The Kite Runner: Week 1
Post your first response by Tuesday, February 6. Throughout the week, engage in discussion by replying to a combination of six posts and replies.
The Road: Week 3
Post your second response by Tuesday, February 20. Throughout the week, engage in discussion by replying to a combination of six posts and replies.
In beginning chapters of the novel “The Kite Runner” by Khaled Hosseini we are first introduced to the first person writer, Amir. He’s writing as an adult, looking back on his Afghanistan childhood before 1975. As of here, we do not know what happened in 1975 that made him feel this way. In the following chapters he discusses the importance of Hassan and his father, Ali. Although they are seen as “less than” and more like servants, they still are practically family. Hassan and Amir act like friends, even brothers, but there is some unjust treatment when the wealthier, more respectable families are around. (Pashtuns, vs Hazaras) Soon after, the dynamics of the father son relationship between Baba and Amir are established, making it apparent that they do not see eye to eye. Amir’s goal is to one day be enough for his father. Ali takes on the father role to be sensitive towards Amir, and in turn, Baba shows great appreciation towards Hassan. Because of this, Amir acts out quite frequently towards Hassan, ridiculing his lack of schooling and making a mockery of him. When Baba grants Hassan with surgery for his cleft lip, Amir says, “I wished I too had some kind of scar that would beget Baba’s sympathy.” (page 46) This stands out as it directs to the lengths that Amir would go to be noticed by his father. As he’s growing up, he knows he’s not as manly as his father desires and he feels as if his father is ashamed of him. This is extremely important for the culture. A man was supposed to be able to fight for his family, stand up for himself. The kite tournament was at the top of Amir’s priority list because he felt as if that’s how he could redeem himself in his father’s eyes. He thought of it as his one and only chance to make his father proud, to no longer consider himself a burden for being the reason his mother passed away.
ReplyDeleteAmir and Hassan have a complex relationship, and Amir definitely has some jealousy towards Hassan and insecurity regarding his father. What do you think of Hassan's behavior and attitude towards Amir?
DeleteHassan is completely passive towards Amir. I sometimes wondered if there is more to their relationship that we don't know about. I understand that they grew up together, but the underlying connection just seems rather odd to me. Even if he isn't Pashtun, even if they are unspoken "servants," Hassan would give his life for Amir. In hindsight, he gives so much of himself he's left dehumanized and traumatized. Amir really does wish Ali was his own father, and he is a huge father figure for Amir. But Hassan doesn't get the chance to go to school and the back handed remarks upset me, I don't see why Amir has to lie to Hassan and make him feel stupid.
DeleteWhen Amir learns things at school from the Mullah, he goes on to tell his father. Even though his father willingly sends his child to school and obviously would want that for his son, he negates some of the things they teach. He even disregards teaching as a whole. Baba tells Amir “Now, no matter what the mullah teaches, there is only one sin, only one. And that is theft. Every other sin is a variation of theft.” (page 18) Even if this seemed a little odd to say in retrospect to their religion, I do see the truth behind it. I think Amir will take this with him for the rest of his life. He looks up to his father and he wants nothing more than to make him happy, and to learn his ways in order to be approved. As the book goes on, Amir does commit the sin of theft to Hassan, or at the very least contributes to it. He doesn’t help him in the ally. He allows the other boys to rob him of his well being, his dignity. He steals Hassan's loyalty, and even spins it back on to acting out towards Hassan.
ReplyDelete“I let the tears break free, rocked back and forth on my knees. “What am I going to do with you, Hassan? What am I going to do with you?” But by the time tears dried up and I trudged down the hill, I knew the answer to that question.” page 93
ReplyDeleteThis quote was after Hassan was raped, and after Amir started ignoring Hassan. Amir was so upset that Hassan wouldn’t harm him. He obviously felt an enormous amount of guilt for not stopping what he had witness. And I think this is one of the defining moments where Amir starts to be cold. This must have been what he was talking about in the beginning. The loyalty was too much for Amir, he didn’t know how Hassan could care so deeply to someone who was supposed to protect him the same was Hassan would have for Amir. I guess this goes back to my thoughts on Amir earlier, he had too much pride to risk anything. Even for someone who was practically family. He wanted to push Hassan out of his life so this way he could have a reason (when Amir was under the assumption that Hassan didn’t see him in the ally) to hate him. To come to terms with what had actually happened was too much for the both of them.
I think the mention of kites represents the loyalty and betrayal so far throughout the book. At the beginning, bringing back the kite of the person who lost to Amir, that was Amir’s ticket to his father’s heart. To see what Hassan had to go through in order to bring back the kite, it was then rooted in poison. Hassan still brought Amir his kite, and Amir just questioned why he took so long. I think that sets the tone to the rest of the piece. Kites will forever represent Amir’s greed, along with Hassan’s grief.
ReplyDelete“He positioned himself behind Hassan. Hassan didn’t struggle. Didn’t even whimper. He moved his head slightly and I caught a glimpse of his face. Saw the resignation in it. It was a look I had seen before. It was the look of a lamb.”page 76
ReplyDeleteThe language here of “look of a lamb” speaks volumes. Amir means that the this is the nature of a gentle creature to give in, give up. There was nothing Hassan could physically do, and mentally if you just dissociate and become numb then it would be easier to come to terms with, if that’s even possible. He accepted what was happening and in an even darker way, why it was. He knew all he had to do was give up the kite, but Amir meant too much to him. Amir’s pride and relationship with his father was more important to Hassan than his own physical and mental state. And I will never understand why Hassan feels like he owes Amir so much.
“I’ll never really know why, but I could imagine the two of them in that dim little hut, weeping, Hassan pleading him not to give me away. But I couldn’t imagine the restraint it must have taken Ali to keep that promise.” page 107
ReplyDeleteThis is just yet another example of the trust Ali and Hassan had. Amir craved that with his own father, it killed him to see this yet again. And especially in his sense, Amir knew he was the reason that Hassan and his father were leaving, therefore, indirectly, Amir was the cause to his father crying and begging them to stay. It bothers me that Amir let this happen, and i cant figure out why he's completely disregarding what his father said about the only sin being theft. How is this any different?