Sarah McAllister
The Kite Runner
Khaled Hosseini
2003
Nonfiction
Afghanistan, Sunni and Shi’a Muslim
Summary:
The Kite Runner is about a boy named Amir and his friend Hassan, who live in the Wazir Akbar Khan region of Afghanistan during the beginnings of the Taliban crisis and US intervention. The Kite Runner focuses on the racial differences that are deeply embedded within Afghan culture. The Pashtuns, the classification that Amir and Baba fall under, have persecuted the Hazaras, what Hassan and Ali are classified as, for centuries. Not only does the racial differences have a large impact on their interactions, but so do the religious differences. Shi’a and Sunni Muslim are the biggest sects of Islam within Afghanistan, and this causes quite a few differences between those of the sects. While these differences are prominent, they are never acted on violently, until the introduction of the Taliban, a group of radical Islamists. The Taliban forces wreak havoc in Kabul and the rest of Afghanistan, and Baba and Amir flee to Pakistan, and then later to America to escape. While in America, all Baba does is complain about missing Afghanistan, and Amir tries to find his way in a country that is completely foreign to him. Later on, Amir travels back to Afghanistan and then stumbles upon Hassan, and both are terrorized by Assef, who is now a leader in the Taliban. Amir makes it back to America, along with Hassan’s son Sohrab, and begins trying to live in the memory of Afghanistan once again.
Reflection Questions:
The Kite Runner indicates the importance of traditions and of nang and namoos on the culture of Afghanistan and how Afghanistan is structured. Nang and namoos are what the men of Afghanistan live by, and what structures their actions, how they greet people, and how they interact with other people. Because of this, there is a cultural divide between men and women within the Afghan culture. The subject of women is not touched on early in the book, but later on once Amir is married, it becomes more prominent. Women are not equal to men, and do not have the same ability to speak freely and create a name for themselves. However, the gap between the equality of women and men in Afghanistan is small during the time of the book compared to the gap between economic classes and between races within Afghanistan. The Hazaras and Pashtuns have the largest gap, however, in Afghanistan culture due to their races. The Hazaras have been deeply oppressed by the Pashtuns for centuries, and were the prevailing race in the lowest economic class as well. However, once the Taliban took over Afghanistan, they began massacring the Hazaras at an alarming rate. This has since improved, as seen with the new constitution of 2004. The Kite Runner shows off the beauty of pre-war Afghanistan, a beauty which has been long since ignored by the rest of the world, as the majority of Afghan people now have known the violence and displacement their entire lives. The war wreaked havoc on Afghanistan, and the gradual changes that occurred as a result of the foreign-involved conflict as shown by Amir and what his family needed to do in order to survive.
Parallels that I found between my culture and that of the rich culture described within the novel is that the racial differences that have been described by the persecutors and not the persecuted. In American society, we often see a discrimination between the dominant race and the minorities living within the country. They are often treated as outsiders, attacked, and oppressed. In Afghanistan during the time of the novel, the same thing was occurring, as the Pashtuns continued to oppress the Hazaras. When Amir brings up the persecution of the Hazaras and their history during class, the teacher simply laughs and shrugs off the notion as being unimportant, just as Americans do when they are faced with a story from a race that is different than them.
I connected strongly with Amir, and the events leading up to his father’s death. Recently, my family went through the same thing, as my maternal grandfather was suddenly diagnosed with an aggressive brain tumor after hiding his symptoms for a few weeks. We were shocked and angry, and desperately wanted him to go through with either radiation or chemotherapy, but he refused. I was just like Amir, taking the time to do things with my grandfather that I normally would have taken for granted, and feeling lost and sad at the same time. I feel that Amir was struggling worse than I was at the time, but we both grieved just as hard for our lost ones, barely letting anyone see us cry, and only breaking down when no one was around to see us be weak in a moment where we had to stand in front of people and greet them, talk to them, and listen to how wonderful they were.
