...In my view The Kite Runner is an epic story with a personal history of what the people of Afghanistan had and have to endure in an ordinary every day life; a country that is divided between political powers and religiously idealistic views and beliefs which creates poverty, and violence within the people and their terrorist run country. The story line is more personal with the description of Afghanistan's culture and traditions, along with the lives of the people who live in Kabul. The story provides an educational and eye-opening account of a country's political chaos. Of course there are many things that are unsaid and under explained in this tragic novel which, in my observation, is an oversimplification. There is also a heavy use of emotional appeal, and an underlying message. This is a flag for propaganda. The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini begins in the 1970s in Kabul, Afghanistan, when the country is in a time of an ending monarchy. The main character, Amir, is the son of wealthy Afghanistan business man, and his playmate, Hassan, the son of his father's houseman, Ali. Hassan is a Hazara and Amir is a Pashtun, which makes them from different social classes. The author has undoubtedly stirred my emotions and I admit that I did cry several times. I think that this was the author's objective; this is an appeal to emotion, one of the fallacies of propaganda. Propaganda is a message or an idea that persuades the audience to change their perspectives in one way or another...
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...done by a family member or a friend. In the book The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini, we witness how betrayal played a vital role in the downfall of the main characters Amir and Hassan’s friendship, and how it influenced Amir’s pursuit to redeem himself in hopes to move on from his mistakes. The novel begins with Amir as an adult, recalling an event that took place in 1975 Kabul, Afghanistan and how this event was what changed the rest of his life and made him who he now is. This event was Amir’s reluctance to help Hassan while he was being raped, and how this impacted his desire to, later on, mature and be “good” again. Khaled Hosseini shows how Amir’s Islamic faith and guilt over abandoning Hassan ultimately led Amir to forgive himself and seek redemption. All in all, this novel demonstrates that even in cases of betrayal, redemption is possible. In The Kite Runner, Hosseini tells a story of the close friendship of two young boys who come from different social classes, Amir, the Pashtun wealthy boy and Hassan, the Hazara servant. Taking place in Kabul, Afghanistan in the 1970s a time where there was a huge...
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...character of Amir and how he uses forgiveness to move on from his past and to end the violence. He shows this through many ways throughout the movie with different people. Amir had a tough childhood in many ways but also was very privileged. He had challenges being friends with Hassan. They were from two different social classes and Amir got teased and ridiculed because of it. When things got tough Amir froze Hassan out. For example when Hassan was physically assaulted. Finally Amir and his dad left altogether when there home got taken over by soldiers after the fall of the Monarchy in Afghanistan. Amir was so guilt tripped for leaving his friend, in the movie he takes us on his journey of how he finds forgiveness and gives forgiveness to move on from his violent past. Amir does not try to contact Hassan when he left, trying to push it behind him but the guilt is too much and he is curious to what happened to his friend. He becomes a successful writer and takes a trip back to his home and finds out Hassan was killed when things got dangerous. Amir sets off to right his wrongs and starts with Hassan’s son. He tracks him down in an orphanage and makes a plan to rescue him from the dangers of Kabul. Seeking to do the right thing and right his wrongs from the past. He tries to forgive himself through Hassan’s son to end the circle of wrongs that happened in his childhood, to use forgiveness as a means of moving on from everything. In order for Amir to move past his violent...
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...In my view The Kite Runner is an epic story with a personal history of what the people of Afghanistan had and have to endure in an ordinary every day life; a country that is divided between political powers and religiously idealistic views and beliefs which creates poverty, and violence within the people and their terrorist run country. The story line is more personal with the description of Afghanistan's culture and traditions, along with the lives of the people who live in Kabul. The story provides an educational and eye-opening account of a country's political chaos. Of course there are many things that are unsaid and under explained in this tragic novel which, in my observation, is an oversimplification. There is also a heavy use of emotional appeal, and an underlying message. This is a flag for propaganda. The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini begins in the 1970s in Kabul, Afghanistan, when the country is in a time of an ending monarchy. The main character, Amir, is the son of wealthy Afghanistan business man, and his playmate, Hassan, the son of his father's houseman, Ali. Hassan is a Hazara and Amir is a Pashtun, which makes them from different social classes. The author has undoubtedly stirred my emotions and I admit that I did cry several times. I think that this was the author's objective; this is an appeal to emotion, one of the fallacies of propaganda. Propaganda is a message or an idea that persuades the audience to change their perspectives in one way or another...
