Kanvinde 1
Shantanu Kanvinde
Ms. Beach
Honors English 10
26 October 2011
SOAPSTone: The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini
Speaker

The novel is written in first person.

Khaled Hosseini writes as Amir, a young Afghani man.

Some of Amir’s narrations mirror the stories of Hosseini’s childhood in Afghanistan and
later in California.

Amir was born in the summer of 1963, as he turns thirteen in 1976 (“I turned thirteen that
summer of 1976, Afghanistan’s last summer of peace and anonymity” (93)).

Amir does not die in the time period of this novel.

In his childhood, Amir lives in the wealthy district of Wazir Akbar Khan, in Kabul, the
capital of Afghanistan.

In Arabic, Amir’s name, ‫ األم ير‬, translates to “prince”.

Amir is an intellectual, much to his father’s dismay. He writes stories and eventually
grows up to be a writer, even though his father would have preferred that he would get a
job that involved “ ‘real work’ ” (134).

Amir has a tendency towards self-depreciation, especially when being compared, either
by others or by himself, to Baba and even Hassan.

Amir appears to be very jealous of Hassan, as he claims that “Hassan hadn’t done
anything to earn Baba’s affections…” (46), but at the same time, he has a vast amount of
Kanvinde 2
brotherly affection towards Hassan, demonstrated at the kite fighting tournament, when
he corrects Hassan, who says “You won, Amir agha! You won!” (66), in saying “We
won! We won!” (66).

Amir’s greatest desire is to win his father’s affections.

Amir blames himself for the fact that Ali and Hassan must leave, in that he does not
intervene when Assef rapes Hassan.

Amir and his father move to Fremont, California, between 1980 and 1983.

Amir becomes an accomplished author.

Amir returns to Afghanistan in 2001, after Rahim Khan requests that Amir would visit
him, and then instructs Amir to search out Hassan’s son, Sohrab, in Kabul.

Amir ends up adopting Sohrab and bringing him to live with him [Amir] and Soraya in
Fremont.

Many similarities exist between Amir and the author, Khaled Hosseini.

Khaled Hosseini was born on March 4, 1965, in Kabul, Afghanistan.

Much like Amir, Hosseini had a Hazara servant in his household that he bonded with and
taught to read and write.

After the Saur Revolution in 1980 in Afghanistan, Hosseini’s family sought political
asylum in the United States and it was granted. They moved to San José, California.

Hosseini earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Biology from the Santa Clara University in 1988,
and a professional doctorate in medicine from the University of California in 1993.

Hosseini serves as a Goodwill Envoy with the United Nations High Commissioner for
Refugees.

Hosseini currently lives in northern California with his wife and two children.
Kanvinde 3
Larger Occasion

In 1919, Afghanistan issued its Declaration of Independence. Amanullah Khan proclaims
himself King.

Between 1919 and 1929, Amanullah Khan issues dramatic political and social reforms.

Amanullah Khan abdicates in 1929 and flees to British India while Afghanistan falls into
a civil war.

Mohammad Zahir Shah becomes King of Afghanistan in 1933.

In 1959, women are given the right to choose how they dress, as they are no longer
required to wear burqas, niqabs, hijabs, and other Islamic veils.

Mohammad Daoud Khan becomes Prime Minister in 1953, but is forced to resign ten
years later.

Women are given the right to vote in 1964.

Mohammad Daoud Khan overthrows the monarchy in 1973 in favor of a republic.

A communist regime takes over the Afghan government in 1978, and most of the
freedoms granted under Mohammad Zahir Shah are revoked.

The Soviet Union invades in 1979 to execute leftist leader Hazifullah Amin. Islamic
warriors, known as “mujahedeen”, begin a guerilla war against them. A series of Sovietbacked Communist Presidents rule until 1992.

The Soviet Union agrees to withdraw from Afghanistan in 1988.

The Soviet Union completes its withdrawal in 1989.

Sibghatullah Mojaddedi becomes President of Afghanistan in 1992 after General Ahmed
Shah Massoud’s mujahedeen remove Mohammad Najibullah from power. Afghanistan
Kanvinde 4
becomes an Islamic State. After a short reign, Mojaddedi is replaced by Burhanuddin
Rabbani.

The Taliban capture the Kandahar region in 1994.

Herat is captured by the Taliban in 1995.

Jalalabad and Kabul fall to the Taliban in 1996. This signifies the beginning of Taliban
rule in Afghanistan, and their harsh interpretation of Sharia law becomes the law of the
land.

The Taliban are formally recognized as a government by three countries: Pakistan, Saudi
Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. All others still consider Rabbani to be head of
state.

Mazar-i-Sharif, a holy city in Islam, falls to the Taliban in 1998.

On September 10, 1998, almost 6000 Shiite Hazaras were killed by the Taliban in a
bloody massacre in Mazar-i-Sharif.

