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The Universal Paradox In The Kite Runner By Khaled Hosseini

Decent Essays

Choices are like investments, they can be short term or long term, expensive or cheap. However, the consequences are beyond one’s control. In America, we have something many countries don’t have that is a greater freedom to make choices. This freedom is what enables people to reach great heights in success, but that same freedom can also lead people to despair. So while this freedom to make a choice is done ultimately by you, the consequences—whether positive or negative—are something that one must confront and move on. This universal paradox has intrigued many famous writers of literature. A great example is from The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini, when Amir made a choice in which he had to face the consequences later in his adulthood, Ali asks Amir “‘Did something happen to him, Amir agha? Something he's not telling me?’ I shrugged. ‘How should I know?’” (67). Amir’s refusal to reply to Ali was a decision he took and later received the consequence as an adult. After Amir made his choice by his will, the choice he made was not a well-thought-out one, and so he was later stuck to realize that he is not free from his consequence after realizing Hassan has died because of him. This guilt flowed throughout the book, Amir tried many things to try to reduce his guilty feeling and try to change things. Amir asked Baba if he would ever get new servants, he threw food at Hassan and tried to anger him, all did nothing to change the outcome from bad to good. Amir’s response to his

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