The Kite Runner is a very famous novel written by Khaled Hosseini. The novel has been acclaimed all over the world and is immortalized in the history of literature. In the novel, Amir is reminiscent of the event that made him the man he is. The nice chronology of life prevailed before the overthrow of the king of Afghanistan. However, one day, Amir is threatened by Assef for playing with Hassan, a Hazara. Hassan uses his slingshots to attack Assef and thus Amir is saved.
In winter, during the kite flying competition, Amir wins by severing the string of the opponent’s kite. Hassan runs to fetch the losing kite. Amir goes to look for Hassan and finds that he is being raped by Assef, but does nothing to save him. Amir runs away and pretends that he knows nothing of it when Hassan comes back with the kite. The two drift apart after this incident. Amir frames Hassan of stealth as he believes that either of them should leave. On being confronted, Hassan admits of stealing and later leaves with his father.
In March 1981, Baba and Amir escape to Pakistan from Afghanistan amidst the turmoil and later move to Fremont, California, after two years. Amir now goes to college and starts liking Soraya who is General Taheri’s daughter. Soon after, Baba is diagnosed to have lung cancer. On Amir’s request, he talks to General Taheri and get the two youngsters married to each other. Baba meets his demise in a month after the marriage. Amir pursues his career as a writer and unsuccessfully tries to make his wife conceive.
Later, Amir gets to know of Hassan’s son, Sohrab, from Rahim Khan. Hassan and his wife were assassinated which living in Amir’s old house in Kabul and the child was taken to an orphanage. On Rahim Khan’s request he sets out to rescue him and bring him to Pakistan. He finally gets to meet the officer who had taken Sohrab away from the orphanage. Sohrab has been dressed in a feminine manner and is evidently abused sexually by the Talibans. The officer is actually Assef and he attacks Amir and hurts him badly. Sohrab shoots Assef in reciprocation, thus enabling the two to escape. Amir wishes to adopt Sohrab and take him abroad. The lad gets to know of the legal complications of being taken by Amir. Although Amir and Soraya figure out a way to take him, by this time Sohrab has attempted suicide and he stops speaking forever.
Even in California, Sohrab is withdrawn. On a certain day, Amir and Sohrab go to the park with other Afghans and fly kites. By utilizing a favorite trick of Hassan, they win. At this, Sohrab smiles and Amir sets off to fetch the lost kite.
The most striking quality of the novel is the interrelation between the personal and political spheres. Amir’s childhood reflects the calm state which Kabul was in at the time of monarchy. After that, the republic and the Soviet invasion were followed by the clashes among groups in Afghanistan and this finally led the country to its ruins. This affected the lives of the characters of the novel drastically. The novel delves deep into the abuse of power through Assef’s character. It is the hapless destruction of Kabul which compels Amir and Baba to leave for California. The murderous acts and sexual abuse portray the heinous criminality of the Talibans. Saving Sohrab is a way of redemption for Amir and goes on to show the ray of hope for Afghanistan. The novel is a social commentary through the lives of the characters and aptly portrays the situation of Afghanistan.
The book is a quest for Amir’s redemption. The author provides his quintessential touch to portray how Amir strives to redeem himself in his father’s eyes by winning the kite-flying competition and bring Baba the losing kite as the token. Later, he tries to counterpoise his guilt regarding Hassan and this triggers the climactic incidents of the novel. Hosseini has penned in the words of Baba that a boy who fails to stand up for oneself later becomes a man who cannot stand up to anything in the world. Failing to stand up for himself in his boyhood, Amir can only endeavor to redeem himself by exuding valor standing up for the right thing. The novel thus makes an enquiry into human nature and converses the message of courage and inspires redemption to the avid readers.
Works Cited
Hosseini, Khaled. The Kite Runner. London: Bloomsbury Publishing, 2003. Print.
