The Kite Runner By Khaled Hosseini

People are different in many ways. Ranging from colour of their skin to their ethnic backgrounds. How society copes with these differences is what defines prejudice and discrimination. Racism, social class and ethnicity have become a never ending cycle that begins to shape the opinions of how people treat one another. The novel The Kite Runner written by Khaled Hosseini revolves around a society constructed around two socially diverse ethnic groups the Pashtuns who practice Sunni Islam and the Hazaras who follow Shia Islam. Throughout the novel The Kite Runner, a variety of characters have made decisions that affect the overall outcome of the novel which base around ethnicity, race and social class.

Everyone makes mistakes sometimes, from minor to major mistakes. But the most important part is not the mistake itself, but how hard that person is trying to fix that mistake. This also applies to the novel The Kite Runner. The story revolves around the main character Amir, and his childhood friend, Hassan. After Amir came to America with Baba, his father, he still regrets the things he had done to his childhood friend. He left Hassan getting raped by Assef in a small alley in 1975. Thereafter, Amir always feel regret and seeks for redemption. Hosseini -the author, argues that redemption can be achieved by helping others, teach others not to repeat the same mistake and acknowledge your mistake and try to fix it.

Throughout Khaled Hosseini’s novel, The Kite Runner, the reader observes many injustices committed due to the presence of the Taliban and cultural conflict in Afghanistan. One of the most concerning issues in Afghanistan is the mistreatment and inequality that women face on a daily basis due to Taliban mandates. Women in Afghanistan are treated as inferior beings to men and are unable to stand up for themselves due the laws the Taliban enforces. Hosseini uses the wives of Amir and Hassan, Soraya and Farzana, to represent the injustices to which women in Afghanistan are subjected.

In the realm of Afghan marriage, women are sometimes granted the opportunity for an arranged marriage, although consequences may still ensue. Arranged marriage is just one of the many ways women are married off in Afghanistan, as well as other countries around the world. The women, who were groomed for marriage from birth, are sought after by the suitor’s relatives. The same goes for the suitors, although the men are often the ones who instigate and ask for the woman’s hand in marriage. While it may seem obvious why the two are marrying, they may happen for different reasons. “There are two types of arranged marriages in the Afghan society: those conducted for the sincere happiness of the couple, and those that resemble business transactions conducted primarily as a means to settle deals with families,” (Bashir 1). Sometimes the woman and man find each other and are pleased with one another. This is similar to Tariq and Laila’s relationship in that they found love together and their families approved it. However, it is known that things do not work out for the two at the time. Although some of the arranged marriages end happily, there is another side to them. Sometimes poor families sell off their daughters to pay off a debt or settle a feud. While these women are technically given the option to refuse, it does not come without consequences. Journalist Hannah Spruce explores this idea in further detail when she emphasizes that, “Some children who refuse to consent may find

In her article on the lack of justice for rape victims in Afghanistan, Noorjahan Akbar says that Afghani society is “a society in which being raped is a bigger shame that raping. Rape will not vanish until we have combated the culture of rape, which treats women only worthy for their virginity or because they are the honor and property of the men in the family.” This is very likely the underlying cause of most of the

The Kite Runner, a novel by Khaled Hosseini, is a story about a Pushtun boy who experiences a life full of guilt after consciously betraying his best friend. Several minor characters serve dramatic roles that contribute to the development of the novel. These supporting characters include Rahim Khan, Soraya, Sohrab, Sanaubar and Assef.

The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini is a brilliantly crafted story about the friendship between the son of a wealthy man and the son of his father’s servant. The main character Amir, flashbacks to 26 years ago, when him and his friend Hassan, the servant’s son, were the tightest of friends, playing together even though they belong to different castes. These bullies come up and fight against Hassan, as he belongs to the Hazara sect. Life moves along and the two friends are in a kite flying competition and Hassan loses, so he has to go get the kite, but while on that, he gets abused by Assef and the bullies, and Amir acts as a silent bystander, and does nothing so he can gain full acceptance from his father, Baba. Then immediately, Amir finds a way to cut his friendship with Hassan, and keeps his guilt with him. Tough times pass by as the war is happening, and the clash between Baba, Amir’s father, and Amir become apparent and many deaths occur along the way. Many plot twists occur and Amir has two ambitions, to survive through this treacherous warfare, and to meet up with Hassan. With the help of others, he finds out that Hassan is dead but saves Hassan’s son Sohrab from abuse and harassment from the Taliban, led by Assef. The story ends with another kite flying competition, where this time Amir runs for the kite of Sohrab to erase the guilt of his past, and to lead a prosperous life in the future

“There is a way to be good again” (Hosseini K. 2003) a line delivered by Rahim Khan Amir’s father Baba’s closest friend, to Amir in order to encourage him to help Hassan’s son escape Afghanistan and finally free him from the guilt of his past. The quote also embodies the struggle and salvation the novel The Kite Runner attempts to bring its readers. The book taps raw human emotions about life situations that challenges a person and brings out the best and worst in him, but the book also shows the value of personal redemption.

