The writer's intentions

I think the main intentions of The Kite Runner, were to show the conflicts between right and wrong and how through it all a wrong action can be forgiven, and your inner demons can be faced and defeated. Also, to be redeemed from something in your past can’t just happen when you want it to. You have to work for it and I think Khaled Hosseini did a good job of showing how you have to sacrifice and suffer first in order to feel like you can truly repay someone. He brings up the past quite a lot and I think that relates to the guilt Amir carries with him throughout the novel. The guilt from his mother’s death and the guilt from Hassan’s situation and how he suffered. Amir can’t quite forget about the past and so his future is filled with him trying to make it right. The use of Khaled Hosseini language and the way his descriptions are so detailed for example, when Hassan gets raped, he says, "Just like I pretended like I hadn't see the dark stain in the seat of his pants. Or those tiny drops that fell from between his legs and stained the snow black." This really makes you feel for Hassan and the horrific experience he went through. How Amir knew exactly what happen and how he can describe the situation so well. The writer really knows how to grab the reader and keep their interest at a high. The story is so touching that it makes you care for the boys almost right away. Khaled Hosseini uses many themes throughout the novel, such as, guilt, redemption, jealousy, betrayal, the kite and many more. These themes help relate to events that happen in the novel, what Amir goes through as a child and how he learns about his father when he grows up. Also how Amir learns how loyalty was so important to Hassan and how his actions betrayed him in such a way that he never forgot. The author made it a point that Amir’s fathers betrayal came out in the end as well when Amir learns that Hassan was his real brother all along. I think another part of the author’s intentions comes from showing the differences in religion and how it can keep a family apart for years until the truth comes out. How just a name as a Hazara and a Pustan can destroy a brothers and fathers relationship.

The ending of the text

The ending of, 'The Kite Runner', is significant because Amir and Sohrab are flying kites together. Once Amir and Sohrab defeat a kite, Amir tells Sohrab that he will run the kite for him, just as Hassan had done for him. As he flies the kite, memories of Kabul come flooding back in a beautiful and moving passage. For most of the book, memory has literally been a nauseating affair, but now it brings joy to Amir. This event reflects back to the beginning of the book when Amir and Hassan use to run kites together and that it was the strongest bond they shared. The significance of Amir now taking the role of running the kite for Sohrab is that it is now Amir’s turn to do good and this means putting Sohrab first, as Hassan always did for Amir. Sohrab has been utterly silent for a year and the smallest form of communication suddenly seems really, really important. Sohrab's smile hints at confession and peace after years and years of silence and guilt. Sohrab's gestures are so small and so slight that it takes years to get anything more than a smile out of him. This shows that it will take a lifetime, Sohrab’s lifetime, for Amir to repay Hassan for what he has done because Sohrab will not give in to Amir that easily, Amir will have to work hard for it. Amir speaks highly of Hassan to Sohrab in the end, a change from when they were younger and Amir had to hide the fact Hassan was his best friend because he was a Hazara. He speaks to tell Sohrab how proud he was to have Hassan as a friend. I think the way the novel ended created a lasting effect in which Amir and Sohrab’s relationship has just begun. Sohrab’s smile symbolizes how it is the beginning of Amir being redeemed in a way that Sohrab finally gives Amir the reassurances that everything might just be okay.

Themes

In the novel, ‘The Kite Runner’, there are many themes featured throughout each character.  One of the main themes, in Amir’s case is Betrayal, the betrayal towards his best friend Hassan. Throughout Hassan’s and Amir’s friendship, Hassan always put Amir first in everything. He said, “a thousand times over” to Amir, expressing his endless amount of loyalty he has for Amir. But in return Amir hides away, watching his friend’s assault, and then acts ignorant when Hassan limps to him with the kite. This act of cowardice so haunts Amir that just when we think that it cannot get worse and that Amir will confess or at least make up with Hassan, he further betrays his friend by forcing Hassan and his father out of their home. The time in which Amir betrayed Hassan in their friendship was never redeemed until later on in the novel, Amir had to live with the guilt and sadness he felt towards Hassan. In a way, betrayal drives the rest of the book and perhaps everything that precedes it. Although, the main betrayal of the book happens in Chapter 7 when Amir doesn’t protect Hassan from Assef, there are plenty more throughout the novel. Another part of betrayal is between Baba and Amir; Baba stole Amir’s right to know that Hassan was his true brother. Baba lied to Amir his whole life about Hassan just being a family friend and betrayed him of this truth, which lead Amir to treat Hassan differently then he would have if he had known he was in fact his own brother. Another strong theme throughout the novel is Redemption. Amir lives his life after Hassan has left in hope that he can redeem himself one day. The guilt he feels is to strong for Amir to keep what happened in the past. Towards the end of the novel Amir finds Hassan’s son, long after Hassan’s death. Amir takes Sohrab in as his own and in this case can love and care for Sohrab and keep him safe, it would be what Hassan would want. Although Amir can never thank or speak to Hassan personally, he can spend the rest of his life making sure Sohrab never goes through what Hassan experienced.

An aspect of characterization

The narrator of the novel, Amir, develops and grows a lot throughout the novel. He shows a selfish character at times and he shows to be jealous, also suffering from guilt. I think these traits make up Amir’s character and relates to the certain actions that he takes and the choices that he makes. In the beginning of Amir’s character, his only real concern was to make his father proud and be the best he could be. He spent time with his good friend Hassan, who adored and cared for him. But with doing so he always knew his father looked at Hassan differently and Amir always envied this. Amir’s character showed to be a coward when the rape scene between Assef and Hassan accrued. Amir saw this happen and did nothing to stop or help Hassan, he ran off and pretended he did not know where Hassan got to. Amir’s character shows great weakness here in which he did not stand up to those bullies and let his dear friend suffer. This event also lead to Amir’s suffering with guilt. After never feeling relieved from his mothers death he now faces the guilt of never helping Hassan when he had the chance. Knowing Hassan would always be there for Amir no matter what, Amir could not return this loyalty. As Amir grew up he never forgot about Hassan and he knew his purpose in life was to get the chance to be good again. Amir’s character loses his selfishness and cowardice as he grows but guilt will always follow him until he was awarded with Hassan’s son, Sohrab. Taking care of Sohrab was Amir’s way of returning his appreciation to Hassan. Amir was able to love through Sohrab to Hassan and hoped that in some way Hassan would know that all Amir can do is just love and care for his son.