Mistakes In The Kite Runner

Once back in Kabul, Amir takes steps he would never have imagined, which truly define his character. On his venture back to Afghanistan he learns the truth about Hassan’s connection with Baba. After hearing this Amir feels robbed of the truth and is angry at how his own father could hold this back from him. Despite his feelings, Amir realizes he must not only pay for his betrayal of Hassan but for Baba’s betrayal of Ali too. Amir knows he must face his fears and he understands this when he reveals, “I remembered Baba saying that my problem was that someone had always done my fighting for me" (Hosseini 239). Following this he undertakes a personal mission to find Sohrab and finds the courage to stand up to the Taliban, nearly dying in the process. During his quest Amir comes face to face with the disturbing Assef and fights him for Sorab, the ultimate sacrifice for his dead half-brother. While he is beaten he begins to laugh, which angers Assef even more. Amir explains that, “What was so funny was that, for the first time since the winter of 1975, I felt at peace" (Hosseini 303). After successfully bringing Sohrab back to California, Amir defends his Hazara nephew when General Taheri insults him. Over the dinner

At first, Amir does not seek to earn redemption. We know that he is ashamed at what he has done but he prefers to hide his guilt rather than confess and redeem himself right away. After the incident, Amir attempted to avoid Hassan at all costs. Even when Hassan approached him to see if he wanted to go for a walk, like they used to do frequently, Amir refused to go with him and told him to go away (88). He knew that he didn't deserve his friends unwavering love and loyalty.

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.

In chapter 7, Amir thinks to himself “ I had one last chance to make a decision…to decide who I was going to be. I could step into that alley, stand up for Hassan-the way he’d stood up for me all those times in the past-and accept what would happen to me.” There has always been a part of Amir who saw Hassan like a brother, even though he did not admit it, not even to himself. There have been so many times that Hassan has saved him and Amir is thinking about repaying that favor. There is a part of him that wants to save Hassan; however, he knows that there will be consequences.

The Kite Runner focuses on the journey of Amir as he struggles both mentally and physically to make up for a horrible wrong that he committed in his past that continues to haunt him to this day. He encounters many difficulty, fear, and happiness. Hosseini teaches his readers that it is necessary to channel one’s guilt into a means of redemption because although forgiveness may not be granted right away, as long as moral actions are taken, atonement will eventually ensue.

The idea of self pride and doing what’s right for your family have a large impact our decisions and actions. Amir was in a situation where he could either help his best friend Hassan, or impress his father with a kite. Unfortunately, Amir believed “Hassan was the price {he} had to pay… to win Baba”(77) Amir had a hard time impressing Baba so he took this selfish chance, one that he regretted forever. Later when Rahim Khan, a well trusted family friend, asks him to take Sohrab from the orphanage to the Caldwell’s, Amir’s first decision was “I can’t go to Kabul, I have a wife in America”(226) and is sure because he wants to do what will make his wife happy, go home. However, quickly changing his mind, Amir returns to Rahim and “told him [he] was going to Kabul”(227). Once he realises that just like the day in the alley the reason he doesn’t want to go on this mission is because he is afraid, he returns and does what’s right for his half-brother and late best friend. Baba, just like his son, wants to be respected and show love for his family.

Eavenson 1 The Kite runner have you ever betrayed someone and wanted redemption. Well Amir wanted redemption for something he did in the kite runner by Khaled Hosseini. The road to redemption starts with accepting the fact that you did something wrong ,and then facing the person you did wrong to. in the book the kite runner Amir betrayed his best friend his brother Hassan and Amir wants to get even.

The decision between what is right and what is wrong can be difficult based on the circumstances. In The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini, the director of the orphanage decided between doing something immoral or sticking to what is right. He chose to sell children to the Taliban that have taken control of Afghanistan instead of fighting for the young kids and refusing the exchange. The director made the wrong decision, which resulted in a catastrophic line of events following the deal.

