The Kite Runner
The
Kite Runner is the first
novel by Afghan-American author Khaled
Hosseini.[1] Published in 2003 by Riverhead
Books, it tells the story of Amir, a
young boy from the Wazir Akbar Khan
district of Kabul, whose closest friend is Hassan. The story is set against a
backdrop of tumultuous events, from the fall of Afghanistan's monarchy through the Soviet military intervention, the exodus of refugees to Pakistan
and the United States, and the rise of the Taliban regime.
Hosseini
has commented that he considers The Kite Runner to be a father–son
story, emphasizing the familial aspects of the narrative, an element that he
continued to use in his later works.[2] Themes of guilt and redemption feature prominently in the
novel,[3]
with a pivotal scene depicting an act of sexual assault that happens against
Hassan that Amir fails to prevent. The situation as a whole was the main reason
why Amir and Hassan's friendship ended. The latter half of the book centers on
Amir's attempts to atone for this transgression by rescuing Hassan's son two
decades later.
The
Kite Runner became a bestseller after being
printed in paperback and was popularized in book clubs. It was a number one New
York Times bestseller for over two years,[4]
with over seven million copies sold in the United States.[5] Reviews were generally positive, though parts of the plot
drew significant controversy in Afghanistan. A number of adaptations were
created following publication, including a 2007 film of the same name, several stage performances, and a graphic novel.
Composition and publication
Khaled
Hosseini worked as a medical internist at
Kaiser Hospital in Mountain View, California for several years before publishing The Kite Runner.[3][6][7] In 1999, Hosseini learned through a news report that the
Taliban had banned kite flying in Afghanistan,[8] a restriction he found particularly cruel.[9] The news "struck a personal chord" for him, as he
had grown up with the sport while living in Afghanistan. He was motivated to
write a 25-page short story about two boys who fly kites in Kabul.[8] Hosseini submitted copies to Esquire
and The New Yorker,
both of which rejected it.[9] He rediscovered the manuscript in his garage in March 2001
and began to expand it to novel format at the suggestion of a friend.[8][9] According to Hosseini, the narrative became "much
darker" than he originally intended.[8] His editor, Cindy Spiegel, "helped him rework the last
third of his manuscript", something she describes as relatively common for
a first novel.[9]
As
with Hosseini's subsequent novels, The Kite Runner covers a
multigenerational period and focuses on the relationship between parents and
their children.[2] The latter was unintentional; Hosseini developed an
interest in the theme while in the process of writing.[2] He later divulged that he frequently came up with pieces of
the plot by drawing pictures of it.[7] For example, he did not decide to make Amir and Hassan
brothers until after he had "doodled it".[7]
Like
Amir, the protagonist of the novel, Hosseini was born in Afghanistan and left
the country as a youth, not returning until 2003.[10] Thus, he was frequently questioned about the extent of the
autobiographical aspects of the book.[9] In response, he said, "When I say some of it is me,
then people look unsatisfied. The parallels are pretty obvious, but ... I
left a few things ambiguous because I wanted to drive the book clubs
crazy."[9] Having left the country around the time of the Soviet
invasion, he felt a certain amount of survivor's
guilt: "Whenever I read stories about
Afghanistan my reaction was always tinged with guilt. A lot of my childhood
friends had a very hard time. Some of our cousins died. One died in a fuel
truck trying to escape Afghanistan [an incident that Hosseini fictionalizes in The
Kite Runner]. Talk about guilt. He was one of the kids I grew up with
flying kites. His father was shot."[2][11] Regardless, he maintains that the plot is fictional.[8] Later, when writing his second novel, A Thousand Splendid Suns (then titled Dreaming in Titanic City), Hosseini
remarked that he was happy that the main characters were women as it
"should put the end to the autobiographical question once and for
all."[9]
Riverhead
Books published The Kite Runner,
ordering an initial printing of 50,000 copies in hardback.[9][12] It was released on May 29, 2003, and the paperback edition
was released a year later.[9][13] Hosseini took a year-long absence from practicing medicine
to promote the book, signing copies, speaking at various events, and raising
funds for Afghan causes.[9] Originally published in English, The Kite Runner was
later translated into 42 languages for publication in 38 countries.[14] In 2013, Riverhead released the 10th anniversary edition with
a new gold-rimmed cover and a foreword by Hosseini.[15] That same year, on May 21, Khaled
Hosseini published another book called And the Mountains Echoed.