The central conflict presented within this book is the conflict that Amir has when he sees Hassan getting raped in the alleyway by Assef and his two accomplices. Amir pushes Hassan away, in an attempt to get rid of the cowardice that he feels towards the situation. Amir thinks that he is finally able to escape the entire situation when he is able to frame Hassan as having stolen from Amir, and Ali decides that they are going to leave for another village, where he has family. Amir thinks that he has finally been able to escape from the situation, and is able to forget about Hassan for the most part, and is able to live his life in peace. However, when Rahim Khan calls him from Afghanistan, Amir goes back and learns that Hassan was actually his brother, and was killed because he was suspected of taking over a Pashtun home that had been abandoned during the Taliban massacre period of the Hazara people. Amir’s conflict of wanting to tell Hassan everything is never solved, only momentarily forgotten about as he lives his own life. Amir is able to sedate the conflict by adopting his nephew and bring him to America, so that Sorhab would be able to live the life that Hassan never had the luxury of having. I feel the way that Amir handled the situation could have been healthier for both him and Hassan, rather than causing them so much pain. However, Amir reacted to his emotional and mental ability and maturity that he had at the time of the catalyst of the conflict. I feel that the root of Hassan’s assault is culturally based, but the entire concept of the conflict is universal. Rape is something seen in nearly every country every day, and often times people do not know how to cope when they witness someone being raped.
This greatly changed my worldview, as I had never actually learned about what had triggered the conflict in Afghanistan. I had not even been born until after America had gotten involved in the conflict due to the nature of September 11, 2001. All I had ever learned about the conflict occurring was that the Taliban was a group of radical Islamists, and they had a hatred of America. Learning about the full history of the conflict raging in Afghanistan gives me a better insight into what these refugees are trying to escape. I had never thought about why they would want to leave their country to come to America, where everything is so vast, but it was never about that. The Afghans fleeing their country are seeking freedom from all forms of persecution - religious, social, outdated cultural norms, and speech. I had never known any of this beforehand, and while I was reading, did research on things that I came across in order to learn more about Afghanistan’s history, as their history is often heavily overlooked by European and Asian history.
I feel extremely guilty for thinking this, but at one point in my life, I did not know that the radical Islamists were any different than the rest of Muslims, and that the Taliban was supported by all of those living in Afghanistan. I now know that this way of thinking is extremely backwards, as the Taliban and the Russians that came before them were heavily opposed, and unwanted by the majority of the population. Most Afghans were content with the lives that they were living, and those who were not as religious as their peers were not punished for not practicing the religion. I also, before reading The Kite Runner and doing some of my own research, thought that there was only one sect of Islam and that it did not differ by region. I then learned of the Sunni and Shi’a Muslims, which are the predominant sects of Islam in Afghanistan. The Kite Runner ultimately opened my eyes to a culture and a religion that I had very little knowledge on, and managed to teach me valuable viewpoints and truths to which I had never been exposed.
The Kite Runner
Khaled Hosseini
2003
Nonfiction
Afghanistan, Sunni and Shi’a Muslim
Summary:
The Kite Runner is about a boy named Amir and his friend Hassan, who live in the Wazir Akbar Khan region of Afghanistan during the beginnings of the Taliban crisis and US intervention. The Kite Runner focuses on the racial differences that are deeply embedded within Afghan culture. The Pashtuns, the classification that Amir and Baba fall under, have persecuted the Hazaras, what Hassan and Ali are classified as, for centuries. Not only does the racial differences have a large impact on their interactions, but so do the religious differences. Shi’a and Sunni Muslim are the biggest sects of Islam within Afghanistan, and this causes quite a few differences between those of the sects. While these differences are prominent, they are never acted on violently, until the introduction of the Taliban, a group of radical Islamists. The Taliban forces wreak havoc in Kabul and the rest of Afghanistan, and Baba and Amir flee to Pakistan, and then later to America to escape. While in America, all Baba does is complain about missing Afghanistan, and Amir tries to find his way in a country that is completely foreign to him. Later on, Amir travels back to Afghanistan and then stumbles upon Hassan, and both are terrorized by Assef, who is now a leader in the Taliban. Amir makes it back to America, along with Hassan’s son Sohrab, and begins trying to live in the memory of Afghanistan once again.
Reflection Questions:
The Kite Runner indicates the importance of traditions and of nang and namoos on the culture of Afghanistan and how Afghanistan is structured. Nang and namoos are what the men of Afghanistan live by, and what structures their actions, how they greet people, and how they interact with other people. Because of this, there is a cultural divide between men and women within the Afghan culture. The subject of women is not touched on early in the book, but later on once Amir is married, it becomes more prominent. Women are not equal to men, and do not have the same ability to speak freely and create a name for themselves. However, the gap between the equality of women and men in Afghanistan is small during the time of the book compared to the gap between economic classes and between races within Afghanistan. The Hazaras and Pashtuns have the largest gap, however, in Afghanistan culture due to their races. The Hazaras have been deeply oppressed by the Pashtuns for centuries, and were the prevailing race in the lowest economic class as well. However, once the Taliban took over Afghanistan, they began massacring the Hazaras at an alarming rate. This has since improved, as seen with the new constitution of 2004. The Kite Runner shows off the beauty of pre-war Afghanistan, a beauty which has been long since ignored by the rest of the world, as the majority of Afghan people now have known the violence and displacement their entire lives. The war wreaked havoc on Afghanistan, and the gradual changes that occurred as a result of the foreign-involved conflict as shown by Amir and what his family needed to do in order to survive.