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...home in Kabul, Afghanistan while their servants, Hassan and his father, Ali whom are considered Hazaras lived in a mud hut on the same grounds of Baba’s property. Since being a Hazara was discriminated against in Afghanistan, Amir was bullied by Assef and his friends for hanging out with one. Later, a moment happened when Amir was twelve that changed everything and as he claims made him the man he is today. The discrimination of ethnic minorities in Kabul, Afghanistan shows disastrous events in the lives of two young boys. This story relates to past and present time Afghanistan. In Afghanistan, a Hazara is a persecuted ethnic group whom came from further East Asia. Their features are different from other Afghanistan’s because they have more of an Asian look and flat noses. Pashtuns, are a different ethnic minority and they are accepted. Pashtuns dislike Hazaras and cause many grief to them. Hazaras are sunni Muslim, as Pashtun’s are shia Muslim. They claim different features and speak different languages. Later, in the 1980’s when the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan, many fled to Pakistan. Later in the 1990’s, a group called Taliban’s began making severe changes in Afghanistan making living their more difficult than ever and harsh. After the 9/11 attack, they were over thrown but still at risk. The story begins with Amir living in San Francisco, California in 2001. He receives a phone call from, Rahim Khan...
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...last one thousand years is the everyday life of women. The Afghan people are very simple and in some remote villages they have very little comforts. In some places midwifes assist mothers in the birth of their new born babes. They also bring water inside their house in pales, and they maintain their houses clean for their husbands. Most Afghans live their lives in a very traditional and private way; they have several customs and traditions that have been passed on from one generation to the other for hundreds of years. These people do not require or ask anything from the western world or from their government. They rarely let outsiders into their culture and this has led to many misconceptions of how women are treated and how they live. One of the most common misconceptions is that women have always been treated as slaves and that they have no rights or social status in their communities. Other misconception is that women are uneducated and that they all where a garment call “burqa” that covers them from head to toe. The truth is that women in Afghanistan were...
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...As they endure the ever escalating dangers around them – in their home as well as in the streets of Kabul – they come to form a bod that makes them both sisters and mother-daughter to each other, and that will ultimately alter the course not just of their own lives but of the next generation. With heart – wrenching power and suspense, Hosseini saws us how a woman’s love for her family can move her to shocking and heroic acts of self – sacrifice, and that in the end is love, or even the memory of love, that is often the key to...
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...last one thousand years is the everyday life of women. The Afghan people are very simple and in some remote villages they have very little comforts. In some places midwifes assist mothers in the birth of their new born babes. They also bring water inside their house in pales, and they maintain their houses clean for their husbands. Most Afghans live their lives in a very traditional and private way; they have several customs and traditions that have been passed on from one generation to the other for hundreds of years. These people do not require or ask anything from the western world or from their government. They rarely let outsiders into their culture and this has led to many misconceptions of how women are treated and how they live. One of the most common misconceptions is that women have always been treated as slaves and that they have no rights or social status in their communities. Other misconception is that women are uneducated and that they all where a garment call “burqa” that covers them from head to toe. The truth is that women in Afghanistan were not always oppressed by fundamentalism as occurred...
