The kite runner vs a thousand splendid suns
Both the Kite Runner and A Thousand Splendid Suns where written by Afghan author, Khaled Hosseini. Both of these books show how people suffer and deal with hardships in the middle east. A Thousand Splendid Suns follows two women as they go through life, and struggle under the power of their husband. They each have difficulties growing up. Mariam was abandoned by her father and her mother was emotionally abusive. Laila thought she lost her one true love and her family. They both end up marrying the same man (Mariam married him first), Rasheed, and their struggles grow from there. Rasheed turns out to be abusive emotionally and physically. The book lets us follow them as they overcome struggles, bond together as friends, and discover love ( Mariam is loved by Laila and Aziza and Laila finds Tariq). A Thousand Splendid Suns compares to The Kite Runner because they are both stories about people overcoming the weaknesses. Amir faced a personal battle just like Mariam and Laila. His was the guilt he felt over seeing Hassan getting raped. Then their are the battles the fight together. Just like Mariam and Laila helped each other overcome Rasheed, Hassan and Amir help each other overcome Assef. Even though Hassan died before the last conflict with Assef, a part of Hassan, Sohrab, took his place and helped Amir overcome Assef. Out of the two books, I personally enjoyed The Kite Runner a little bit better. The reason why is because I loved the journey Amir made from going from a cowardly boy, to a mature man.
The Christ figure
In this book, Hassan can be seen as a Christ figure. Throughout the whole entire book he sacrifices himself and forgives others. When Hassan chases the blue kite into an alley, Assef shown up. That is when Hassan makes a huge sacrifice. Hassan won't let Assef take the blue kite he chased down for Amir, so to teach a lesson, Assef rapes Hassan. Hassan could have given Assef the kite and walked away, but he is to loyal to Amir to do that and would rather sacrifice himself than lose Amir's kite. He then goes on to forgive Amir for seeing it and not doing something about it (even though it is never said out loud). Even later on in the book, Hassan still makes sacrifices for Amir. When Hassan and his wife, Farzana, are taking care of Amir's house, they sacrifice their lives. The Taliban comes and orders Hassan and his family out of the house but he refuses. Then Taliban then kills him and his wife.
character analysis
- Amir - Amir is the narrator and main protagonist. Amir has a good life. His father, Baba, is rich , and as a result, Amir grows up become used to having what he wants. The only thing he feels there is a lack of is an emotional connection with Baba, which he blames on himself. He thinks Baba wishes Amir were more like him, and that Baba holds him responsible for killing his mother. Amir, consequently, acts jealous toward anyone getting Baba’s affection and attention. You can see this in his relationship with Hassan. Though Hassan is Amir’s best friend, Amir feels that Hassan, a Hazara servant, is inferior to him. When Hassan gets Baba’s attention, he mocks Hassan’s ignorance or plays tricks on him. At the same time, Amir never learns to stand up for himself against anyone else because Hassan is always defending him. The change in Amir’s character we see in the novel shows him growing from a kid to an adult. .
- Hassan - From the start of the book and through his death, Hassan remains the same: loyal, forgiving, and good-natured. As a servant to Baba and Amir, Hassan grows up with a very particular role in life. While Amir gets for school in the morning, Hassan gets Amir’s books and his breakfast ready. While Amir is at school getting an education, Hassan helps Ali with the chores and shopping. As a result, Hassan learns that it is his duty to sacrifice himself for others. Hassan is not prone to envy, and he even tells Amir he is happy with what he has, even though he always see how much more Amir has. Hassan is a symbol of innocence.
- Baba - Baba is Amir's father, who is considered a hero and leader in Kabul. Baba and Amir never quite seem to relate to each other, especially in Afghanistan. Baba is always doing things for others and always seems to expect more from his son. Baba represents a man who lives by his own moral code, yet he is carrying a secret that if revealed, may threaten everything he stands for.
the kite runner plot summary
Amir, Pashtun boy, and Hassan, a Hazara, who is the son of Ali, Amir's father's servant, spend their days in the peaceful city of Kabul, kite fighting. Amir's father, a wealthy merchant, whom Amir refers to as Baba, loves both boys, but is often more harshly critical of Amir, considering him weak and lacking in courage. Amir finds a fatherly figure in Rahim Khan, Baba's closest friend. Rahim understands Amir and supports his interest in writing. Amir explains that his first word was 'Baba' and Hassan's 'Amir', suggesting that Amir looks up most to Baba, while Hassan looks up to Amir.