Plot summary: Amir flashbacks to when he was twelve years old in Afghanistan. He lives with his father, Baba, and has two servants, Ali and Hassan, who are also a father and son duo. The latter two are Hazaras, Afghan’s minority, and as such, are subjected to racial slurs and cruelty. Amir and Hassan are playing when Assef, Kamal, and

Khaled Hosseini once said: “there are a lot of children in Afghanistan, but little childhood.” Rape in Afghanistan is said to be an “epidemic,” but according to the Oxford Dictionary, the definition of the term is “a widespread occurrence of an infectious disease in a community at a particular time.” Rape in this country is viewed as something that is inevitable and cannot be stopped. Usually, rape also involves domestic violence, hence the reason they’re paired together. Contrary to common misconception, men are raped as well as women, especially children of both genders. In the Kite Runner, rape is a topic that is prevalent in and throughout the book. Bacha Bazi is even a part of the Kite Runner.

The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini, follows the maturation of Amir, a boy from Afghanistan, as he discovers what it means to stand up for what he believes in. His quest to redeem himself after betraying his friend and brother, Hassan, makes up the heart of the novel. When Amir hears that his father’s old business partner, Rahim Khan, is sick and dying, he travels to Pakistan to say his goodbyes. Rahim Khan tells Amir about Hassan’s life and eventual death; the Taliban murdered Hassan while he was living in Amir’s childhood home. As his dying wish, Rahim Khan asks Amir to rescue Hassan’s son, Sohrab, from an orphanage in Afghanistan. Although Amir refuses at first, he thinks about what Rahim Khan had always told him: “There is a way to be

Forced marriage has been an upcoming issue for a period of time now, as seen as a form of abuse and a honor crime against humanity specifically more so towards women throughout different cultures. Forced marriage within Europe is predominately practiced by minority cultures like South Asian, Somali, Chinese, Middle Eastern, and Latin American, among other cultures. These cultures alike others follow their own cultural and religious practices, but with todays society other cultures may view these practices as wrong or not okay. While arranged marriage is a widely accepted cultural practice, forced marriage is not viewed as a norm, quite the opposite actually. Forced marriages can typically a means to acquire entry into a country or bring a family to a country of origin through family reunification, and to continue or protect familial honor. Forced marriage is defined as a legal union where one or both of the participating parties are coerced into marriage against their free will and under duress. Duress in this situation can include physical, psychological, financial, sexual, and emotional pressure from families or others (Sabbe, 2014). Forced marriage can commonly be confused with arranged marriage, which can make it hard to find the clear definitional line between the two. Arranged marriage is common among many cultures and is defined where both participating parties give full and free consent to the union (Chantler, 2009).

Every two minutes a child is married. Approximately 15 million girls are married before they reach the age of 18. Child marriage is often the end product of a girl’s education, economic prospects, constrained social engagement and increased health risks including physical, emotional and sexual violence. The subjugation of women and girls takes many forms. One of the most common, unquestioned, and lasting is the practice of child forced marriage. The practice of Child forced marriage, is the control of women and girls’ lives by families and communities, particularly the control of their sexual and reproductive lives.

The roots of childhood marriages and forced marriages in the village of Khardji, Yemen from I Am Nujood, Age 10 and Divorced by Nujood Ali and Delphine Minoui, Nujood’s story has been related to patriarchal societies within western Asia, women’s complicity and religion in which violates human and women’s rights. I have been researching sources that can explain on how the government officials have done nothing to stop childhood marriages and why women from past generations inculcate these norms to their children to have arranged marriages and what are the changes that Nujood’s story has raised internationality. Yemen is one the poorest country in Western Asia. It is reasonable to observe arranged marriages as the only solution of surviving scarcity. It is unacceptable for all the girls in this country to be forced into marriages, losing their opportunities to have a chance to succeed in life; their happiness, careers and achieving a true love, instead, they just have to obey what they are told to do, is what drives me forward into this research.

For the nation of Pakistan, approximately 21 percent of young girls are married before the age of 18, and many of these marriages are forced (“Girls Not Brides”). Although this number is lower than the regional average, the forced marriage problem in Pakistan is highly concentrated in poorer areas, endangering those who are socioeconomically at risk. Furthermore, Pakistan ranks as the sixth most populated country in the world, exemplifying the devastating amount of young girls at risk for forced child marriage. Note that both girls and boys are affected by child marriage, but girls represent the overwhelming majority of those sold into marriage (Ahmad, 2014).