Pashtuns In The Kite Runner

The Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, widely referred to as simply Afghanistan, is a country located within South-Central Asia and iis the home of over 32 million people . Within the Afghan population, there are over 13 recognized ethnicities. Among those ethnicities are Pashtuns and Hazaras. Currently, Pashtuns make up 42% (13,440,000) of the total population and Hazaras make up about 8% (2,560,000) of it (cia.gov, “Afghanistan”). Though both of these peoples hail from the same country and grew up on the same land, they are very different. Pashtuns, due to their mix of African and European ancestry, generally have straight to large, loose curly hair, broad, long noses with close, deep set eyes and olive to light brown skin. Whereas Hazaras
The book, narrated by its main character, Amir, starts off in America as Amir, who is as that moment an adult, as he recollects his life after receiving a letter from his friend, Rahim Khan, pleading for Amir to return to Pakistan. Amir tells the tale of growing up alongside his best friend/servant named Hassan who he later found out to be his half brother. Hassan is a Hazara whereas Amir is a Pashtun. At first, this is a difference unseen by AMir, but as the novel progresses and so does their lives, Amir become to realize his position over Hassan granted to solely to him because of his ethnicity and religious denomination. The book shows many accurate examples of the conflict between the Sunni Muslim Pashtuns and the Shi’a Muslim Hazaras as well as the gruesome discrimination the Hazaras face everyday. As Amir and Hassan were leaving to go kite running, Ali, Hassan’s father, is mumbling a prayer and that “...he always said a prayer when his son left the house.” (Hosseini, 60) Hs father, and rightfully so, was afraid of what might happen to Hassan because he was Hazara. As shown in the book and through real life examples, people of Hazara descent are considered sub-human. As Amir was walking through the Bazaar looking for Hassan, he asks one of the merchants there if he had seen him. The merchant pressed Amir to tell him what Hassan and his relationship was, he said “He’s our
Hassan refused and was shot dead, his wife, Farzana came to his aid and they shot her as well. The murders were dismissed as an act of self-defense. The Taliban members said that they were “trespassing”. The neighbors had seen what had happened but they were all Pashtun and “...no one was going to risk anything for a pair of Hazara servants.” (220) Toward the end of the novel, Amir and Farid, the man who transported Amir from Peshawar to Kabul secretly and safely who eventually becomes friends with Amir, were talking when Farid asks Amir why he returned to Afghanistan. To which Amir replies that it is for Sohrab, Hassan’s son, as he had mentioned before. Farid then says “No… what I meant to ask is why that boy? You come all the way from America for… a Shi’a.”