Assef, a violent older boy, mocks Amir for socializing with a Hazara, which is, according to Assef, an inferior race whose members belong only in Hazarajat. One day, he prepares to attack Amir with brass knuckles, but Hassan bravely stands up to him, threatening to shoot out Assef's eye out with his slingshot. Assef and his posse back off, but Assef threatens revenge.
Hassan is a successful "kite runner" for Amir, knowing where the kite will land without watching it. One day, Amir wins the local tournament, and finally Baba's praise. Hassan runs for the last cut kite, a great trophy, saying to Amir, "For you, a thousand times over." Unfortunately, Hassan encounters Assef in an alleyway after finding the kite. Hassan refuses to give up Amir's kite, and Assef decides to teach Hassan a lesson. He beats him severely and then rapes him. Amir witnesses the act but is too scared to do something about it. Secretly, he also knows that if he gets in the way, he might not be able to bring the kite home and then Baba would be less proud of him. After witnessing this brutal act against his best friend, he feels incredibly guilty, but knows that him being a coward would destroy any hopes for Baba's affections, so he tells no one what he saw. Afterward, Amir keeps a distance from Hassan, his guilt preventing him from interacting with Hassan. Jealous of Baba's love for Hassan, Amir worries that if Baba found out about Hassan's bravery and him being a coward, Baba's love for Hassan would grow even more. Amir, filled with guilt on his birthday, cannot enjoy his gifts. The only present that does not feel like "blood" money is the notebook to write his stories in given to him by Rahim Khan, his father's friend and the only one Amir felt really understood him. Amir feels life would be easier if Hassan were not around, so he plants a watch and some money under Hassan's mattress in hopes that Baba will make him leave. Hassan falsely confesses when confronted by Baba. Baba forgives him, despite the fact that, as he explains earlier, he believes that "there is no act more wretched than stealing." Hassan and Ali, to Baba's extreme sorrow, leave anyway. It is clear that Ali knows about Hassan's rape. Their leaving frees Amir of the daily reminder of his cowardice and betrayal, but he still lives in the shadow of these things.
Five years later, the Soviet Union invades Afghanistan in 1979. Amir and Baba escape to Pakistan and then to California, where Amir and Baba, who lived in luxury in an expensive mansion in Afghanistan, settle in a run-down apartment and Baba begins work at a gas station. Amir eventually starts to takes classes at a local community college to develop his writing skills after graduating from high school at age twenty. Every Sunday, Baba and Amir make extra money selling used goods at a flea market. There, Amir meets fellow refugee Soraya Taheri and her family. Soraya's father, General Taheri, once an officer in Afghanistan, has admiration for Amir's literary aspiration. Baba is diagnosed with cancer but is still capable of granting Amir one last favor: he asks Soraya's father's permission for Amir to marry her. He agrees and the two marry. Shortly thereafter Baba dies. Amir and Soraya settle down in a happy marriage, but to their sorrow they learn that they cannot have children. Amir embarks on a successful career as a novelist. Fifteen years after his wedding, Amir receives a call from Rahim Khan, who is dying from an illness. Rahim Khan asks Amir to come to Pakistan. He tells Amir, "There is a way to be good again." Amir goes.
From Rahim Khan, Amir learns the fates of Ali and Hassan. Ali was killed by a land mine. Hassan had a wife named Farzana and a son named Sohrab. He had lived in another village, but returned to Baba's house as a caretaker at Rahim Khan's request, although he moved to a hut in the yard so as not to dishonor Amir by taking his place in the house. During his stay, his mother Sanaubar returned after a long search for him, and died after four years. One month after Rahim Khan left for Pakistan, the Taliban ordered Hassan to give up the house and leave, but he refused, and was executed, along with Farzana. Rahim Khan reveals that Ali was not really Hassan's father, that Ali was sterile, and that Hassan was actually Baba's son, and therefore Amir's half-brother. Finally, Rahim Khan tells Amir that the true reason he called Amir to Pakistan was to rescue Sohrab from an orphanage in Kabul.
Rahim Khan asks Amir to bring Sohrab to Thomas and Betty Caldwell, who own an orphanage. Amir becomes furious; he feels cheated because he had not known that Hassan was his half-brother. Amir finally agrees and decides to go to Kabul to get Sohrab. He travels in a taxi with an Afghan driver named Farid, a veteran of the war with the Soviets, and stays as a guest at Farid's brother Wahid's house. Farid, who was originally hostile towards Amir, is sympathetic when he hears of Amir's true reason for returning, and offers to accompany him on his journey.
