Corruption In The Kite Runner

Like all countries, Afghanistan has had a long and complicated history. Towards the late 19th century the political idea of nationalism swept throughout Europe. The belief to be loyal to the state rather than government strengthened and unified countries. However, devastation and corruption has kept Afghanistan in the dark, plaguing the country with tyrants and cruel leaders well into the late 20th century. The Kite Runner, a historical fiction by Khaled Hosseini revolves around the life of a well-to-do Pashtun boy, Amir. Amir struggles in his adulthood after several traumatic experiences he has had in his childhood. Decades later he returns to his homeland in an attempt to redeem himself for what he did years before. This novel is set against
a backdrop of the tumultuous events in Afghanistan's history. In The Kite Runner, Hosseini cites important events that relate to the plot of the novel. These events have significantly impacted the characters throughout the story. Kabul is a populous city where many ethnic groups live together. However, some are more further down the line in its hierarchy than others. Afghanistan is predominantly comprised of Sunni Muslims, such as Amir. However, Hassan is a Hazara, or a Shi’a Muslim. Due to this systematic discrimination, Amir can’t openly call Hassan his friend. A couple of years after Hassan’s rape, the Russians come and take over Afghanistan. Because of this, Amir and Baba are forced flee to nearby Peshawar, Pakistan. This event directly affects Amir. It marks the end of his privileged childhood from being a wealthy Pashtun to an Afghani refugee. After the Russian regime, a new group known as the Taliban take acquisition over the country. Accepted with open arms, they deceive their people and ensue fear onto its citizens using violence. Amir, who comes back to fulfill Rahim Khan’s last wish, faces Aseff, a Taliban warlord, to both redeem himself and execute Rahim’s wish. Kabul is a city ruled by Sunni Muslims, also known as Pashtuns.
Another group, known as Hazaras, are subservient to the Sunnis because they are Shi’a Muslims. Due to their opposing views, and distinct physical characteristics, Amir can’t openly acknowledge Hassan as his friend to the general public. Amir is caught playing with Hassan by his childhood bully, Assef. In their confrontation, Amir struggles to comprehend the stigma of the Hazaras. “He (Assef) sounded baffled... “How can you call him your friend?” “But he’s not my friend! I almost blurted. He’s my servant!”...why did I play with Hassan only when no one else was around?” (Hosseini 41). In this quotation Amir compares his best friend, Hassan, to a “servant!”. Hosseini also makes the point of adding exclamation points at the end of Amir’s statements, which symbolizes how strongly opinionated he is that because they are of different social classes, they aren’t truly friends. However, we see a different side of Amir soon after. He begins to question his morals asking “why” he only played with Hassan “when no one else is around?” To further add suspense, the author ends the thought with a question mark, giving the reader the ability to ponder and answer the question for themselves. This split between the Sunni and Shi’a Muslims has greatly affected the life of Amir and as a result, has repercussions later on in his
adulthood Years after Hassan’s rape, the monarch of Afghanistan was overthrown by Mohammed Daoud Khan. In a similar fashion, the PDPA, the People’s Democratic Party of Afghanistan, staged a coup and took control of the country. The PDPA, which had close ties to the Soviet Union, instituted many political and social reforms in Afghanistan, including abolishing religious and traditional customs, forcing Amir and Baba to flee. Amir and his family were home when the first shots were fired in the vicinity. Amir recounts; “None of us had ever heard gunshots in the streets. They were foreign sounds to us then. The generation of Afghan children whose ears would know nothing but the sounds of bombs and gunfire was not yet born...none of us had any notion that a way of life had ended. Our way of life... bringing the death of the Afghanistan I knew and marking the start of a still ongoing era of bloodletting.” (Hosseini 36). In this quotation, Hosseini uses the literary device of foreshadowing. He says “They were foreign sounds to us then”. However, by saying the word “then” the reader can infer that they aren’t as foreign to them now in the present. Hosseini also uses this literary device by saying “The generation of Afghan children whose ears would know nothing but the sounds of bombs and gunfire was not yet born.” By saying “not yet born” he is implying that later on this generation would go through the hardships that are unbeknownst to Amir pre-Russian rule. Also, Hosseini uses italics to demonstrate the importance of “our.” Because he is recounting this from memory, this is symbolism for a transition in Amir’s Afghanistan. Where it would be “bringing the death of the Afghanistan I knew and marking the start of a still ongoing era of bloodletting.” The corruption and events has helped influence and impact who Amir is as a person. Scared and oppressed, the people of Afghanistan were ecstatic when the Russian regime came to an end at the hands of the Taliban. However, this grace period would be cut short. The Taliban, who were Sunni Muslims massacred many of the Shi’a Muslims, which included the Hazaras. In an effort to right his wrongs, Amir returns to Afghanistan during the Taliban rule and faces Assef, a Taliban warlord to complete Rahim’s wish. Rahim Khan recounts to Amir how jovial he was when he first learnt of the Taliban ending the Russian regime. “I told you how we all celebrated in 1996 when the Taliban rolled in and put an end to the daily fighting...He had a sober look in his eye…”God help the Hazaras now”...”The war is over, Hassan...no more killing”...A few weeks later, the Taliban banned kite fighting..they massacred the Hazaras in Mazar-i-Sharif” (Hosseini 213). In this quotation, Hosseini uses dramatic irony. Rahim “celebrated” how there would be “no more killing” when the Taliban rolled in. However, towards the end of the quote the Taliban “massacred the Hazaras in Mazar-i-Sharif.” contradicting what he said before. Also, Hosseini mentions how the Taliban banned “kite fighting”, a predominant theme to the novel. The termination of the kite fighting symbolizes the ending of all the good ties that Amir had with his childhood, in this now desolate Afghanistan. The intervention of the Taliban had impacted Amir’s life once he returned to Afghanistan and had flipped his perspective on life. Overall, in this historical fiction The Kite Runner written by Khaled Hosseini, the author writes a story with the true events of Afghanistan as its backdrop. The perspective of someone going through the motions and living in these events have influenced and impacted the characters. This novel shares several similarities with Heart of Darkness, written by Joseph Conrad. Both of these stories share the same theme of systemic discrimination. In Heart of Darkness, the Europeans feel superior to their lesser African counterparts, who they turn into slaves. Similarly, in The Kite Runner, the Sunni Muslims felt first rate to their Shi’a Muslims, who they also turned into subservient servants. While they share some of the broader themes in the book, the protagonists also share some of the same qualities. Both of these books in one way or another have the main character question and attempt to free themselves of the restraints society put on these ideals. Although in the beginning of The Kite Runner Amir feels ashamed to have Hassan with him. In order to redeem himself he needs to save Hassan’s kin and proudly calls himself his half-brother. Also in Heart of Darkness, in Marlow’s subconscious he begins to question if the Africans are really the evil ones, opting for a more broader answer that everyone is indeed capable of being evil.