The Kite Runner

In this society not everyone is equal and, for this essay in particular, it is important to know that the different ethnic races aren’t equal as well. In The Kite Runner, there are two different ethnic groups: the Hazaras and the Pushtans. The Hazaras originate from Asia and for this reason, the general conception is that Hazaras don’t have the true Afghan blood in their veins. They are often seen as servants in households. This plays a role in Amir’s conception of the world around him and, in particular, in Amir’s view on Hassan, his best

Hassan is a victim of discrimination, bigotry, and class structure in Afghan society. Hassan and Ali are members of the Hazaras, a minority group of Afghanis. Amir and his father are Pashtuns, the majority, who believes they are a better class than the Hazara. Religion was all that separated Amir and Hassan, as did tribe and class. Amir learned from his father that the Harara tribe to which Ali and Hassan belonged, were inferior people. Because of this bigotry and basic class structure, Hazaras are often victims of physical, emotional and psychological abuse. Thus when a crisis comes and Hassan is being attack, Amir not only doesn't come to Hassan's aid, but also allows him to be brutally abused. Morality lacks because of this class structure, which allows people to be treated as second-class citizens. Considerations towards morality and religion helps the reader to broaden there understanding of the novel and it would be impossible to appreciated the book lacking them.

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.

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

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

“I had one last chance to make a decision. One final opportunity to decide who I was going to be. I could step into that alley, stand up for Hassan – the way he’d stood up for me all those times in the past – and accept

One day Asseff rapes Hassan as an act of power, and Amir witnesses the actions but acts in a cowardly matter and simply avoids the matter by ignoring it. Amir then proceeds to cut off the relationships between himself and Hassan, “I actually aspired to cowardice, but the real reason I was running, was that Asseff 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. Was it a fair price? The answer floated to my conscious mind before I could thwart it: He was just a Hazara. Wasn’t he?” Amir did it because the traditional and historical beliefs were more important than friendship. This action displays how being born in a different social class can outweigh all feelings of love and friendship with one of a different social group.

. In the end, I was Pashtun and he was a Hazara, I was Sunni and he was Shi’a, and nothing was going to ever change that”(Hosseini 27). Amir struggles to be a good friend and truly loyal to Hassan even though their relationship basically makes them best friends. He is unable to admit he is friends with Hassan because he is from the upper social class and is taught by his Afghan tradition and history that Pashtuns are too pure to have relationships with Hazaras because they are below them. Hassan is treated as a friend and a enemy by Amir because he wants to follow what he has always been taught as the principles of Afghan society while he wants to challenge the societal norms by staying true as a friend to

This is shown when Amir describes Hassan or other “normal people” in his life. Despite their ethnic differences, Amir and Hassan “fed from the same breasts”, took their “first steps on the same lawn”, and it’s learned later in the novel that they are half brothers (11). Countless hours of their childhood consisted of them playing pretend, flying kites, reading stories, and just talking with one another. This definitely falls in the parameters of friendship, but Amir “never thought of Hassan and [him] as friends” (25). In moments of chaos, Amir finds Hassan expendable in order to protect himself and his desires. When Hassan refused to give up a kite that Amir desperately wanted, Hassan was attacked and raped while Amir hid. Although Hassan was taking the beating for him, Amir thought that “he was just a Hazara” so there is no need to go out into harm’s way (77). This way of thinking can be traced back to the large majority of the people surrounding Amir viewed Hazaras as subhuman. Amir described a boy named Omar as “a pretty good guy” but refers to Hassan as “your hazara” and insults his “tight little eyes” (68). This perception of Omar being a good guy despite his degrading comments towards Hassan shows how much Pashtuns had influenced Amir. A Marxist, however, would say that Amir supported the dominant ideology thus keeping the bourgeoisie at the top.

Hassan and his family are ethnically Hazaras, predisposing them to brutal discrimination at the dregs of society. Even the intimate relationship between Amir and Hassan was not immune to these connotations, as Amir dictated the relationship by lying to Hassan about words (Hosseini 29) and speaking condescendingly to him. Eventually, Amir’s inadequate free will, like Foster described (253), accepted the rape of Hassan, as Hassan’s social standing contributed to reasoning that intervening wasn’t worth the vengeance from Assef, as Amir asked, “He was just a Hazara, wasn’t he?” (Hosseini 77). Unfortunately, his avoidance was ironic in multiple ways, transferring

Amir decided to study English and major in it.  Baba considers it petty and not an actual job.

Hassan’s inferior character is presented by the way he serves Amir, ‘While I ate and complained about homework, Hassan made my bed’, which implies that no matter how close they may be, Hassan remains the servant which he accepts and is content with, ‘I’d hear him singing to himself in the foyer as he ironed’. Also, Hassan addresses Amir as ‘Amir agha’ which highlights his respect to Amir. However, despite their divisions, when they are alone together they consider themselves equal, ‘”Amir and Hassan, the sultans of Kabul”’, creating irony as they are both aspiring the same hopes and dreams but we know that it is unattainable.

Amir stumbles upon an alley. In the alley, he sees the Hassan trap by three boys named Assef, Kamal, and Wali. All they asked of Hassan is to give up the blue kite. However, Hassan’s loyalty and friendship toward Amir prevented Hassan to give up the kite. As the tension built, Assef lets Hassan have the kite, but in-return he does unthinkable. Assef rapes Hassan as Amir watched unnoticeably from the alley (Hosseini 62-66). This was Amir’s chance to prove his true friendship by stepping in to save Hassan. Instead, Amir ran “because I was a coward. I was afraid of Assef and what he could do to me. I was afraid of getting hurt. That’s what I told myself as I turned my back to the alley, to Hassan” (Hosseini 68). According to Amir, “Maybe Hassan was the price I had to pay, the lamb I had to slay, to win Baba” (Hosseini 68). “He was just a Hazara, wasn’t he?” (Hosseini 68).

Amir, representing the Pashtuns and high-society Afghanis, allows himself to degrade Hassan, the face of the mere Hazaras of the lowest class rank. Through the eyes of Amir, it seems as though Baba preoccupies himself passing time with his comrade Rahim Khan; when he sporadically attempts to involve Amir in his life, Baba always suggests that Hassan accompany them in their daily adventures leaving Amir questioning why his father tries desperately to avoid alone time and bonding moments with his son. The initial occurrences in which Amir witnesses Baba's immediate affection for Hassan drive Amir's negative mental attitude and envy towards his only companion Hassan.

“The relationship between Amir and Hassan. It’s so different from any relationship I’ve experienced. Amir and Hassan are as closeas a servant and master can be, yet Amir acts like Hassan, a Hazara, is beneath him. Amir never learns to assert himself against anyone else because Hassan always defends him. I think these factors play into his childhood cowardice of sacrificing Hassan. Hassan however remains loyal, forgiving, and good natured,” replied Jack. “So what do you think of their friendship?”