Difficult Choices in the Kite Runner
In Khaled Hosseini’s book, The Kite Runner, the author brings the reader on a journey where we are introduced to two young boys, Amir and Hassan. It is a story about their friendship and the choices they make while growing up in Kabul. Although, Amir and Hassan are raised in the same household, and are fed from same breast, they grow up in different realities: Amir is a Pashtun and the son of a rich and noble man, Hassan is a Hazara and Amir’s servant, whose father also served for Amir’s father. These two boys find themselves in many different situations and who is to tell what the right decision is? When we find ourselves caught between two options how do we know which way is the right path? The truth is, we do not. And in order to realize what decision is the right option, we need to think about the outcome. In this novel the question to be determined is which character does the right thing, Hassan or Amir.
Although Amir and Hassan are both Muslims, they follow different faiths inside their religion. Hassan, a devoted Shi’a Muslim, embraces his religion and shows how his faith provides him strength in hard times. His devotion to his faith is described by Amir when Hosseini writes, “Hassan never missed any of the five daily prayers. Even when we were out playing, he’d excuse himself, draw water from the well in the yard, wash up, and disappear into the hut” (Hosseini 69). Amir, a Sunni Muslim, is confused and doubtful about his faith. He shows this when he recalls the winter when he and Hassan were running kites, “And may God—if He exists, that is—strike me blind if the kite didn’t just drop into his outstretched arms” (Hosseini 55) . Amir’s uncertainty about God and his faith affect his decision-making often with negative consequences. Amir choices not only affect him but also Hassan, Ali, and Baba. Amir and Hassan’s social class status also affect their relationship, but it also affects how people treat them. Amir, a Pashtun, is the privileged character; Baba
Although Amir and Hassan are both Muslims, they follow different faiths inside their religion. Hassan, a devoted Shi’a Muslim, embraces his religion and shows how his faith provides him strength in hard times. His devotion to his faith is described by Amir when Hosseini writes, “Hassan never missed any of the five daily prayers. Even when we were out playing, he’d excuse himself, draw water from the well in the yard, wash up, and disappear into the hut” (Hosseini 69). Amir, a Sunni Muslim, is confused and doubtful about his faith. He shows this when he recalls the winter when he and Hassan were running kites, “And may God—if He exists, that is—strike me blind if the kite didn’t just drop into his outstretched arms” (Hosseini 55) . Amir’s uncertainty about God and his faith affect his decision-making often with negative consequences. Amir choices not only affect him but also Hassan, Ali, and Baba. Amir and Hassan’s social class status also affect their relationship, but it also affects how people treat them. Amir, a Pashtun, is the privileged character; Baba
Cited: Khaled Hosseini. The Kite Runner: The Berkley Publishing Group. New York: Penguin Group, 2003