Parallels that I found between my culture and that of the rich culture described within the novel is that the racial differences that have been described by the persecutors and not the persecuted. In American society, we often see a discrimination between the dominant race and the minorities living within the country. They are often treated as outsiders, attacked, and oppressed. In Afghanistan during the time of the novel, the same thing was occurring, as the Pashtuns continued to oppress the Hazaras. When Amir brings up the persecution of the Hazaras and their history during class, the teacher simply laughs and shrugs off the notion as being unimportant, just as Americans do when they are faced with a story from a race that is different than them.
I connected strongly with Amir, and the events leading up to his father’s death. Recently, my family went through the same thing, as my maternal grandfather was suddenly diagnosed with an aggressive brain tumor after hiding his symptoms for a few weeks. We were shocked and angry, and desperately wanted him to go through with either radiation or chemotherapy, but he refused. I was just like Amir, taking the time to do things with my grandfather that I normally would have taken for granted, and feeling lost and sad at the same time. I feel that Amir was struggling worse than I was at the time, but we both grieved just as hard for our lost ones, barely letting anyone see us cry, and only breaking down when no one was around to see us be weak in a moment where we had to stand in front of people and greet them, talk to them, and listen to how wonderful they were.
The central conflict presented within this book is the conflict that Amir has when he sees Hassan getting raped in the alleyway by Assef and his two accomplices. Amir pushes Hassan away, in an attempt to get rid of the cowardice that he feels towards the situation. Amir thinks that he is finally able to escape the entire situation when he is able to frame Hassan as having stolen from Amir, and Ali decides that they are going to leave for another village, where he has family. Amir thinks that he has finally been able to escape from the situation, and is able to forget about Hassan for the most part, and is able to live his life in peace. However, when Rahim Khan calls him from Afghanistan, Amir goes back and learns that Hassan was actually his brother, and was killed because he was suspected of taking over a Pashtun home that had been abandoned during the Taliban massacre period of the Hazara people. Amir’s conflict of wanting to tell Hassan everything is never solved, only momentarily forgotten about as he lives his own life. Amir is able to sedate the conflict by adopting his nephew and bring him to America, so that Sorhab would be able to live the life that Hassan never had the luxury of having. I feel the way that Amir handled the situation could have been healthier for both him and Hassan, rather than causing them so much pain. However, Amir reacted to his emotional and mental ability and maturity that he had at the time of the catalyst of the conflict. I feel that the root of Hassan’s assault is culturally based, but the entire concept of the conflict is universal. Rape is something seen in nearly every country every day, and often times people do not know how to cope when they witness someone being raped.
This greatly changed my worldview, as I had never actually learned about what had triggered the conflict in Afghanistan. I had not even been born until after America had gotten involved in the conflict due to the nature of September 11, 2001. All I had ever learned about the conflict occurring was that the Taliban was a group of radical Islamists, and they had a hatred of America. Learning about the full history of the conflict raging in Afghanistan gives me a better insight into what these refugees are trying to escape. I had never thought about why they would want to leave their country to come to America, where everything is so vast, but it was never about that. The Afghans fleeing their country are seeking freedom from all forms of persecution - religious, social, outdated cultural norms, and speech. I had never known any of this beforehand, and while I was reading, did research on things that I came across in order to learn more about Afghanistan’s history, as their history is often heavily overlooked by European and Asian history.
I feel extremely guilty for thinking this, but at one point in my life, I did not know that the radical Islamists were any different than the rest of Muslims, and that the Taliban was supported by all of those living in Afghanistan. I now know that this way of thinking is extremely backwards, as the Taliban and the Russians that came before them were heavily opposed, and unwanted by the majority of the population. Most Afghans were content with the lives that they were living, and those who were not as religious as their peers were not punished for not practicing the religion. I also, before reading The Kite Runner and doing some of my own research, thought that there was only one sect of Islam and that it did not differ by region. I then learned of the Sunni and Shi’a Muslims, which are the predominant sects of Islam in Afghanistan. The Kite Runner ultimately opened my eyes to a culture and a religion that I had very little knowledge on, and managed to teach me valuable viewpoints and truths to which I had never been exposed.