Plot summary
Part I
Amir,
a well-to-do Pashtun
boy, and Hassan, a Hazara
who is the son of Ali, Amir's father's servant, spend their days kite
fighting in the hitherto peaceful city of
Kabul. Flying kites was a way to escape the horrific reality the two boys were
living in. Hassan is a successful "kite runner" for Amir; he knows
where the kite will land without watching it. Both boys are motherless: Amir's
mother died in childbirth, while Hassan's mother, Sanaubar, simply abandoned
him and Ali. Amir's father, a wealthy merchant Amir affectionately refers to as
Baba, loves both boys. He makes a point of buying Hassan exactly the
same things as Amir, to Amir's annoyance. He even pays to have Hassan's cleft
lip surgically corrected. On the other hand, Baba is often critical of Amir,
considering him weak and lacking in courage, even threatening to physically
punish him when he complains about Hassan. Amir finds a kinder fatherly figure
in Rahim Khan, Baba's closest friend, who understands him and supports his
interest in writing, whereas Baba considers that interest to be worthy only of
females. In a rare moment when Amir is sitting on Baba's lap rather than being
shooed away as a bother he asks why his father drinks alcohol which is
forbidden by Islam. Baba tells him that the Mullahs are hypocrites and the only real sin is theft which takes
many forms.
Assef,
an older boy with a sadistic taste for violence, mocks Amir for socializing with a
Hazara, which according to him, is an inferior race whose members belong only
in Hazarajat. Assef is himself only half Pashtun, having a German mother
and a typical blond haired blue eyed German appearance. One day, he prepares to
attack Amir with brass knuckles,
but Hassan defends Amir, threatening to shoot out Assef's eye with his
slingshot. Assef backs off but swears to take revenge one day.
One
triumphant day, Amir wins the local kite fighting tournament and finally earns
Baba's praise. Hassan runs for the last cut kite, a great trophy, saying to
Amir, "For you, a thousand times over." However, after finding the
kite, Hassan encounters Assef in an alleyway. Hassan refuses to give up the
kite, and Assef severely beats him and rapes him. Amir witnesses the act but is
too scared to intervene. He knows that if he fails to bring home the kite, Baba
would be less proud of him. He feels incredibly guilty but knows his cowardice
would destroy any hopes for Baba's affections, so he keeps quiet about the
incident. Afterwards, Amir keeps distant from Hassan; his feelings of guilt
prevent him from interacting with the boy. Hassan's mental and physical
well-being begin to deteriorate.
Amir
begins to believe that 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. Although Baba
believes "there is no act more wretched than stealing", he forgives
him. To Baba's sorrow, Hassan and Ali leave anyway, because Hassan has told Ali
what happened to him. Amir is freed of the daily reminder of his cowardice and
betrayal, but he still lives in their shadow.
Part II
In
1979, five years later, the Soviet Union militarily intervened in Afghanistan. Baba and Amir escape to Peshawar, Pakistan,
and then to Fremont, California,
where they settle in a run-down apartment. Baba begins work at a gas station.
After graduating from high school, Amir takes classes at San Jose State University to develop his writing skills. Every Sunday, Baba and Amir
make extra money selling used goods at a flea market
in San Jose.
There, Amir meets fellow refugee Soraya Taheri and her family. Baba is
diagnosed with terminal 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 his father's best friend (and his childhood father
figure) Rahim Khan. Khan, who is dying, asks Amir to visit him in Peshawar. He
enigmatically tells Amir, "There is a way to be good again."