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...relations between Kabul and Islamabad reveals turbulence. The main reasons for this rocky relationship are the issues related to the Durand Line, the idea of a greater Pakhtunistan, the 1980’s Soviet War, the rise of the Taliban, post 9/11 war, and India’s rising influence in Afghanistan. Through multi-sectoral long-term development projects, apparently carving socio-economic space through application of soft power, India ultimately aims at enhancing its regional relevance to extract politico-economic benefits, while correspondingly constricting contemporary space for Pakistan. Indian sponsored / assisted projects in Afghanistan indicate their character to be more of anti-Pakistan than pro-Afghanistan. Development of road Zaranj-Delaram off sets Afghanistan’s over dependence on Pakistan for transit trade, through offering ground link to Iranian Port Chahbhar. Similarly, Indian offer to build water reservoirs on river Kabul can be termed as extension of her water war against Pakistan. It has implications for Pakistan on its economic, defense and foreign policy fronts. Apropos, carry out a detailed analysis of Indian sponsored / assisted projects directly or indirectly influencing Pakistan and recommend response options to safe guard own vital interests. ABSTRACT History is a witness to the dire, problematic issues that have plagued the sub-continental region since times immemorial. Pakistan needs Afghanistan to be a stable, economic partner as it will benefit from security, energy...
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...published in 2003 by Riverhead Books, written by the Afghan-born American novelist and physician, Khaled Hosseini. He was born into a Shia family in Kabul, and later on in his life when the family moved to Paris because of his father’s occupation, Hosseini’s family was unable to return to Kabul due to the bloody Saur Revolution; hence they had to seek political asylum in the United States. Being as young as he was, roughly 11 years of age, the actions of his home country must have left an impression on him. It is such a great read because among many other themes such as betrayal, redemption, bullying, inhumanities of revolution, discrimination, loyalty, hypocrisy, horrors of rapes etc. the main focus of this story is of a man who is haunted by his past demons. We see in some of the opening lines of the novel, “I became what I am today at the age of twelve, on a frigid overcast day in the winter of 1975… That was a long time ago, but it’s wrong what they say about the past, I’ve learned, about how you can bury it. Because the past claws its way out.” These opening lines gets the ball rolling on what is to come and to be expected from the story, of possibly an aged man who is looking back at the past and justifying how it has made him the way that he is to date. The setting vividly takes place in the disorderly country of Kabul, Afghanistan in the 20th century. Hosseini, through the character of Amir, does an excellent job describing the chaotic setting in contrast to any other...
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...Request Refusal Letter 5. Persuasive Favor/Action Request: Borrowing Suits for Interviews 6. Sales Message: Adapting From Low Context to High Context Culture Insurance Corporation of Afghanistan 44 Ansari Square, ICA Building, Shahre Now, Kabul, Afghanistan, Phone: (+93 – 700) 111 111 1. INQUIRY LETTER December 18, 2013 Mr. Sameer Ahmadi, Manager The Hotel Beauville Walayat Street, A1, Herat, Afghanistan Dear Mr. Ahmadi This is to find out about the availability of accommodation and Conference room facilities in your hotel for a night and for an approximate number of 25 ICA employees in January this year. Reviewing the Yellow pages and your advertisements via TV, we believe your hotel is one of the best hotels available in Herat with respect to its excellent services and facilities. Our company has decided to organize a meeting for its employees based in Herat region. Therefore, we have decided to enquire about your hotel’s packages, charges and facilities. We shall require the following facilities at your hotel: * 25 single rooms with good view * Conference room arranged for 25 people * Screen and power point slideshow equipment * Stationery (Pen, pencils, notebooks, flipcharts) required for 25 people * Hotel taxi facilities including pick and drop from and to Herat Airport (For ICA employees traveling from Kabul) as well as their costs * Total cost for The Hotel Beauville for a night stay including hotel rooms and conference room...
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...EntErprisE survEys EntErprisE notE sEriEs EntrEprEnEurship 2011 EntErprisE notE no. 27 Business Environment Perceptions in Afghanistan and Pakistan Judy S. Yang T his note compares business environment perceptions using a unique panel data set of Afghani and Pakistani firms interviewed between 2007 and 2010. Examining the evolution of business climate perceptions within the same group of firms over time allows for a clear picture of how the broad business environment is changing. Firms in both countries are operating in a time of dynamic economic, political, and social changes. However, perceptions of the severity and challenges posed by certain business environment elements differ in the two countries. The World Bank’s Enterprise Analysis Unit surveyed the same group of 319 Afghani firms in 2008 and 2010, as well as a group of 385 Pakistani firms in 2007 and 2010. Survey results show that firm perceptions of the severity and priority of certain business environment elements have changed over time, especially in the areas of electricity, political instability, and corruption. Changes in top obstacle reporting should only be interpreted as changes in what element is currently most relevant to firms. For example, suppose a firm in Afghanistan considers electricity and corruption to be its top two concerns. In 2008, the firm selects electricity as their top obstacle because it is fundamental to daily operations. The firm acquired a generator by 2010, so electricity...