Ahmed Shah Massoud retreats to the Panshir Valley in 1998. This signifies the
completion of the Taliban takeover.

Massoud is assassinated on September 9, 2001.

The worst terrorist attacks in American history occur in New York City and Washington,
D.C. on September 11, 2001. This creates a wave a racism and racial profiling towards
non-whites in the United States.
Immediate Occasion

Baba is born in 1933, the same year that Mohammad Zahir Shah takes power.

Amir is born in 1963.

Hassan in born in 1964.
Kanvinde 5

Amir discovers his talent for writing stories in 1973.

Afghanistan undergoes a revolution at the same time at which Amir discovers his talent.

Hassan gets surgery on his lip in 1974.

In the winter of 1975, Amir and Hassan win the Wazir Akbar Kahn kite fighting
tournament.

Right after the tournament, Amir witnessed Hassan being raped by Assef while running
the second-place kite from the tournament, which is the prize.

Amir turns thirteen in 1976.

Amir tries to get Ali and Hassan dismissed the day after his birthday.

Ali and Hassan leave.

Baba and Amir are smuggled into Pakistan in March of 1981 due to political unrest in
Kabul.

Baba and Amir move to Fremont, California, in the early 1980s.

Amir graduates from high school in 1983.

Baba throws a spontaneous party for Amir after his graduation.

Baba gives Amir a car.

Amir decides to major in creative writing, leading to protest from his father.

Amir turns twenty-one in 1984.

Baba and Amir begin to sell odd items at a flea market, where they meet General Taheri.

Baba accepts the fact the Amir will become a writer.

Amir meets Soraya Taheri.

Baba develops cancer in 1985.

Amir sends Baba to the Taheris to ask for Soraya’s hand in marriage.
Kanvinde 6

Amir marries Soraya in 1986.

Baba dies a month after the wedding. The funeral attracts people from all over the
country, and even some from Afghanistan itself.

Amir finishes his first novel in 1988.

Soraya finds out that she is infertile.

Rahim Khan calls Amir and asks him to come to Peshawar in June of 2001.

Amir goes to Peshawar and learns of Rahim Khan’s condition, the fact that he and
Hassan are half-brothers, and of the situation of Hassan, his family, and his son.

Amir goes to Afghanistan to find Sohrab.

Amir finds an old friend of his mother’s and learns more about her with him than he ever
did with his father.

Amir finds out that Sohrab has effectively been sold into slavery to a Taliban official.

Amir witnesses a stoning.

Amir meets with the Taliban official, who turns out to be Assef.

Assef and Amir fight.

Sohrab puts out Assef’s eye, confirming Hassan’s premonition that he [Assef] would
eventually be called “ ‘One-Eyed Assef’ ” (42).

Amir is rushed to a hospital in Peshawar.

Amir discovers that his lip has been split, mirroring Hassan’s disability.

Amir finds out that Rahim Khan lied to him about there being caretakers for Sohrab in
Peshawar.

It is determined that Sohrab will come to America with Amir.

Amir tells Sohrab the truth about his father.
Kanvinde 7

Sohrab attempts suicide, but fails.

Sohrab comes to live with Amir and Soraya.

Amir helps Sohrab win a kite fighting contest, similar to that of the winter of 1975.

Amir runs the kite for Sohrab.
Audience

Khaled Hosseini writes to Afghanis living in the United States.
 Khaled Hosseini writes to United States citizens.
 Khaled Hosseini writes to inhabitants of Afghanistan.
Purpose

Khaled Hosseini writes to Afghanis living in the United States to show that it is important
to keep one’s traditions and values even when removed from the society where they were
developed.

Khaled Hosseini writes to Afghanis living in the United States to remind them of the
oppression facing the people of their homeland.
 Khaled Hosseini writes to United States citizens to show that people in other countries
are not as well-off as they are.
 Khaled Hosseini writes to United States citizens to expose the violence and impression
that was prevalent in Afghanistan in order to persuade more people to take action to help
the Afghani people.
 Khaled Hosseini writes to inhabitants of Afghanistan to show that ways exist to escape
the oppression facing them, but they do not exist without risk.
Kanvinde 8
 Khaled Hosseini writes to inhabitants of Afghanistan to remind them that Afghanis that
have left the country still love their homeland and have not and never will abandon it
completely.
Subject

“I” (1)

“winter” (2)

“cleft lip” (3)

“Pashtun” (9)

“Hazara” (9)

“Sunni” (9)

“Shi’a” (9)

“Baba” (11)

“Hassan” (11)

“Amir” (11)

“friend” (25)

“Afghanistan” (25)

“servant” (41)

“slingshot” (41)

“Kabul” (49)

“kite runner” (52)

“loyalty” (89)

“shameful lies” (104)

“America” (125)
Kanvinde 9

“family” (168)

“wedding” (170)

“ ‘Unexplained Infertility’ ” (185)

“adoption” (186)

“Blood” (187)

“ ‘Inshallah’ ” (213)

