...e Runner begins with our thus-far nameless protagonist explaining that the past cannot be forgotten. A single moment in time defined him and has been affecting him for the last twenty-six years. This moment was in 1975 when he was twelve years old and hid near a crumbling alleyway in his hometown of Kabul, Afghanistan. When the protagonist's friend, Rahim Khan, calls him out of the blue, he knows that his past sins are coming back to haunt him even in the new life he has built in San Francisco. He remembers Hassan, whom he calls "the harelipped kite runner," saying "For you, a thousand times over." Rahim's words also echo in his head, "There is a way to be good again." These two phrases will become focal points for the rest of the novel and our protagonist's story. Chapter Two The protagonist remembers sitting in trees with Hassan when they were boys and annoying the neighbors. Any mischief they perpetrated was the protagonist's idea, but even when Hassan's father, Ali, scolded Hassan, he never told on the protagonist. Hassan's father was a servant to the protagonist's father, Baba and lived in a small servant's house on his property. Baba's house was widely considered the most beautiful one in Kabul. There Baba held large dinner parties and entertained friends, including Rahim Khan, in his smoking room. Though the protagonist was often surrounded by adults, he never knew his mother because she died in childbirth. Hassan never knew his mother, either, because she eloped with...
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...The Kite Runner Final Essay AG Novel A literary work conveys a compelling story specific to its time and place. Additionally, a memorable one explores issues and themes (universal truths) that are important, and timeless, for all readers. Keep this in mind as you think about each essay prompt. A convincing essay will include direct citations from the novel, commentary and use of scholarly analysis. Visit the Gale Digital Library, accessible from the Venture website (password: venture) to search for support. Additionally, use MLA format for your essay and utilize correct citations. Questions taken, in part, from the Khaled Hosseini Foundation curriculum. 1. Writer and human rights activist Isabel Allende writes of The Kite Runner: “This is one of those unforgettable stories that stays with you for years. All the great themes of literature and of life are the fabric of this extraordinary novel: love, honor, guilt, fear, redemption.” Which of these major themes resonates the most with you? Choose one to focus on and show how author Khaled Hosseini communicates this universal truth through characters, plot development and use of symbols. 2. In great literature, no scene of violence exists for its own sake. In a wellorganized essay, explain how a violent scene in The Kite Runner contributes to the meaning of the complete work. Apply the concept of an extended metaphor to discuss the political and social portrait of Afghanistan. 3. Leo Tolstoy once wrote...
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...“Redemption” The Kite Runner Kati Hernandez 3/3/15 AP English 12 Period 1 Three Questions 1. Why do you think Baba refuses to refer to Ali as his friend? Is it the divide between servant and master? 2. Does a character like Assef even choose between good and evil? Could Assef be innocent in ways Amir is not? 3. Why doesn't Amir admire Rahim Khan as much as he admires his father? What does this tell us about admiration? Literary Criticism New historicism criticism insists that to understand a literary piece, readers need to understand the author's biography and social background. Every human action is actually the effect of a network of material practices. Every act of unmasking, critique and opposition uses the tools it condemns and risks falling prey to the practice it exposes. No discourse, imaginative, scientific, or archival, gives access to unchanging truths, nor expresses inalterable human nature. A critical method and a language adequate to describe culture under capitalism participate in the economy they describe. What makes a legend, is it someone who is a hero or someone who is infallible from making mistakes? In the novel, The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini, the character described as a legend is Baba. Seen as the most perfect figure to be looked at for its bravery, generosity and caring for others. His actions describe him better than words can, as he always defends others in time of need and stays loyal to his home and country...