Amir searches for Sohrab at the orphanage. To enter Taliban territory, clean shaven Amir wears a fake beard and mustache. However, Sohrab is not at the orphanage; its director tells them that a Taliban official comes often, brings cash, and usually takes a girl away with him. Once in a while however, he takes a boy, and this time it was Sohrab. The director tells Amir to go to a soccer match, where the Taliban official makes speeches at half-time. Farid gets an appointment with the speaker at his home by saying he has personal business with him.
At the house, Amir meets the man, who turns out to be Assef. Assef recognizes Amir, but Amir does not recognise Assef until he asks about Ali, Baba, and Hassan. Sohrab is being kept at Assef's home where he is made to dance dressed in women's clothes, and it seems Assef may have raped him (which Sohrab later confirmed). Assef agrees to let Sohrab go, but only if he could beat Amir. Assef starts to beat Amir with his brass knuckles and injures Amir badly. However, Amir is saved when Sohrab uses his slingshot to shoot out Assef's left eye, making Hassan's threat made many years before come true.
While at a hospital treating his injuries, Amir asks Farid to find information about Thomas and Betty Caldwell. When Farid returns, he tells Amir that the American couple does not exist. Amir tells Sohrab of his plans to take him back to America and possibly adopt him, and promises that he will never be sent to an orphanage again. However, US authorities wanted evidence of Sohrab's orphan status. After years of war, this is all but impossible to get in Afghanistan. Amir tells Sohrab that he may have to temporarily break his promise until the paperwork is completed. Upon hearing this, Sohrab attempts suicide. Amir eventually takes him back to the United States without an orphanage, and introduces him to his wife. However, Sohrab has become emotionally damaged and refuses to speak to anyone. He finally starts showing emotion when Amir talks about Hassan and kites. Amir shows off some of Hassan's tricks, and Sohrab begins to interact with Amir again. In the end Sohrab only shows a little smile, but Amir takes to it with all his heart as he runs the kite for Sohrab, saying, "For you, a thousand times over."
Assef, a violent older boy, mocks Amir for socializing with a Hazara, which is, according to Assef, an inferior race whose members belong only in Hazarajat. One day, he prepares to attack Amir with brass knuckles, but Hassan bravely stands up to him, threatening to shoot out Assef's eye out with his slingshot. Assef and his posse back off, but Assef threatens revenge.
Hassan is a successful "kite runner" for Amir, knowing where the kite will land without watching it. One day, Amir wins the local tournament, and finally Baba's praise. Hassan runs for the last cut kite, a great trophy, saying to Amir, "For you, a thousand times over." Unfortunately, Hassan encounters Assef in an alleyway after finding the kite. Hassan refuses to give up Amir's kite, and Assef decides to teach Hassan a lesson. He beats him severely and then rapes him. Amir witnesses the act but is too scared to do something about it. Secretly, he also knows that if he gets in the way, he might not be able to bring the kite home and then Baba would be less proud of him. After witnessing this brutal act against his best friend, he feels incredibly guilty, but knows that him being a coward would destroy any hopes for Baba's affections, so he tells no one what he saw. Afterward, Amir keeps a distance from Hassan, his guilt preventing him from interacting with Hassan. Jealous of Baba's love for Hassan, Amir worries that if Baba found out about Hassan's bravery and him being a coward, Baba's love for Hassan would grow even more. Amir, filled with guilt on his birthday, cannot enjoy his gifts. The only present that does not feel like "blood" money is the notebook to write his stories in given to him by Rahim Khan, his father's friend and the only one Amir felt really understood him. Amir feels life would be easier if Hassan were not around, so he plants a watch and some money under Hassan's mattress in hopes that Baba will make him leave. Hassan falsely confesses when confronted by Baba. Baba forgives him, despite the fact that, as he explains earlier, he believes that "there is no act more wretched than stealing." Hassan and Ali, to Baba's extreme sorrow, leave anyway. It is clear that Ali knows about Hassan's rape. Their leaving frees Amir of the daily reminder of his cowardice and betrayal, but he still lives in the shadow of these things.
