been written in third person, or omnisciently, the story would not have impacted readers as much, and would have been too cold and impersonal to create emotional connections with the reader.

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.

Eventually, Amir received a call from his old mentor, who told him to come back to Afghanistan because "there is a way to be good again." What Amir learned while he visited his mentor would lead him to what he considered redemption. Hassan had been killed, which Amir partially considered his fault, but Hassan's son, Sohrab, was still alive. With the idea of giving him to a good placement organization, Amir set out to save Sohrab. Amir found Sohrab in the possession of a Taliban member, the same man who had raped Hassan when they were children. In order to save Sohrab, Amir had to fight the man, and he was injured very badly in doing so. Despite his injuries, he felt better about himself. He felt free, at peace. He finally had the courage to tell his wife about what he had done, and that took a weight off of his shoulders, as well. Even though Hassan had forgiven him long ago, Amir refused anything less than Hassan's fate.

Throughout the story The Kite Runner an important central theme displayed by the other is the idea that it is important to be able to confront your past mistakes or else those mistakes will torture you for the rest of your life. Many of the main characters came face to face with this idea and each of them dealt with their mistakes in different ways. Despite this, it was made clear that the characters that were able to deal with their problems ended up much better off mentally than those of them that were unable to. Khaled Hosseini’s novel, The Kite Runner, teachers the reader that confronting past mistakes is better than running from them through Amir’s feelings following his betrayal of Hassan, how Soraya felt after telling Amir about her past, and Amir’s reaction to finding out Baba was Hassan’s father.

-Hassan goes and chases after the losing kite. Amir goes looking for Hassan and finds him in an Alley being pinned down and raped by Assef and his friends. Amir fails to speak up. He instead runs away.

    Amir had always regretted his actions that day in the alley and wanted to repay Hassan by taking his son Sohrab to America with him. As soon as Amir saw Sohrab, he saw Hassan in him and wanted to do anything he could to help and resolve his guilt. He wanted to take Sohrab back to America with him so he could have a bed, food, shelter, and a good life. Amir knew “there are a lot of children in Afghanistan, but little childhood”

Once back in Kabul, Amir takes steps he would never have imagined, which truly define his character. On his venture back to Afghanistan he learns the truth about Hassan’s connection with Baba. After hearing this Amir feels robbed of the truth and is angry at how his own father could hold this back from him. Despite his feelings, Amir realizes he must not only pay for his betrayal of Hassan but for Baba’s betrayal of Ali too. Amir knows he must face his fears and he understands this when he reveals, “I remembered Baba saying that my problem was that someone had always done my fighting for me" (Hosseini 239). Following this he undertakes a personal mission to find Sohrab and finds the courage to stand up to the Taliban, nearly dying in the process. During his quest Amir comes face to face with the disturbing Assef and fights him for Sorab, the ultimate sacrifice for his dead half-brother. While he is beaten he begins to laugh, which angers Assef even more. Amir explains that, “What was so funny was that, for the first time since the winter of 1975, I felt at peace" (Hosseini 303). After successfully bringing Sohrab back to California, Amir defends his Hazara nephew when General Taheri insults him. Over the dinner

Amir in the story starts off as a young boy living in Kabul, Pakistan. He and Hassan are friends to the end until Hassan is raped by Assef. While Hassan is being raped Amir is

Amir has carried an exceptionally strong guilt throughout his life for the last twenty-six years for the betrayal of Hassan. Amir is willing to do anything to let go of that guilt, even if it means putting his life in danger. This is the type of chance that Amir now has; he needs to travel to Kabul, a very dangerous place since the Taliban is ruling the country to save Sohrab in order to earn redemption. Amir has left Pakistan and is heading off to Kabul. When he arrives in Kabul, Amir and his driver, Farid, head off to the orphanage where Sohrab is in order to rescue him. However, Sohrab is not there because the director of the orphanage had no choice but to sell him to a Talib official. The only way to retrieve Sohrab now is to meet with

Hassan is hurt and frustrated by the way Amir treats him after the betrayal, but he never blames Amir for the way he acted. He never forgets about Amir and remains his faithful servant and loving friend until his he is killed by Taliban soldiers, even though Amir and Hassan's paths

”It is wrong what they say about the past…about how you can bury it. Because it claws its way out” He must conquer the favour asked of him by Rahim to recover Sohrab, Hassans son. It is on this mission that he encounters Assef once again and it is here that he finally finds his full healing. Assef being the twisted man that he is beats Amir leaving him heavily wounded. Amir finds solace through his self sacrifice for Sohrab. He feels he has made up all the troubles with Hassan, through Hassans son. While being beaten, rather than being filled with feeling of anger or frustration, he is overwhelmed with happiness. “I felt healed. Healed at last.” A weight long sitting on his shoulders in now relieved, he is no longer the coward he had been before.

Before his rape, Hassan aimed a slingshot at Assef for trying to start a fight with Amir, this led to Assef's "unfinished business" where it says on page 286, "...Hassan saying that they'd have to start calling him One-Eyed Assef instead of Assef Goshkhor. I remember how envious I'd been of Hassan's bravery. Assef had backed down, promised that in the end he'd get us both. He'd kept his promise with Hassan. Now it was my turn." Assef "never forgets a face" and saw through Amir's disguise and his age in the Taliban compound, this led to Amir facing off with Assef in a fight he couldn't avoid since it was to take Hassan's son Sohrab to a better place, Amir's "way to be good again." Amir's past of not helping Hassan from preventing his rape by Assef made Amir a bad person since Hassan protected him countless times. This action led to Rahim Khan's phone call which led to Amir fighting Assef for Sohrab which follows the novel's trend of past events becoming extremely relevant in the present. Assef fights Amir for Sohrab, who is Hassan's son, to take him back to America where Amir now lives for Rahim Khan's ' way to be good again,' which is instigated since Hassan

A couple years pass, there is a game where twelve year olds are flying kites, Assef is a sore loser, and he rapes Hassan over it. Which Amir totally saw and did not help at all because he is an equally sore winner. Many events begin to develop in quick succession after this point. Amir, overcome with guilt, frames Hassan for theft. Hassan leaves the household with Ali, his father, despite Amir’s father begging them to stay.

Social conditions are what shape a country. Over the years, people, not only in Afghanistan, but around the world create norms that define people’s roles in life, their future, and how they should be treated based on their gender and beliefs. Khaled Hosseini’s first novel, The Kite Runner, comments on the social conditions of Afghanistan through telling a story about the lives of two Muslim boys; a privileged Sunni Pashtun, Amir, and his long-time friend and servant, Hassan, a loyal but disadvantaged Shia Hazara. Hosseini expresses Amir’s uncertain feelings toward Hassan which form the decisions he makes throughout the book. These choices result in Amir destroying his relationship with Hassan. The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini is a commentary on the social conditions in Afghanistan as shown through the roles of women and men in society and the ideals of Afghan culture. Unfortunately, these problems are still active in most of Afghanistan.

When Sohrab is ten years old, his mother and father are killed, and sent to live in an orphanage. After living in the orphanage for a few months is selected by Assef, who takes him and his father and raped Hassan, Sohrab