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...lead to good consequences and bad choices lead to bad consequences. Throughout the novel, The Kite Runner, Khaled Hosseini has demonstrated the consequences of choices that are made through his characters. The first choice that indicates that choices have consequences was when Baba slept with Sanaubar, Ali’s wife. The next choice was when Amir hid his money and watch under Hassan’s bed. And the last, was Amir’s choice of not helping Hassan as he was getting raped. The first choice that leads to a consequence was Baba’s choice of sleeping with Sanaubar, Ali’s wife. After Baba slept with Sanaubar, the result was Hassan. Baba did this because, ``Ali was sterile`` (pg 243). The first reason that this was a bad choice was because; Baba was never able to treat Hassan as his son. Every time Baba tried to show some compassion towards Hassan, Amir would get jealous. For example, when Baba got a plastic surgeon to come over from India to fix Hassan’s harelip for his birthday, Amir got jealous because he thought that Hassan’s scar was the reason of Baba`s attention, “It wasn’t fair. Hassan hadn`t done anything to earn Baba`s affections; he`d just been born with that stupid harelip. `` (pg 50). Another consequence from Baba sleeping with Sanaubar was; Baba, Ali and Rahim Khan had to keep this a secret from Amir and Hassan. Of course, after Amir found this out, he was furious. This is why Baba`s choice of sleeping with Sanaubar was a bad decision. The next example of choices leading...
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...The Kite Runner Essay Questions Due Date:________________ Directions: Write a clear, concise, and coherent essay on one of the following topics. Your essay should be a minimum of 400-500 words. • Proper essay format: organized through proper paragraphing, indenting, double-spaced, typed, etc. • Clear thesis statement in the introduction, along with an indication of title and author. • Supporting quotations properly integrated (with page numbers). • Spell checked, edited, and submitted with pride. You may choose from one of the following topics. 1. Explore the way in which courage is portrayed in the novel. What constitutes true bravery? What are the key moments when characters are brave and who is the bravest character, if any? Use specific examples from the text to support your argument. 2. "Like father, like son." "The apple doesn't fall far from the tree." "Monkey see, monkey do." Use one of these cliches as a starting point to consider the way characters in the story behave. Characters to consider: Amir, Hassan, Assef, Baba, Sohrab, Rahim Khan. 3. Make a list of instances in the novel where someone is forgiven. What constitutes true forgiveness? Why is forgiveness so important? You may want to consider moments between Hassan and Amir, Baba and Hassan, Hassan and Sanaubar, Amir and Sohrab, General Taheri and Soraya, and Amir and himself. 4. "The past is always there"- How is this quote central to the themes of the novel? 5....
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...Book Review of ‘The Kite Runner’ “For you, a thousand times over”, this sentence said by Hassan to Amir has been on my mind since I finished reading the novel. The story took place in the 70s in Afghanistan. Amir was a child of a wealthy family and Hassan was the son of Amir family`s servant, Ali. They played and grew up together; the strong friendship bonded them like brothers. As can be seen from the novel and the sentence at the beginning, Hassan was willing to do anything for Amir whenever Amir encountered any troubles. Nevertheless, Amir made a terrible mistake when he watched and stood by, while Hassan was raped by Assef after winning the unprecedented grand kite game. In order to drive Hassan out of the house, Amir put his watch under Hassan`s pillow, implying that Hassan had stolen it. When Russia invaded Afghanistan, Amir left his hometown with his father and fled to Pakistan. In 1988, Amir and his family/father had a nice life when Amir graduated, having attended a public college in California. Afterwards Amir became a famous novelist. However, Amir suffered agonies of remorse as he could not forgive himself for his unatoned sin for betraying Hassan. At the end, Amir started his journey of redemption and came back to his home town and saved Sohrab (son of Hassan) from the Taliban after he received a phone call from Rahim Khan. The characters of this novel feel real because it is a biography of the author. The destiny of Hassan was miserable, not only was he born...
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...We work in the dark-we down hat we can-we can give what we have. Our doubt is our passion, and our passion is our task.The rest is the madness of art-Henry James.Literature is one of the most important subjects in our society.The narrator is “Father” and “The Kite Runner” go through similar journeys although they are developed differently. They are misunderstood by their parent.They also developed a passion for writing.They have grown up in different places and under different situations. Firstly, they have similar journeys because they are misunderstood by their parent.For example on page 15 of “The Kite Runner” by Khaled Hosseini it states “Of course, marrying a poet was one thing, but fathering a son who preferred burying his face in poetry books to hunting… well, that wasn’t how Baba had envisioned it.” This shows how the narrator's father did not understand why the narrator was not like his father..For instance on page 1 of “Father” by Alice Walker states “I’m positive my father never understood why I wrote.”. This...