Five years later, the Soviet Union invades Afghanistan in 1979. Amir and Baba escape to Pakistan and then to California, where Amir and Baba, who lived in luxury in an expensive mansion in Afghanistan, settle in a run-down apartment and Baba begins work at a gas station. Amir eventually starts to takes classes at a local community college to develop his writing skills after graduating from high school at age twenty. Every Sunday, Baba and Amir make extra money selling used goods at a flea market. There, Amir meets fellow refugee Soraya Taheri and her family. Soraya's father, General Taheri, once an officer in Afghanistan, has admiration for Amir's literary aspiration. Baba is diagnosed with cancer but is still capable of granting Amir one last favor: he asks Soraya's father's permission for Amir to marry her. He agrees and the two marry. Shortly thereafter Baba dies. Amir and Soraya settle down in a happy marriage, but to their sorrow they learn that they cannot have children. Amir embarks on a successful career as a novelist. Fifteen years after his wedding, Amir receives a call from Rahim Khan, who is dying from an illness. Rahim Khan asks Amir to come to Pakistan. He tells Amir, "There is a way to be good again." Amir goes.
From Rahim Khan, Amir learns the fates of Ali and Hassan. Ali was killed by a land mine. Hassan had a wife named Farzana and a son named Sohrab. He had lived in another village, but returned to Baba's house as a caretaker at Rahim Khan's request, although he moved to a hut in the yard so as not to dishonor Amir by taking his place in the house. During his stay, his mother Sanaubar returned after a long search for him, and died after four years. One month after Rahim Khan left for Pakistan, the Taliban ordered Hassan to give up the house and leave, but he refused, and was executed, along with Farzana. Rahim Khan reveals that Ali was not really Hassan's father, that Ali was sterile, and that Hassan was actually Baba's son, and therefore Amir's half-brother. Finally, Rahim Khan tells Amir that the true reason he called Amir to Pakistan was to rescue Sohrab from an orphanage in Kabul.
Rahim Khan asks Amir to bring Sohrab to Thomas and Betty Caldwell, who own an orphanage. Amir becomes furious; he feels cheated because he had not known that Hassan was his half-brother. Amir finally agrees and decides to go to Kabul to get Sohrab. He travels in a taxi with an Afghan driver named Farid, a veteran of the war with the Soviets, and stays as a guest at Farid's brother Wahid's house. Farid, who was originally hostile towards Amir, is sympathetic when he hears of Amir's true reason for returning, and offers to accompany him on his journey.
Amir searches for Sohrab at the orphanage. To enter Taliban territory, clean shaven Amir wears a fake beard and mustache. However, Sohrab is not at the orphanage; its director tells them that a Taliban official comes often, brings cash, and usually takes a girl away with him. Once in a while however, he takes a boy, and this time it was Sohrab. The director tells Amir to go to a soccer match, where the Taliban official makes speeches at half-time. Farid gets an appointment with the speaker at his home by saying he has personal business with him.
At the house, Amir meets the man, who turns out to be Assef. Assef recognizes Amir, but Amir does not recognise Assef until he asks about Ali, Baba, and Hassan. Sohrab is being kept at Assef's home where he is made to dance dressed in women's clothes, and it seems Assef may have raped him (which Sohrab later confirmed). Assef agrees to let Sohrab go, but only if he could beat Amir. Assef starts to beat Amir with his brass knuckles and injures Amir badly. However, Amir is saved when Sohrab uses his slingshot to shoot out Assef's left eye, making Hassan's threat made many years before come true.
While at a hospital treating his injuries, Amir asks Farid to find information about Thomas and Betty Caldwell. When Farid returns, he tells Amir that the American couple does not exist. Amir tells Sohrab of his plans to take him back to America and possibly adopt him, and promises that he will never be sent to an orphanage again. However, US authorities wanted evidence of Sohrab's orphan status. After years of war, this is all but impossible to get in Afghanistan. Amir tells Sohrab that he may have to temporarily break his promise until the paperwork is completed. Upon hearing this, Sohrab attempts suicide. Amir eventually takes him back to the United States without an orphanage, and introduces him to his wife. However, Sohrab has become emotionally damaged and refuses to speak to anyone. He finally starts showing emotion when Amir talks about Hassan and kites. Amir shows off some of Hassan's tricks, and Sohrab begins to interact with Amir again. In the end Sohrab only shows a little smile, but Amir takes to it with all his heart as he runs the kite for Sohrab, saying, "For you, a thousand times over."