![]() ![]() Amir drops everything in America and goes to meet Rahim Khan. He wants Amir to come back to Afghanistan, cryptically telling Amir, " There is a way to be good again" (14.19). One of Baba's old friends – a man who was like a second father to Amir – calls Amir in America. After their marriage, Soraya and Amir try to have kids, but without any success. It's a beautiful wedding, and the two are very much in love. But before Baba passes away, he arranges Amir's marriage to Soraya. When Amir discovers Baba hacking up blood (never a good sign in a novel), they go to the doctor. His immense wealth doesn't make it from Afghanistan to the States, and Baba works long hours in a gas station. On the bright side, Amir falls in love with a foxy young lady, Soraya, at the flea market. They sell used goods at a flea market for extra money. Although Baba works hard in Fremont, he and Amir struggle to make ends meet. From there, they fly to California.Īmerica changes everything for Amir and Baba. So Amir and Baba pack up and sneak across the border to Pakistan. Things get increasingly worse for Amir and Baba – the Soviets have spies everywhere and it's just not safe in Kabul anymore. The Fremont YearsĪround the same time of the kite-fighting tournament, war comes to Afghanistan. Because he's got a heart of gold and because he knows Baba would never forgive Amir for his treachery, Hassan confesses to stealing the money and watch. After his birthday party, Amir stuffs a wad of cash and a watch under Hassan's mattress. Instead of telling Baba what happened, or confessing to Hassan that he saw the rape, Amir decides to drive Ali and Hassan away. But the guilt begins to wear on Amir – how can he go on with life if just seeing Hassan reminds him of his cowardice? Also, Baba seems even more affectionate toward Hassan, which adds jealousy to Amir's list of mounting troubles.Īmir's solution to all this is cruel and cowardly. ![]() Hassan is shaken up after the incident in the alleyway, but he doesn't talk with Amir about it. ![]() It's horrific on a number of levels: Amir's cowardice, Assef's cruelty, Hassan's victimization, and the general feeling of all parties involved that a Hazara doesn't deserve the respect afforded to the ethnic majority in Afghanistan. To make matters worse, Amir has just arrived but he doesn't have the guts to stand up for Hassan. To teach Hassan a lesson, Assef rapes Hassan in an alleyway while Wali and Kamal watch. Amir and Hassan have had run-ins with these no-good punks before and now Assef, the ring-leader, wants revenge. He snags it, but he also runs into three unsavory characters: Wali, Kamal, and Assef. Hassan takes off after the defeated kite. (Question: Is this a reverse case of a parent trying to buy a child's love?) All he needs now is for Hassan to chase down the defeated kite, and he'll have his father's love. After some snazzy strategy and a little luck, Amir actually wins. So Amir and Hassan set off to win the annual winter kite-fighting tournament. This involves long kite strings coated in tar and glass the point is to cut the string of the other kites. In Afghanistan, people not only fly kites, they fight them. What's our protagonist to do? Well, the only thing he can do: win a kite-fighting tournament and thus earn his father's love. In fact, it sometimes seems like Baba has more affection for his servant boy, Hassan. Baba seems to dislike Amir – he's weak and likes poetry instead of bloodthirsty sports, etc. To make things a bit more uncomfortable, Amir doesn't get nearly enough attention from his father. Though Amir and Baba rarely toss off ethnic slurs at them, Ali gets some abuse from the neighborhood boys. They don't have the same status as Amir and Baba. Ali and Hassan are Hazaras, which means they're from an ethnic minority. There's some tension, though, in the household. As the book likes to point out, they also share the same wet nurse (a woman who nursed them as babies). (Who, if you're keeping score, are also a father and son duo.) Amir's mother died giving birth to him, and Hassan's mom ran off soon after he was born – so the two young boys both grow up without mothers. Our protagonist, Amir, lives in a fairly posh house with his father, whom he calls Baba, and their servants, Ali and Hassan. It's like the Big Bang – the rest of The Kite Runner's universe takes shape around the early events of the novel. We'll spend a little more time on the first section since it really sets the rest of the book in motion. The plot covers multiple betrayals and offers the possibility of redemption – though by no means is redemption assured. The Kite Runner easily divides into three main sections: Amir's childhood in Kabul Amir and Baba's years in Fremont, California and, finally, Amir's return to Kabul.
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