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...one stage or another looked at Marxist ideas and, unfortunately, some have chosen to ignore the rich experience and understanding that Marxist ideas add to an understanding of the capitalist world and how to change it.However, Marx’s ideas are once again becoming fashionable; even amongst people Marx would have regarded as his political opponents. Having been voted the thinker of the Millennium in a BBC poll in 2000, Marx has now been taken up by university professors and City analysts alike as offering one of the most modern ways to understand globalised capitalism.But, for socialists who wish to permanently remove capitalism and establish a global socialist system, we don’t look to Marxist ideas just for a method of understanding – as important as that is. Marxism helps us understand the present struggles of the working class and oppressed masses around the world and anticipate the most likely course of events in the future.Achieving such an understanding allows us to orientate correctly to political...
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...people can relate to, either 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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...a Hazara and the son of Amir's father's servant, Ali, spend their days in a peaceful Kabul, kite fighting, roaming the streets and being boys. Amir’s father (who is generally referred to as Baba, "daddy", throughout the book) loves both the boys, but seems critical of Amir for not being manly enough. Amir also fears his father blames him for his mother’s death during childbirth. However, he has a kind father figure in the form of Rahim Khan, Baba’s friend, who understands Amir better, and is supportive of his interest in writing stories. Assef, a notoriously mean and violent older boy with sadistic tendencies, blames Amir for socializing with a Hazara, according to Assef an inferior race that should only live in Hazarajat. He prepares to attack Amir with his steel knuckles, but Hassan bravely stands up to him, threatening to shoot Assef in the eye with his slingshot. Assef and his henchmen back off, but Assef says he will take revenge. Hassan is a successful "kite runner" for Amir, knowing where the kite will land without even watching it. One triumphant day, Amir wins the local tournament, and finally Baba's praise. Hassan goes to run the last cut kite, a great trophy, for Amir saying "For you, a thousand times over." Unfortunately, Hassan runs into Assef and his two henchmen. Hassan refuses to give up Amir's kite, so Assef exacts his revenge, assaulting and raping him. Wondering why Hassan is taking so long, Amir searches for Hassan and hides when he hears Assef's voice. He...
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...The Kite Runner Psychoanalytic criticism was first founded and developed by Sigmund Freud. Freud’s theories were mainly sexual deriving from the libido which is a colloquial term for the sex drive. Freud has many theories which are based on sexuality. One of his many theories includes the theory subconscious mind. This theory states that the ego is divided into three sections, the id, the ego and the superego. The id is the mind’s more primitive and impulsive part of the ego, where are the super ego is where all of our morals and values are placed. The ego is the part of the subconscious mind which mediates between the two. When making decisions we make them based on these two parts of our subconscious mind. Freud believed that the subconscious sexual drives were the bases for all human behavior, and that dreams were an important indicator for understanding human behavior. The kite runner is a novel written by Khaled Hosseini, which first takes place in the city of Kabul located in Afghanistan. It’s a story about a man who is named Amir who reflects on his past as a child in Afghanistan. Amir lived with his father, and his servants, ali and Hassan During that time period was a caste system in Afghanistan which was in place. Amir and his father were Pashtu, which is considered “pure” afghan. They were placed much higher than their servants Ali and Hassan who were Hazara. After a kite flying competition that Amir and Hassan attended together, Amir saw Hassan getting...
