Kite Runner Guilt Essay Sample

The Kite Runner is a book written by Khaled Hosseini that details an unlikely friendship between two boys in Kabul, Afghanistan. One boy, Amir grows up in a rich household with his father, Baba. Amir and his father are part of the Pashtuns, the major ethnic group. They also have two servants, Ali and his son Hassan. Ali and Hassan are part of the Hazaras, a minority tribe. Amir and Hassan are still good friends. Kite running is a tradition in Afghanistan and the boys participate. Amir battles with his father’s acceptance and tries to find himself after traumatic childhood events. The book revolves around the character’s relationships, guilt, and redemption shown through literary devices.

Amir and Baba’s father and son relationship can be shown through imagery. Even as a baby, Amir notices that he and his father never had a very good relationship. When Amir finds a photo of him and Baba he states “I am a baby in the photograph and Baba is holding me, looking tired and grim. I’m in his arms, but it’s Rahim Khan’s pinky my fingers are curled around” (Hosseini 5). This detailed description of the picture explains how Amir feels about his relationship with his father and his disappointment. Repetition is used throughout the book with the quote “For you, a thousand times over” (Hosseini 67, 194, 305, 371). This quote is mentioned in relation to Hassan’s unwavering loyalty towards Amir. Their friendship is one-sided and unhealthy as Amir does not feel the same way towards Hassan. While the boys grew up together, Amir always thought of Hassan as a servant. The author also uses foreshadowing to show how Hassan feels about Amir. Foreshadowing is shown when Hassan is protecting Amir and says “If you make a move, they’ll have to change your nickname from Assef ‘the Ear Eater’ to ‘One Eyed Assef’ because I have this rock pointed at your left eye” (Hosseini 42). Despite Hassan’s place in society, he is still able to command power and respect. This also represents Hassan’s loyalty and how he is able to stand up for Amir. Assef gained the nickname of the Ear Eater after biting a boy’s ear off in a fight over a kite. Assef represents and foreshadows the hate for Hazara’s that will come with many more Afghan governments.

A rhetorical question explains Amir’s guilt towards Baba. Amir said that he had always felt that Baba hated him and asks the rhetorical question of “After all, I had killed his beloved wife, his beautiful princess? The least I could have done was to have the decency to have turned out a little bit more like him” ( Hosseini 19). Throughout his life, Amir always felt guilty that his mother dies during his birth and felt that he was never good enough for his father. Throughout his life, he was worried about gaining his father’s approval and felt like he was competing with Hassan, weakening their relationship. Kites are a symbol of Amir’s guilt towards Hassan. He sacrifices Hassan’s safety in order to be praised by his father and bring the kite back. Due to Amir’s guilt, he does not fly a kite again until he rescues Sohrab and he feels as though he has redeemed himself.

An example of Baba’s redemption can be shown with getting Hassan’s cleft lip fixed and building an orphanage. Hassan was originally a boy who smiled all the time, but he stopped smiling during the winter after his surgery. Irony is shown when it is said that “His lips twisted, and, that time, I knew what he was doing. He was smiling, just as he had, emerging from his mother’s womb. The swelling subsided and the wound healed with time. Soon, it was just a pink jagged line running up from his lip. By the following winter, it was only a faint scar. Which was ironic, because that was the winter Hassan stopped smiling” (Hosseini 47). Before the surgery, Hassan’s lip was one of his most defining physical attributes. This lip symbolized the social and economic difference between the boys. Baba pays for the lip to be fixed, as Hassan’s family does not have the money. This represents Baba’s secret love for Hassan. During the boys fight with Assef, Amir’s lip is damaged and looks similar to Hassan’s. This is part of Amir’s redemption as he has become like Hassan physically, but also in bravery and the ability to stand up for someone else.

The characters in The Kite Runner experience relationships, guilt, and redemption throughout the novel. The two main boys have very different experiences but are still able to be friends in secret. However, Amir often feels that he is fighting for his father’s attention and love, causing him to treat Hassan poorly. Baba goes on a journey for redemption as he had acted wrongly in the past.