The Kite Runner - Literary Criticism
Danil Kukovitskiy
The Kite Runner written by Khaled Hosseini can be seen as a great book but at the same time one that is too simple and easy. In discussions of The Kite Runner, one controversial issue has been the inner levels of the novel. On one hand, many people believe that the novel is filled with numerous themes that are deep and make one think about the human experience and will leave you thinking long after you finish reading it. On the other hand, there are also many literary critics who contend that opinion and say that the novel is overly sentimental and simplistic. The view I obtained while reading The Kite Runner would be in agreement with the first statement. I also believe that the novel is deep and makes one think about the choices we make and the inner workings of the human mind.
One literary critic writes “The first-person narration is a problem here for a number of reasons, not the least of which is the fact that Amir is a complete ass. Even people who liked the book have noted this issue, and while he is definitely supposed to be a flawed character, you get the impression that he is more flawed than the author believes him to be… Amir is a tourist in his own country: as a son of privilege, he really doesn’t know or understand that much about Afghanistan’s sad history, and since he is our only window, we are left not knowing much about Afghanistan, either” (Beth, http://www.outsideofadog.com/?p=311). I found this true at some level but at the same time harsh. Yes, Amir is a character who is made with flaws and the reader sees that but throughout the novel Amir grows out of them, he stops being a coward and goes to Afghanistan, he loses his spoiled life when he comes to America and is maybe humbled by it, and more importantly he saves and adopts Sohrab and gives him back his childhood. The critic also mentions that the book failed to elaborate upon the history of Afghanistan and the reader learns nothing about it. I also think that is too
The Kite Runner written by Khaled Hosseini can be seen as a great book but at the same time one that is too simple and easy. In discussions of The Kite Runner, one controversial issue has been the inner levels of the novel. On one hand, many people believe that the novel is filled with numerous themes that are deep and make one think about the human experience and will leave you thinking long after you finish reading it. On the other hand, there are also many literary critics who contend that opinion and say that the novel is overly sentimental and simplistic. The view I obtained while reading The Kite Runner would be in agreement with the first statement. I also believe that the novel is deep and makes one think about the choices we make and the inner workings of the human mind.
One literary critic writes “The first-person narration is a problem here for a number of reasons, not the least of which is the fact that Amir is a complete ass. Even people who liked the book have noted this issue, and while he is definitely supposed to be a flawed character, you get the impression that he is more flawed than the author believes him to be… Amir is a tourist in his own country: as a son of privilege, he really doesn’t know or understand that much about Afghanistan’s sad history, and since he is our only window, we are left not knowing much about Afghanistan, either” (Beth, http://www.outsideofadog.com/?p=311). I found this true at some level but at the same time harsh. Yes, Amir is a character who is made with flaws and the reader sees that but throughout the novel Amir grows out of them, he stops being a coward and goes to Afghanistan, he loses his spoiled life when he comes to America and is maybe humbled by it, and more importantly he saves and adopts Sohrab and gives him back his childhood. The critic also mentions that the book failed to elaborate upon the history of Afghanistan and the reader learns nothing about it. I also think that is too
Cited: Hosseini, Khaled. The Kite Runner. New York: Riverhead, 2004. Print. Corbett, Bob. "Book Review -- Khaled Hosseini THE KITE RUNNER." Webster University. May 2006. Web. 02 Mar. 2011. . Beth. "Outside of a Dog » Khaled Hosseini." Outside of a Dog. 18 Apr. 2005. Web. 10 Mar. 2011.