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...George Schenkel Paper 4 Dr. Kenneth Hall Baba and the narrator live in Kabul. As he grows up, Amir is frustrated with his father's lack of attention. Rahim Khan is Baba's best friend and business partner. Amir mentions a picture of Baba, Rahim, and himself as a baby, his fingers curled around Khan's pinky and not his father's. Baba's servants, Ali and Hassan, live in a little hut near the main house. Ali suffers from paralysis of his lower facial muscles, and polio left him with a twisted right leg. Amir’s mom dies during childbirth- Hassan loses his mom a week after his birth (she leaves her son and husband). Hassan is born a year after Amir, and Baba arranges for the same nurse who fed his son to nurse Hassan. One of the many things that Baba becomes known for is building an orphanage. Amir shares that his relationship with his father is a combination of love and fear, mixed with a little bit of hate. Amir also shares with the reader what little information he has about his mother. One day, Amir and Hassan take a shortcut through the military barracks. A soldier insults Hassan because of his ethnicity. The difference between Shi'a Muslim and Sunni Muslims is explained at this time. The Shi'a Muslims are the Hazaras, the lower class, the servants. Ali and Hassan are Shi'a Muslims. The Pashtuns, the people of Amir and his father, had persecuted and oppressed the Hazaras. Amir comforts Hassan after being insulted by the soldiers, but only when they are not in public. This...
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...“And the Mountains Echoed” by Khalid Hosseini Summary It is the year 1952 and autumn is coming to a fictional village of Afghanistan called Shadbagh. The prospect is sufficiently miserable. Lacking central heating and adequate food, some small child is liable to perish. One of the villagers, Saboor, tells his children a story to this effect. A monster called a div, with horns and tail and shining red eyes, invades the village one day, according to this story “Families would pray that the div would bypass their home, for they knew that if the div taped on their roof, they would have to give it one child.” The main thread is the story of Saboor and his descendants, with Abdullah ending up in the United States owning a restaurant called Abe’s Kebab House. This last part of the novel is narrated by Abdullah’s American-born daughter, a familiar type in this sort of literature — the child torn between America and the restrictive culture of her parents. In this case Abdullah insists on his daughter learning Farsi and undergoing instruction in the tenets of Islam, much against her inclination. Abdullah and his wife can hardly be blamed for this. Back in Afghanistan, even the poorest of villages has a mosque and a mullah (Islamic priest) to impart literacy and the teachings of the Quran. While no one in the novel is at all religious, it is clear that such village institutions supply the sinews and backbone of a culture — a culture almost sufficiently powerful to resist the allure...
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...POLICY BRIEF SUMMARY SHAPING EUROPE’S AFGHAN SURGE Daniel Korski Unnoticed by many, the last few years have seen something of a European military surge in Afghanistan. Since late 2006, 18 of the 25 EU countries participating in the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), NATO’s Afghan mission, have increased their troop contributions, and as a result EU member states now account for 43% of ISAF’s total deployment. This military surge has been accompanied by a steady growth in European efforts to contribute to Afghanistan’s reconstruction, from development aid to police training – although not every EU member state is pulling its weight. These measures have made the EU a major stakeholder in Afghanistan. Yet the EU’s real impact on the country has been limited. In the face of a likely request from the Obama administration to do more, European governments should now formulate a hard-headed political strategy as a complement to the coming US military surge. Introduction President Barack Obama and his secretary of state, Hillary Clinton, have made it clear that they expect a significant enhancement of the European effort in Afghanistan. The issue is likely to be viewed in Washington as a litmus test of whether the Europeans can be taken seriously as strategic partners. Obama’s strategy in Afghanistan is likely to include an attempt to “regionalise” the issue, involving some kind of dialogue with Iran and efforts to bring India, the Gulf states and the central Asian...
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