Kite runner book summaries12/18/2023 ![]() ![]() Amir finds the man and learns that it’s Assef. There he finds that Sohrab has been taken captive by a cruel soldier. Having never overcome the guilt of his failure to run to Hassan’s aid, Amir heads back to his childhood home. Their son, Sohrab, is living in an orphanage and Rahim Khan tells Amir he has to get the boy out of the country. He also learns that Hassan and his wife were murdered by soldiers. Amir travels overseas to see him and learns the truth about his biological relationship to Hassan. Then Amir hears from his father’s old friend, Rahim Khan, who is very ill. ![]() Eventually, Amir marries and his father dies of cancer. Their lives are difficult but they survive. War threatens the country and Amir and his father manage to escape to America. Over the coming weeks, Amir’s inner turmoil grows and he tells his father that Hassan stole a watch. Amir waits some time and lies about the situation, pretending he hadn’t seen anything. Amir doesn’t intervene but watches as the boys hold Hassan down while Assef rapes him. Amir follows Hassan and discovers that Hassan is in an alley, surrounded by a group of neighborhood bullies, including a boy named Assef. Having that kite is a great honor in Amir’s culture and he knows he will earn his father’s praise for having won the tournament. Known for his ability to predict the precise landing spot, Amir knows Hassan will return with the kite. When Amir wins a kite tournament, Hassan runs to the place he knows the kite will land. When Amir is preparing for school, Hassan prepares Amir’s breakfast and school clothes. When Amir has other friends available, Hassan is not invited to play. When Amir learns the truth about Hassan’s birth, he feels even more betrayed because he had believed that his father was above such deceit.Īmir and Hassan are close friends though Hassan is always aware of the limitations because of his station in life. Amir recalls his father teaching him a person who lies is worse than any thief because it robs a person of the right to know the truth. It’s not until he’s an adult and his father is dead that Amir learns that Hassan is actually his half-brother. Amir desperately wants his father’s approval and affection and is jealous of the attention his father pays to Hassan. Hassan and Amir are the same age and have been raised together from birth, both without their mothers. Although her role, like the role of all Afghan women under the Taliban, is minor from a plot perspective, the importance that she has on Amir's character development is immense.As the story opens, Amir is a young boy living with his widowed father and their servants, Ali and Hassan. Unable to have children of her own, Soraya willingly agrees to the adoption of Sohrab. Even as an adult, Assef uses a pair of brass knuckles to demonstrate both his power and cruelty. Assef becomes a member of the Taliban who idolizes Adolf Hitler and abuses his position of power in order to demonstrate the political muscle of the men in charge. ![]() Not only is Assef a villain, but he also symbolizes all villainy. Rahim Khan also shares Baba's deepest secret with Amir.Īssef is a Kabul bully who ends up joining the Taliban. Rahim Khan encourages Amir's writing, takes care of Baba's house, brings Hassan back to Kabul, and brings Amir back to Afghanistan. Rahim Khan is Baba's best friend and business partner. Many critics consider Hassan's character "too good to be true," for even after he is betrayed by Amir, Hassan continues to lie for the person he considers his friend. Hassan epitomizes the perfect servant who is loyal to his master, even after the master betrays him. Hassan considers Amir his friend, although Amir never consciously considers Hassan as such. Hassan is Amir's playmate and servant and is a Hazara and Shi'a Muslim. Baba appears to exemplify a man who lives by his own moral code, yet he is carrying a secret that if revealed, may undermine everything he stands for. Baba is always doing things for others and always seems to expect more from his son. Baba and Amir never quite seem to connect, especially in Afghanistan. His obsession and guilty conscience, along with his adult perspective looking back on childhood events, render him a usually reliable - yet simultaneously potentially suspect - storyteller.īaba is Amir's father, who is considered a hero and leader in Kabul. A conflicted character, Amir struggles between the logical and emotional sides of his being. Often, Amir is jealous of the way Baba treats Hassan, although Amir realizes that Hassan socially has a lower place in society. ![]() Amir has conflicted feelings about his father, Baba, and his playmate, Hassan. Although not a completely sympathetic character, Amir is one for whom most readers feel compassion. Amir is the narrator and protagonist of the novel and is a Pashtun and Sunni Muslim. ![]()
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