Part III
From
Rahim Khan, Amir learns that Hassan and Ali are both dead. Ali was killed by a
land mine. Hassan and his wife were killed after Hassan refused to allow the Taliban to confiscate Baba and Amir's house in Kabul. Rahim Khan
further reveals that Ali was sterile and was not Hassan's biological father.
Hassan was actually the son of Sanaubar and Baba, making him Amir's half
brother. Finally, Khan tells Amir that the reason he has called Amir to
Pakistan is to ask him to rescue Hassan's son, Sohrab, from an orphanage in
Kabul.
Amir
searches for Sohrab, accompanied by Farid, an Afghan taxi driver and veteran of
the war with the Soviets. They learn that a Taliban official comes to the
orphanage often, brings cash, and usually takes a girl away with him.
Occasionally he chooses a boy, recently Sohrab. The orphanage director tells
Amir how to find the official, and Farid secures an appointment at his home by
claiming to have "personal business" with him.
Amir
meets the Taliban leader, who reveals himself as Assef. Sohrab is being kept at
Assef's house as a dancing boy.
Assef agrees to relinquish him if Amir can beat him in a fight. Assef then
badly beats Amir, breaking several bones, until Sohrab uses a slingshot to fire
a brass ball into Assef's left eye. Sohrab helps Amir out of the house, where
he passes out and wakes up in a hospital.
Amir
tells Sohrab of his plans to take him back to America and possibly adopt him.
However, American authorities demand evidence of Sohrab's orphan status. Amir
tells Sohrab that he may have to go back to the orphanage for a little while as
they have encountered a problem in the adoption process, and Sohrab, terrified
about returning to the orphanage, attempts suicide. Amir eventually manages to
take him back to the United States. After his adoption, Sohrab refuses to
interact with Amir or Soraya until Amir reminisces about Hassan and kites and
shows off some of Hassan's tricks. In the end, Sohrab only gives a lopsided
smile, but Amir takes it with all his heart as he runs the kite for Sohrab,
saying, "For you, a thousand times over."
Characters
- Amir (named Amir Qadiri in 2007 film adaptation, surname is not given in book) is the protagonist and narrator of the novel. Khaled Hosseini acknowledged that the character is "an unlikable coward who failed to come to the aid of his best friend" for much of the duration of the story; consequently, Hosseini chose to create sympathy for Amir through circumstances rather than the personality he was given until the last third of the book.[16] Born into a Pashtun family in 1963, his mother died while giving birth to him. As a child, he enjoys storytelling and is encouraged by Rahim Khan to become a well known writer. At age 18, he and his father flee to America following the Soviet Military invasion of Afghanistan, where he pursues his dream of being a writer.
- Hassan is Amir's closest childhood friend. He is described as having a China doll face, green eyes, and a harelip. Hosseini regards him as a flat character in terms of development; he is "a lovely guy and you root for him and you love him but he's not complicated".[17]
- Assef is the main antagonist of the novel. He is the son of a Pashtun father and a German mother, and believes that Pashtuns are superior to Hazaras, although he himself is not a full Pashtun. As a teenager, he is a neighborhood bully and is enamored with Hitler and Nazism. He is described as a "sociopath" by Amir. He rapes Hassan to get revenge on Amir. As an adult, he joins the Taliban and sexually abuses Hassan's son, Sohrab and other children of Sohrab's orphanage.
- Baba is Amir's father and a wealthy businessman who aids the community by creating businesses for others and building a new orphanage. He is the biological father of Hassan, a fact he hides from both of his children, and seems to favor him over Amir. Baba does not endorse the extremist religious views of the clerics at Amir's school. After fleeing to America, he works at a gas station. He dies from cancer in 1987, shortly after Amir and Soraya's wedding.