Orwell misleads the reader through the characterization of O’Brien who at first is presented as a fellow rebel and a member of the Brotherhood but is revealed to be a zealous member of the Inner Party. The conflicting ideas posed through this character reflect the inability for Winston to trust what he knows. During Winston’s first acknowledgement of the other man he mentions his “coarse brutality” as well as his “delicacy of gesture.” These contrasting descriptions form the first images of ambiguity surrounding this character. Through the conflicting ideas presented we are led to trust Winston’s interpretation of the situation, despite the effect of unease that the contrast prompts. The narrator later considers O’Brien’s facial expression, “Perhaps it was not even unorthodoxy that was written in his

In Khaled Hosseini's "The Kite Runner," the character of Amir undergoes a profound transformation, evolving from a guilt-ridden and insecure young boy into a mature and morally conscious adult. This transformation reflects the impact of past mistakes on shaping one's character and the potential for redemption through self-awareness and acts of atonement. Throughout the novel, Amir's journey is marked by his struggle with guilt and insecurity stemming from his betrayal of his childhood friend and half-brother, Hassan. This betrayal, witnessed by Amir but not acknowledged at the time, leads to a sense of unworthiness and insecurity that haunts him into adulthood.

When Amir and his wife, Soraya, can’t seem to have a child, Amir believes that it is because of his wrongdoings in the past. Right up until Amir is in his 30’s does he confront his mistakes. It takes a call from Rahim Khan to persuade him that there is ‘a way to be good again’ (Pg. 2). Amir knows that he needs to make up to Hassan for the wrong that he did all those years ago, and so by confronting his mistake and trying to redeem himself by rescuing Sohrab, Hassan’s son. Amir’s confrontation with Assef when he is getting back Sohrab made him feel like he was confronting his mistakes and gaining redemption ‘For the first time since the winter of 1975, I felt at peace… In some nook in a corner of my mind, I’d even been looking forward to this.’ (Pg. 265). This is the punishment and redemption that he has been waiting all these years for, because Hassan wouldn’t punish him all those years ago when they were under the pomegranate tree.

As a character, Amir experiences more change from start to finish than anyone. He is weak and selfish as a child. This leads to him making the worst decision of his life. As Assef approaches Hassan, Amir sat there, as Hosseini writes “I opened my mouth, almost said something. Almost. The rest of my life might have turned out differently if I had” (Hosseini 73). This moment changes the trajectory of his entire life. Hassan seems to move on from it quickly, trying to be Amir’s friend again a few weeks later, but Amir would be haunted by it for the rest of the novel. Into his thirties, he struggled to sleep and what he had witnessed was always in his head. It isn’t until he meets Sohrab that he starts to truly change as a character. He begins to make choices with other people in mind, despite how he might affect himself. This is the biggest lesson he could take away from Hassan.

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.

Not only did Amir risk his life by going back to Kabul, but he also saved Sohrab from Taliban officials and brought him back to Pakistan. After Amir went back to Kabul, he found out that Sohrab was being held at one Taliban official’s house. When he went there to get Sohrab, he found out that the Taliban official was Assef; the guy who raped Hassan. Assef agreed to let Sohrab go in exchange for a fight with Amir. While Amir gets beaten, he thinks about the day when he asked Hassan to punish him by throwing pomegranate at him. But Hassan did not and Amir felt like he wasn’t punished. After Assef beat him up, he felt that he was redeemed because he needed to be punished for his sins. On page 289, Amir narrates his fight with Assef, “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.” Amir felt that he was healed because he finally was punished physically for what he did to Hassan. He was physically damaged but at the end he was able to recover and take Sohrab back to Pakistan.

This one decision left a stain on Amir for the next thirty years. A quote on pg. 88 states “I wish someone would wake me up, so I wouldn’t have to live with this lie anymore” This quote explains how guilty Amir felt after seeing Hassan get raped as he desperately sought for anyone to find out but didn’t chose to tell anyone the actual truth. Another example from the text is when Amir tries throwing pomegranates at Hassan, as an attempt to get Hassan to fight back and punish Amir for choosing to leave Hassan. However, Hassan refused to throw any pomegranates at Amir, but instead smashed one into his face. A quote on pg.94 states “I wanted Hassan to fight me back for the way I failed him” This quote indicates that Amir wanted Hassan to fight him back, so he could have the “punishment [he] craved” (93) This demonstrates that Amir wanted to feel the act of being punished for his wrongdoing, similar to how Hassan was brutally raped due to Amir’s apparent mistake. Amir’s guilt forces him to travel across two countries to seek redemption for the mistake he made. 15 years later, Amir’s guilt led him to make the hefty decision of returning to Afghanistan “to be good again” (189) by rescuing Hassan’s orphaned son, Sohrab, from the terrible conditions he was left to face in Kabul. Amir sees this as an opportunity to redeem and free himself from