“Roussi” (243)

“Taliban” (244)

“Mujahedin” (245)

“ ‘Shorawi’ ” (246)

“ ‘Shari’a’ ” (270)

“ ‘Muslims’ ” (271)

“fight” (288)

“razor” (250)

“reckless” (351)

“kites” (368)

“ran” (371)
Tone
1) Aggravation
a. “ ‘Don’t you ever challenge me in public, Amir. Ever. Who do you think you
are?’ ” (156)
b. “And they call themselves Muslims” (271).
2) Ecstasy
Kanvinde 10
a. “I could see his internal smile, wide as the skies of Kabul on nights when the
poplars shivered and the sound of crickets swelled in the gardens” (173).
b. “ ‘We won! We won!’ ” (66)
3) Sorrow
a. “Baba couldn’t show me the way anymore; I’d have to find it on my own” (174).
b. “ ‘Maybe it wasn’t meant to be.’ ” (186)
Literary Devices
1) Simile
a. “They danced high above the trees on the west end of the park, over the
windmills, floating side by side like a pair of eyes looking down on San
Francisco, the city I now call home” (2).
The simile compares two kites to a pair of eyes in order to enhance the reader’s
perception of the event.
b. “ ‘You will lose some weight and you will be talking like Al Pacino from the first
Godfather movie for a little while.’ ”
The simile is used humorously to lighten the mood of the situation, which is dark,
as it is said when Amir is in the hospital following his fight with Assef. It also
provides a clear example as to how Amir will sound while his jaw is wired,
enhancing the reader’s perception of the situation.
2) Metaphor
a. “ ‘How is that whore these days?’ ” (278).
This illustrates the Taliban’s perception on the United States by comparing the
nation to a prostitute.
Kanvinde 11
b. “Baba had wrestled bears his whole life” (174).
This compares the multitude of problems that faced Baba to bears, alluding to the
story of Baba wrestling a black bear in Baluchistan. It also indirectly characterizes
Baba as a tough, rugged man.
3) Hyperbole
a. “ ‘Tell him I’ll take a thousand of his bullets before I let this indecency take
place.’ ” (116).
This exaggeration shows the level of honor that Baba has, that he will not let the
Russian soldier rape to poor woman, no matter what it takes. It shows that he is
very traditional in nature and feels that the social codes of decency of the society
must be protected. In reality, Baba could maybe take three or four bullets before
he would die, but he uses exaggeration to make his point.
b. “Baba’s motto about throwing parties was this: Invite the whole world or it’s not a
party” (93).
Obviously, Baba cannot invite the whole world to a party, but by exaggerating
and then inviting a vast number of people, he can make it seem like the whole
world is there. This again illustrates Baba’s traditional Afghan nature.
4) Allusion
a. “John Lennon walked back to the mound” (272).
This is alludes the Taliban official, who turns out to be Assef, to rock artist John
Lennon, due to the fact that they both have the same type of glasses. A twisted
comparison, but it gets the point across to the reader.
Kanvinde 12
b. “He has gel in his hair and a Clark Gable mustache above his thick lips” (287).
This indicates that Dr. Faruqi appears to look like movie star Clark Gable, due to
the fact that they have similar facial hair. It provides a clear example to the
doctor’s appearance.
5) Personification
a. “Now only the folded clothes greeted me” (80).
Folded clothes, being inanimate, cannot greet a person. This quote demonstrates
that Hassan is in no condition to greet Amir himself, so a token of his work does it
for him. This demonstrates the enormity of Hassan’s situation, that things have
changed forever.
b. “I loved it for the soft pattering of snow against my window at night, for the way
fresh snow crunched under my black rubber boots, for the warmth of the cast-iron
stove as the wind screeched through the yards, the streets” (49).
Wind is an element of nature, not a sentient being, and therefore it cannot literally
screech. It is being given the human ability of screeching to add to the effect of
the description upon the reader.
6) Situational Irony
a. “Dying, actually” (201).
The reader assumes that Rahim Khan is in a well enough condition to survive, but
then he outright states that he is dying, which the reader does not expect. This
keeps the reader hooked.
b. “We washed our hands and dipped fresh naan from the tandoor into the shorwa—
it was the best meal I had had in months” (206).
Kanvinde 13
One does not expect that the “best meal” that Rahim Khan had consumed in
“months” would be provided by a poor family that is barely scraping along to get
by. This demonstrates the horrific conditions that many Afghan families were
living in, and that they made the best out of what they had.
7) Foreshadowing
a. “Farid had warned me. He had. But, as it turned out, he has wasted his breath”
(243). This quote hints that something terrible has happened, and will be
elaborated upon later, causing the reader to want to continue reading.
b. “Come. There is a way to be good again, Rahim Khan had said on the phone just
before hanging up” (192). This makes the reader wish to know what exactly the
“way to be good again” is, effectively keeping them hooked to the story and
wanting to keep reading.