The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini tells the coming of age story of the main character Amir. Throughout the novel, many themes are apparent as Amir gets older and deals with the events of his past. One of the main themes is regardless of any action there is always a way to redeem yourself. There are many examples of this theme in The Kite Runner, like when Rahim Khan tells Amir that he can redeem himself, another would be when Assef beats up/hurts Amir but he feels healed, finally were Amir is flying a kite with Sohrab and he smiles. The theme of redemption is present throughout the events of the novel. The first example is from Rahim Khan, Rahim Khan is a father figure to Amir helping him build his confidence and giving him advice from a young age and now even when Amir is all grown up as we can see in the upcoming quote. The quote is “There is a way to be good again”(Hosseini 2,193). The quote sets the theme of redemption in the Kite Runner. It foreshadows what is to come and it is brought up multiple times throughout the book. For Amir it is a way to come back from not having saved Hassan and losing the quilt that had come with it, and for the fact that he had not treated him as a brother but treated him poorly when they were kids. To do this he leaves his home in America goes back to his home country in Afghanistan to save his brother's son from the Taliban, so that he may redeem himself of his past. The next example is from Amir's thoughts as he is getting beat up by his childhood bully Assef, Assef is also the man that raped Hassan and Hassans son Sohrab which is why Amir is trying to fight Assef so that he can save Sohrab. The quote is “ “WHAT’S SO FUNNY?"-Assef bellowed. Another rib snapped, this time left lower. What was so funny was that, for the first time since the winter of 1975, I felt at peace. I laughed because I saw that, in some hidden nook in a corner of my mind, I’d even been looking forward to this...my body was broken--just how badly I wouldn’t find out until later--but I felt healed. Healed at last. I laughed.”(Hosseini-289). This quote adds on to the theme of redemption by showing us there's always a way to redeem ourselves even after years. This quote is significant because it's a
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.
The only way to have full redemption is to tell the truth. In The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini, Amir is a boy living in Kabul, Afghanistan, as the son of Baba. Who is a wealthy businessman of great success. He is a very generous person, building an orphanage, giving to the poor, and lending money to friends in need. Baba has a very well acquainted business partner and a good friend Rahim Khan, who gives Amir great attention that Baba does not give to him. They have Ali and his son Hassan, who are servants to them. Amir and Baba flea Kabul when the Soviets invade Afghanistan, leaving everything behind. When they emigrated to America, Amir and Baba live in great poverty. Baba is a manager at a gas station, then gets lung cancer and dies. He has a lot of guilt, giving to people and doing good deeds is not a way to redeem one’s self.
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
“True redemption is when guilt leads to good,” Rahim Khan asserts. Khaled Hosseini compels the readers to think in the novel, The Kite Runner, by analyzing Amir’s quests. Additionally, readers must understand Amir’s journey to maturity throughout The Kite Runner, as a Bildungsroman novel. Amir’s journey to redemption ultimately accentuates his quest for adulthood.
“For you, a thousand times over.” In The Kite Runner by Kahled Hosseini, there is a recurring theme of redemption that is portrayed by various literary devices. Kahled excellently juxtaposes devices such as irony, symbolism, and foreshadowing to show redemption within his first novel.
This quote shows that Amir is laughing after he is beaten, the pain seems not existing. In this quote, the theme redemption and memory are shown. The theme of redemption is present because Amir says “but I felt healed”. Amir is healed because he thinks he has finally paid for his wrongful decision 26 years ago which has resulted in a misery for Hassan. Over the years, Amir has always waited for his punishment and now he has received it. The theme of memory evident when Amir says “for the first time since the winter of 1975” (Hosseini 303). In the quote Amir is referring to the incident in 1975, that Hassan got raped. The significance is that the audience can see the past is still affecting Amir today as he kept going back to the winter of 1975 over the last 26
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.
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.