- Ali is Baba's servant, a Hazara believed to be Hassan's father. He was adopted as a child by Baba's father after his parents were killed by a drunk driver. Before the events of the novel, Ali had been struck with polio, rendering his right leg useless. Because of this, Ali is constantly tormented by children in the town. He is later killed by a land mine in Hazarajat.
- Rahim Khan is Baba's loyal friend and business partner,
- Soraya is a young Afghan woman whom Amir meets and marries in the United States. Hosseini originally scripted the character as an American woman, but he later agreed to rewrite her as an Afghan immigrant after his editor did not find her background believable for her role in the story.[18] The change resulted in an extensive revision of Part III.[18] In the final draft, Soraya lives with her parents, Afghan general Taheri and his wife, and wants to become an English teacher. Before meeting Amir, she ran away with an Afghan boyfriend in Virginia, which, according to Afghan culture, made her unsuitable for marriage. Because Amir is unwilling to confront his own past actions, he admires Soraya for her courage in admitting to and moving beyond her past mistakes.
- Sohrab is the son of Hassan.
- Sanaubar is Ali's wife and the mother of Hassan. Shortly after Hassan's birth, she runs away from home and joins a group of traveling dancers. She later returns to Hassan in his adulthood. To make up for her neglect, she provides a grandmother figure for Sohrab, Hassan's son.
- Farid is a taxi driver who is initially abrasive toward Amir, but later befriends him. Two of Farid's seven children were killed by a land mine, a disaster which mutilated three fingers on his left hand and also took some of his toes. After spending a night with Farid's brother's impoverished family, Amir hides a bundle of money under the mattress to help them.
- General Taheri
- Jagila Taheri
- Khanum Taheri
Themes
Because
its themes of friendship, betrayal, guilt, redemption and the uneasy love
between fathers and sons are universal themes, and not specifically Afghan, the
book has been able to reach across cultural, racial, religious and gender gaps
to resonate with readers of varying backgrounds.
— Khaled Hosseini, 2005[3]
Khaled
Hosseini identifies a number of themes that appear in The Kite Runner,
but reviewers have focused on guilt and redemption.[9][11][19] As a child, Amir fails to save Hassan in an act of
cowardice and afterwards suffers from an all-consuming guilt. Even after
leaving the country, moving to America, marrying, and becoming a successful
writer, he is unable to forget the incident. Hassan is "the
all-sacrificing Christ-figure, the one who, even in death, calls Amir to
redemption".[19] Following Hassan's death at the hands of the Taliban, Amir
begins to redeem himself through the rescue of Hassan's son, Sohrab.[20] Hosseini draws parallels during the search for Sohrab to
create an impression of poetic
justice; for example, Amir sustains a split
lip after being severely beaten, similar to Hassan's harelip.[20] Despite this, some critics questioned whether the
protagonist had fully redeemed himself.[21]
Amir's
motivation for the childhood betrayal is rooted in his insecurities regarding
his relationship with his father.[22] The relationship between parents and their children
features prominently in the novel, and in an interview, Hosseini elaborated:
Both
[The Kite Runner and A Thousand Splendid Suns] are
multigenerational, and so the relationship between parent and child, with all
of its manifest complexities and contradictions, is a prominent theme. I did
not intend this, but I am keenly interested, it appears, in the way parents and
children love, disappoint, and in the end honor each other. In one way, the two
novels are corollaries: The Kite Runner was a father-son story, and A
Thousand Splendid Suns can be seen as a mother-daughter story.[2]
When
adapting The Kite Runner for the theatre, Director Eric Rose stated that
he was drawn into the narrative by the "themes of betraying your best
friend for the love of your father", which he compared to Shakespearean literature.[23] Throughout the story, Amir craves his father's affection;[22] his father, in turn, loves Amir but favors Hassan,[20] going as far as to pay for plastic surgery to repair the
latter's cleft lip.[24]
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