Justice in The Kite Runner Essay

The Kite runner is the first novel by Afghan-American author Khaled Hosseini, published in 2003 by Riverhead Books . It takes place before Afghanistan’s revolution and its invasion by Russian forces. The kite runner is a vivid and engaging story that gives a picture of how long Afghanis struggled to triumph over the forces of violence, forces that threaten them even today. In this novel , four themes have been introduced, first of all Redemption is a way to make up sins committed , secondly, Adversities contribute to a person’s personality , thirdly , Fear can lead to severe mistakes and long term consequences, before last, After pain and struggles come survival and lastly, Friendship is the essence of a bond that seek the best mutually.

When put into perspective, life proves to be truly unfair. It is often difficult to serve justice and distinguish between good and evil. In Khaled Hosseini’s The Kite Runner, there is no optimum justice, but instead a constant theme of mercy. Mercy is found to be an important virtue that allows characters to come to terms with their flaws and grow with benevolence. Amir is a character who began as a deceitful coward, burdened with the guilt of his mistakes. The mercy Amir receives from Rahim Khan, Hassan, and what comes to be himself, gives him the opportunity to do what is right and find goodness in his life again. On Amir’s journey back to Afghanistan, the forgiveness and compassion he discovers is what is most important in determining his future.

In the novel The Kite Runner, Khaled Hosseini purposely utilizes setting to play a pivotal role in the portrayal of an important focus when narrating a post 9/11 Afghan and American novel. The author’s deliberate incorporation of Afghan and American settings over a 3-decade time frame successfully illustrates the differences and similarities between Eastern culture and Western culture, as well as highlighting the harm each culture cultivates. The emphasis placed upon the discrimination of Hazaras by the Pashtuns not only informs the readers of the socio-economic relations in Afghanistan but also addresses a parallelism of harm towards Afghanis from Americans. Hosseini breaks down post 9/11 stereotypes by showing that a person's socio-economic class or ethnic group does not determine their ability to form friendships, feel guilt and seek redemption. Khaled Hosseini rehumanizes a culture which has been demonized by the generalizations of many individual Americans and many Hollywood films. He does this by developing universal themes which demonstrate that Afghans and Americans

Imagine, living in a place, where the last name of one’s birth parents determines how they will be treated in society. Imagine being treated less because of one’s gender, or what their beliefs are. Having to follow the dreams others want for them, and not what they want for themselves. The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini is a novel that covers the fundamentals of education, historical significance, and the act of forgiveness. By examining Khaled Hosseini’s novel, The Kite Runner, one can see that by looking closely at the educational values, historical significance, and moral lessons, it should remain unbanned.

The Kite Runner is a film based on the first novel of Khaled Hosseini, which was published in 2003 and became a bestseller, thus was translated to many different languages and spread around the world, becoming a discussion topic for quite a while. One of the reasons why this book is so rich and attractive is the variety of characters, which are all born in Afghanistan and spent at least most of their childhood there, but at the same time have different views, virtues and experience. And those characters, depending on the generation they belong to, are shaped by particular circumstances, political and historical events.

Justice is what society dreams to accomplish as everybody is filled with evil thoughts, but justice can only be achieved through sacrifice. Martin Luther King, Jr. said it best in his quest for equality, “…Every step toward the goal of justice requires sacrifice.” Khaled Hosseini’s novel The Kite Runner displays glimpses of this very sacrifice in the character of Hassan whom’s name means “to be good”. What he sacrifices is truly breathtaking as he never thinks of himself first.

Khaled Hosseini’s The Kite Runner is an award-winning novel and considered one of today’s most popular, contemporary classics. The story is one of familiar themes such as loyalty, forgiveness, betrayal, love, and redemption. It follows the tale of Amir and how he must atone for his sins and find a way to “be good again” (Hosseini 2). The quintessential message of this book relies on the idea of second chances. Themes of redemption, betrayal, loyalty, and forgiveness are not only shown without doubt through this book, but are also common among many literary works and religions. Hosseini is successful in showing the significance of these themes throughout the novel.