Redemption can come in many different forms for different people. In The Kite Runner, written by Khaled Hosseini, a story of an Afghani man’s lifetime and all of the troubles that he has experienced is told. Amir’s childhood takes place in Kabul, Afghanistan alongside Hassan, his Hazara servant and half-brother. The two grow up as best friends until one day when Amir does nothing to help Hassan out of a life changing incident with the town bully. Their friendship is severely affected for the rest of their lives until Amir meets Sohrab, Hassan’s son. After finding out Hassan has passed away, Amir is sent off to retrieve Sohrab and bring him to a better place than the Taliban-ruled Kabul. The connection between the two new acquaintances is like a new beginning for many aspects in Amir’s life. Sohrab and Amir’s relationship acts as a way for Amir to rid himself of guilt from his childhood and provide his wife with a child, supporting the theme of redemption in The Kite Runner.
In the Kite Runner, Khaled Hosseini wrote that “true redemption is […] when guilt leads to good” (Hosseini 302). this connection between suffering and redemption develops throughout the whole story. Hosseini hints that sacrifice leads to redemption in the book the Kite Runner through the actions of Baba, Sanaubar’s return, and Amir’s journey to atone for his sins.
Throughout many centuries, there have been numerous stories that present readers with similar themes embedded throughout the writings. The Epic of Gilgamesh, The King Must Die, and The Kite Runner are all stories that contain the theme of redemption, and of one’s search for his/her identity. The theme of redemption is seen in Amir’s maturation throughout The Kite Runner. Amir grows up in Afghanistan in the later 1900’s, and is brought up luxuriously and with an education by Baba, his dad. This theme is also seen in Gilgamesh’s life story as he loses his friend and embarks on his journey to attain immortality. The theme, or concept, of missing a part of one’s identity is displayed in Hassan and Amir’s stories in The Kite Runner as well as
Whether it may be a false accusation or guilt that has been building up for the past twenty years, redemption is something that brings people to a realization of their actions. Many people, after redeeming themselves, come to a sense of intoxication because they feel as if they have learned their lesson even if it meant the hard way. Consequently, this is resulting Amir from The Kite Runner is starting to learn his lesson of not standing up for Hassan. Throughout the process of redemption, a person starts to feel fulfilled, almost as if they become “wiser” in a sense. Andy from Shawshank Redemption receives a false accusation for the murder of his wife. Some values held by people who go through the process of redemption include hope, a sense
Khaled Hosseini's, The Kite Runner, is a flashback narrated by a 40 year old Afghan-American man named Amir, who is plagued by his childhood sins until he seeks redemption for his wrongdoing and figures out that redemption requires painful sacrifice. Amir is a kid who experinced someone so loyal to him be raped and Amir did nothing to stop the rapist. One sin led to another and before Amir knew it, he was destroying his life. After his father died, who was someone who he looked up to most, Amir started to go on the path to redeem himself and his guilt where is when he learns the true meaning of sacrifice. Hosseini uses Amir’s misguided notion of sacrifice and his long journey toward redemption in order to ultimately convey that true
The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini is a historical fiction novel set mostly in Kabul, Afghanistan and Fremont, California. The novel spans the time periods before, during, and after the reign of the Russians (1979-1989) and the Taliban’s takeover (1996) of Afghanistan. It is told through the first person perspective of Amir alongside his father, Baba, his half-brother, Hassan, and Baba’s companions Ali and Rahim Khan. Growing up, Amir and Hassan are practically inseparable, as they are always playing games, reading poetry, or simply spending time together. Hassan’s mother, Sanaubar, is never present during the children’s youthful years, but they both have Baba as a shared father figure in their lives. The themes of betrayal and redemption
Conflict between guilt and redemption has been one of the big themes of mankind, as it is described in many notable literary pieces and scriptures including the Bible. Similarly, The Kite Runner by Khalid Hosseini vividly depicts a young Afghan man, Amir, suffering between sin and guilt, realizing how he could’ve changed one’s destiny. This story is not merely about repentance, but also about the whole process of realization. Although Amir remains guilty by avoiding Hassan consistently after the betrayal, he seeks true repentance after realizing that apologies towards Hassan are too late.