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...'Rahim Khan's friendship is Amir's only refuge in his childhood'Do you agree? The Kite Runner is a novel written by Khaled Hosseini which takes place in Afghanistan, Pakistan and the USA from around 1975 till 2001.It's about the life's transformation before and after the Russian Invasion. Hosseini vividly provides the memorable portrait of Amir,the protagonist.Initially,this 12-year-old boy has the privileged social backdrop because his father is one of the richest man in Kabul.Nonetheless, he isn't cheerful because various reasons,such as can not get recognition form his baba,and bullied by Assef. All these factors force him to seek somewhere else for guidance and support. Rahim khan, a minor but important character comes to Amir's life and becomes the catalyst for much of his development.However,Rahim Khan isn't the only refuge in Amir's childhood.Hassan is also a crucial individual in Amir's childhood.Furthermore,writing stories and kite running are also sanctuaries that he can find when he was young. Firstly, Rahim Khan is Amir's perfect mentor and almost replaces Baba as Amir's father in his childhood.Amir loves reading and writing stories which is his Baba's discontent.While Baba doesn't endorse Amir's interest,Rahim khan is the one who acknowledges his gifted writing skills and encourages him to pursue writing.'(I)wished Rahim Khan had been my father' is Amir's psychological description delineates how grieved he is when his father knows about he wrote...
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...read a summary of the plot. There, we've warned you. Amir tells us something happened in the winter of 1975 and this event made him what he is today. He gives us some scattered images: a crumbling mud wall, an alley, a frozen creek. Amir remembers a phone call last summer from his friend Rahim Khan. He feels like a past of "unatoned sins" is calling him up. So he takes a walk and looks at some kites, which remind him of someone named Hassan. During the walk, Amir sits on a park bench. He thinks of Baba and Ali, and Kabul, Afghanistan. The chapter ends where it began: "I thought of the life I had lived until the winter of 1975 came along and changed everything. And made me what I am today" (1.3). Chapter 2 This chapter is a slideshow of Amir's early childhood. Fasten the seatbelts on your recliners! Amir and Hassan get into harmless mischief together as kids. Hassan often takes the blame if the two troublemakers get caught. Amir describes his childhood home, built by his father. It has rosebushes, marble floors, mosaic tiles, and gold-stitched tapestries. Oh, and a crystal chandelier. Baba, Amir's father, has a smoking room in the house but he doesn't let Amir hang out there. Go away, Amir. Some of Baba's cabinets have a few pictures: Amir's grandfather and King Nadir Shah and one of Amir's father and mother on their wedding night. No word yet on Amir's mother. Finally, there's one of little Amir in his father's arms; Rahim Khan stands off to the side. Amir takes us inside the...
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...Guilt and the search for redemption are two very important themes in “The Kite Runner”, as the reader watches Amir, the main character, deal with his guilt over the betrayal of a friend and the lengths he would go to gain forgiveness. Amir has always felt guilty over the loss of his mother. She died giving birth to him and he sees himself as his mother’s killer, the one who took Baba’s “princess” away form him. Amir believes that this is the reason why his relationship with his father is so strained and spends most of his childhood attempting to win his father’s love and forgiveness. His constant need of Baba’s approval is what drives Amir to want to win the kite fighting competition, to show Baba that he could also be a winner and make him proud. Amir is convinced that if he brings Baba the blue kite he will finally forgive him for his mother’s death and truly accept him. In his search for redemption Amir commits a terrible crime when he watches his friend Hassan get raped but does nothing about it. Instead of standing up to his friend and try to stop Assef from raping Hassan he hides and after pretends he never saw anything. He tries to justify his actions by saying that if he had intervened he would have gotten hurt, but he knows that the real reason why he did not defend Hassan is that he would have lost the kite and with it Baba’s love, so he sacrifices his friend for the approval of his father. “I actually aspired to cowardice, because the alternative, the real...
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...Both Khaled Hosseini's novel ‘The Kite Runner’ and the short stories "Are You Different?" by Mia Francis and "Chinese Lessons" by Ivy Tseng in the anthology "Growing Up Asian In Australia" by various authors discuss the notion of being displaced. In the texts, the role of being an outsider extends from being excluded in one's own family to a large-scale elimination of the ethnic minorities. In both ‘The Kite Runner’ and ‘Growing Up Asian in Australia’, it is inferred that the idea of being the outsider causes individuals to experience pain, because the way that they perceive themselves and by the people around them as different leads them to feel voiceless, discriminated, and conflicted in a place where they should feel like they belong....
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