In the history of Afghanistan, a state, in order to be deemed as legitimate, had to satisfy three preconditions. Firstly, it had to be a broker between clans, tribes and ethnic groups. Secondly it had to deliver basic security and ensure secure access to public services and infrastructure. Lastly, it had to embody the concept of Afganistan as an independent Islamic territory .

Khaled Hosseini’s The Kite Runner is a remarkable coming-of-age novel describing and revealing the thoughts and actions of Amir, a compunctious adult in the United States and his memories of his affluent childhood in the unstable political environment of Afghanistan. The novel showcases the simplistic yet powerful ability of guilt to influence decisions and cause conflict which arises between Amir’s childhood friend and half-brother, Hassan; Amir’s father, Baba; and importantly, himself. Difference in class The quest to become “good again” causes a reflection in Amir to atone for his sins and transform into the person of which he chooses to be.

Social conditions are what shape a country. Over the years, people, not only in Afghanistan, but around the world create norms that define people’s roles in life, their future, and how they should be treated based on their gender and beliefs. Khaled Hosseini’s first novel, The Kite Runner, comments on the social conditions of Afghanistan through telling a story about the lives of two Muslim boys; a privileged Sunni Pashtun, Amir, and his long-time friend and servant, Hassan, a loyal but disadvantaged Shia Hazara. Hosseini expresses Amir’s uncertain feelings toward Hassan which form the decisions he makes throughout the book. These choices result in Amir destroying his relationship with Hassan. The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini is a commentary on the social conditions in Afghanistan as shown through the roles of women and men in society and the ideals of Afghan culture. Unfortunately, these problems are still active in most of Afghanistan.

shia/Shiite – refers to a member of a Islam faith which believes Ali is the “legitimate successor of Muhammad” (Dictionary)

Afghanistan was a peaceful and civilized country. However, within a century it became a disastrous mess, but the question is how? The Kite Runner follows an Afghani boy’s life, from childhood to adulthood. Within his life, he experiences Afghanistan in peace under their own government rule, and Afghanistan in chaos under either USSR or Taliban rule. With differing relations between countries at the time, The Kite Runner provides a creative approach to the retelling of those. Throughout The Kite Runner, Hosseini thoroughly criticizes improper foreign policy worldwide. He depicts this through: symbolism, relationships between the characters, and a main overarching conflict.

In Khaled Hosseini’s novel, The Kite Runner, he depicts the oppression the Hazara people face in Afghanistan through his main characters, Ali and Hassan. His vivid illustration of the demeaning behavior towards the Hazara people (Ali) set the underlying tone of this novel.

Throughout Khaled Hosseini’s novel, The Kite Runner, the reader observes many injustices committed due to the presence of the Taliban and cultural conflict in Afghanistan. One of the most concerning issues in Afghanistan is the mistreatment and inequality that women face on a daily basis due to Taliban mandates. Women in Afghanistan are treated as inferior beings to men and are unable to stand up for themselves due the laws the Taliban enforces. Hosseini uses the wives of Amir and Hassan, Soraya and Farzana, to represent the injustices to which women in Afghanistan are subjected.

The story is based on the life and journey undertaken by Amir, the protagonist. Hosseini expresses essential ideas in his novel through the themes of redemption/atonement, the relationship between father and son and lastly, the theme of degradation/discrimination. The author expresses these themes through the setting and characterization. Hosseini presents characters from different social status in Afghanistan and how this affected their childhood. Amir despite coming from a privileged class had to work hard for his atonement by going back to Afghanistan to face his demons as well as to mend his relationship with his father who had rejected him since his birth. On the other hand, Hassan, from the minority class suffered because of his social status after he was abused and mistreated by those in power. The Kite Runner is a story about two boys who grew up in different worlds because of the presence of various social classes in