Major Works Data Review Sheet

Title

The Kite Runner

Author

Khaled Hosseini

Time in which it was written

1970-2001

Themes

(universal truth about life)

· When people make a mistake they will spend their whole life looking for redemption and forgiveness.

(Amir can’t even think about his past because he didn’t stand up for his friend and whenever his character is brought up he hates himself because he’s a coward. He also looks for forgiveness because he feels responsible for his mother’s death)

· The past will always come back.- Throughout the book Amir tries to forget his past but it always comes back to haunt him. Hassan’s rape, not getting along with his dad, and running away from even silly children fights.

Major literary techniques and their significance (Include at least two of the following: characterization, setting, point of view, tone, irony, paradox, figurative language, narrative structure, symbolism, diction, or others that you notice.)

· Irony- Amir spends most of his life thinking about how great his dad was and basically hating himself because he wasn’t like him, he didn’t have his dad courage or ambition. But when he goes back to Kabul he finds out his dad betrayed his best friend too for his own benefits. Just like Amir did, the only difference being Baba moved on but Amir always feels guilty and tries to forget.

· Motifs- Rape- throughout the novel characters are under attack of being raped. Amir’s guilt is when he doesn’t stop Hassan from getting raped, late he saves Hassan’s son as a source of redemption. Rape in the book is attacking the people who can’t stand up for themselves: Hassan, Sohrab, the woman on the bus, and another boy on the bus. The ones that get raped lose their dignity and feel of no worth, similarly they are all Hazaras, who in Kabul were viewed as mortal sinners and not worthy of life. So rape symbolizes loss of dignity, represents the powerless, and emotional trauma.

· Symbols- Kite- the kite represents happiness and guilt. The happiness is because it was the one thing Amir did to connect with his dad and feel loved. It also is guilt because Amir didn’t stop the rape because he wanted the kite to give to his dad. After that scene whenever Amir sees a kite he feels ashamed.

· Imagery- Hosseini has a strong usage of imagery because he knew his readers wouldn’t understand Kabul and their traditions. It also helps explain the major changes when the Taliban went into Kabul. His imagery helps the reader with the characters culture and also to see what life was like for Hassan and Sohrab. (It’s extremely powerful because as Americans in today’s society we hear that we need to get out of the Middle East but then you read this story and wonder why there innocent people don’t deserve our help).

· Suspense- The author ends and starts each chapter with a short sentence that is most of the time full of imagery or saying, “I was wrong,” as a way to keep the book moving and get the reader to not want to put the book down.

List and brief description of all important characters

· Amir- narrator, watches Hassan get raped but doesn’t stop it so he can win his fathers affection. Is ashamed of himself the rest of the book and given the outlook of a coward until the very end when he stands up for what is right.

· Baba- Amir’s father, known by every Afghani, very rich, always helped people. Amir fights for his love the whole novel. Baba always seems disappoint with Amir. He dies of cancer in the middle and keeps a secret his whole life that Amir and Hassan are actually brothers.

· Hassan- Hassan is raised as a servant, has a cleft lip, is raped by Assef, stands up for people, couldn’t read or write as a child but had more wisdom than a person that could. Is killed protecting his family. After being raped by Assef his friendship with Amir dies and they never reconcile in person.

· Ali- Hassan’s “father” but really just took the dishonor of having a child out of wedlock to protect Baba, his master. He raises Hassan like his son. A father figure to Amir as well.

· Assef- boy who raped Hassan and later tries to do the same to his son, Sohrab. Is a leader of the Taliban and has no mercy.

· Soraya - Amir’s wife. Soraya is steady, intelligent, and always there for Amir when he needs her.

How do setting, culture, era, or social issues affect either the protagonist or the plot?

· Culture- all the characters are Afghanis and culture is a huge role, they are Muslim so they treat woman differently and have different values. This is an issue when Amir decides to marry.

· Social Issues- the climax takes place in Kabul when the Taliban are at large, the struggle between the two forms of Muslim creates the plot because that is what makes Amir feel superior to Hassan, its why Assef believes he can treat people the way he does (rape, killing), and the issue of the Taliban allowed Amir to finally redeem himself by trying to save Sohrab.

Memorable quotations and significance

“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. Looking back now, I realize I have been peeking into that deserted alley for the last twenty-six years.”

· This reinforces one of the main themes that the past will come back to haunt you. He is referring to Hassan’s rape and how he didn’t act to stop it, he hasn’t been literally going back to the alley where it happened but he keeps reliving it in his mind because he feels so guilty and can’t bury what happened.

“A boy who won’t stand up for himself becomes a man who can’t stand up to anything.”

· Baba says this about Amir, this is important because it is true in Amir’s case. He was always a coward and struggled until finally he is able to redeem himself when he is a middle aged man. The quotation revolves around a popular character trait in the book, cowardliness vs. courageousness.

Describe and explain significance of at least two major scenes

When Hassan gets raped in the alley and Amir has the ability to get involved and try to help Hassan out, but he decides not to.

This scene makes the book; it creates the theme of the past being haunting because this scars Hassan and Amir for life. Amir will always refer back to this day and run from it till one day he has to face it again. It separates the characters even more, how Hassan is selfless and puts others before him, and Amir is shy and afraid. This scene sets up the whole book and how this event tears apart a family.

When Amir comes face to face with Assef again and has the chance to save Sohrab from being raped, in the scene Amir gets his lip cut and it leaves a scar, similar to Hassan’s scar after surgery.

This is significant because the whole book Amir is ashamed of his past life and now he is finally “able to be good again,” and he takes advantage of the opportunity to redeem himself. It’s also important that he gets the scare on his lip because it shows that even though Hassan and him had stopped talking, Amir taking the beating to save Hassan’s son, and getting that scar is a resolving symbol. Even though Hassan is dead, the scar shows how they finally reconnected and were both able to accept and forgive each other, and finally love each other again. It gives Amir a peace of mind, and even though the whole situation is horrible, I feel like the scar was the authors way of saying this is a happy ending (in a morbid way), because each character had forgiven and repented.