The Kite Runner teaches
friendship, atonement
Review Royal Hamel
"Hassan!” I called. “Come back with it!” He was already turning the street corner, his
rubber boots kicking up snow. He stopped, turned. He cupped his hands around his
mouth. “For you, a thousand times
over!” he said.
So opens the pivotal event in The Kite
Runner, a novel by Khaled Hosseini.
The movie version, which is now in
theatres, was nominated for a Golden
Globe as best foreign-language film of
2007.
kite, but can he keep it for his friend?
Amir and Hassan, inseparable, fiercely
loyal friends, have just won the annual
kite-flying tournament in Kabul,
Afghanistan in the winter of 1975 by
cutting down all other kites in the air.
Amir has just dispatched Hassan to
retrieve as a trophy the last kite cut
down. Hassan’s devotion will shortly be
tested to its very limits. He is the best
kite runner in the city. He finds the
This remarkable story is played out against the backdrop of events occurring in
Afghanistan from shortly before the Russian invasion of 1979 up to and including the
Taliban takeover.
It is a poignant, bittersweet movie that, in the context of Islamic life, portrays undying
friendship, love between father and son and above all, the themes of atonement and
redemption.
The foundation of the story is the friendship between Amir jan (the “jan” is always added
when expressing affection) and his servant, Hassan. Amir is a rich boy of privilege and
prestige, while Hassan is poor and a descendant of the Hazerah people who are despised
by the ruling classes in Afghanistan. Yet the boys, both motherless and raised in the
same household, share a deep bond of friendship.
Three older toughs trail Hassan and demand the blue trophy kite. But Hassan refuses to
surrender his friend’s prize, for he loves Amir. Assef, their sociopathic leader, agrees to
let Hassan keep the kite, but he will exact a steep price. Brandishing brass knuckles,
Assef then attacks and rapes Hassan, as the boy is restrained by Assef’s accomplices.
Meanwhile, Amir has come looking for Hassan. From behind a wall, he witnesses the
grave unfolding events. He has arrived in time; Assef has not yet thrown Hassan to the
ground. Amir can intervene. But he makes no cry to save his friend. The reasons are
complex and deep, but not as deep as his traitorous silence.
The Kite Runner has two recurring themes. First, there is the deep devotion that Hassan
over and over again expresses to his friend Amir, captured in his memorable words as he
runs off to bring home the trophy kite.
In the face of such ardent devotion, Amir’s betrayal is of the worst kind and, even in his
new life in America, he suffers remorse and inescapable guilt over the next two decades.
The second theme in the story surfaces in an old friend’s cryptic challenge, “There is a
way to be good again.” And the author, in magnificent storytelling fashion, weaves a tale
of adventurous hope in which Amir seeks forgiveness, redemption and freedom from
guilt by doing a good deed that he hopes will erase his evil past.
Psychology has taught us to disregard categories like sin and guilt. Given this framework
of thinking, it is surprising that this story of betrayal, consequent guilt and the quest “to
be good again” should resonate with so many.
Nevertheless the book is flying off the shelves. Perhaps the intellectual “faith” offered by
psychology is not able to meet the real needs of people when they experience their dark
moments of life. Indeed, any intellectual “faith” that rejects moral categories will always
fail in the nitty-gritty of real life. It fails us utterly when we sting ourselves and others by
stealing, lying, lusting, betraying and on and on and on.
And so the question of how to find “goodness” again is perennial among us. We do
wrong, we commit evil, we find ourselves consumed with guilt and remorse – we ask
over and over, “How can I be good again?”
The Kite Runner portrays one way of attempting atonement, a way as old as the hills –
that of doing good deeds that will cover our past wrongs. But there is a totally different
way to understand atonement.
Yet another ancient way reveals that we receive forgiveness and “goodness” from
another as a gift.
Ironically this second way might be portrayed in Hassan’s magnificent words of devotion
to his friend. What if Amir had been able to hear in his native language these words from
the One once nailed to a cross: “Amir jan, for you … covering your betrayals, blotting out
your lies, washing away your shame … for you, Amir jan a thousand times over … there
IS a way to be good again.”
This article originally appeared in the Jan. 21 Guelph Mercury, for which Royal Hamel is a
member of the community editorial board.
Atonement would be a great theme to discuss in the essay topic above. The Kite Runner suggests
that individuals can atone for the the bad things they have done in their past. Hosseini suggests that
atonement is possible if the person who seeks redemption first admits their guilt. Hosseini explores
the ideas of guilt and atonement through Amir and to a lesser extent through Baba. Rahim Khan
explains the positive value of the guilt that has haunted Amir for years by showing him that it can
lead to true redemption. In the novel by exploring the ideas of guilt and atonement through Amir,
Hosseini is able to show the debilitating effects on his life. Amir is so haunted by his past that he
fears that he and Soraya can’t have a child because he is being punished for his childhood sins. Even
though Amir believes this he finds it hard to confess his sins to Rahim Khan and his secret can be
compared to Soraya’s openness. Soraya has been able to move on because she has accepted her
past and confessed her secrets. When discussing atonement show how Hosseini develops this idea
through the development of Amir’s character. We see Amir grow in maturity, partly due to his
separation from Baba as he now can accept the opportunity to atone. Rahim Khan as Amir’s mentor
and friend helps to support the ideas about redemption and why it is still possible. Through Rahim
Khan we see that Amir must complete his journey to achieve redemption. When Amir confronts
Assef he also confronts his past cowardice and at last feels healed. By rescuing Sohrab he is not only
reliving a past wrong doing he is also correcting it.
The novelist Khaled Hosseini uses many stylistic devices such as foreshadowing, fragmented
narrative and interior monologue to highlight the theme of atonement. In The Kite Runner, the
novelist Khaled Hosseini implores that one can only atone their sins once they have admitted to
their guilt and chose to seek redemption. In chapter 12 the theme of guilt reappears as Soraya,
Amir’s wife, admits her past of running away to Virginia with another Afghan man. Even though Amir
is stung by the thought of Soraya losing her virginity to another man, Amir still “envies her” because
he is a coward and cannot pluck up the courage to confess his sins. However, it is only till chapter 24
where he reveals his past to Soraya. Amir finally admits his guilt and is on the path of redemption.
He knows he must take on a new found maturity to look after Sohrab and rescue him from the
taliban-Assef. The is evident in chapter 22,which takes the form of an adventure novel, as Amir
sacrifices his well-being for Sohrab. In the ultimate lines of the novel Amir has redeemed himself to
some extent as he repeats the lines of Hassan, “For you a thousand times over”. This is one of the
most pivotal moments of the novel and Amir’s journey as he has now relieved his sins. Amir has now
become the kite runner, hence the title of the novel. We know that Amir has developed and grown
as a character from childhood into manhood as he helps ease his nephew’s transition from
Afghanistan to America after facing turmoil.
The Kite Runner: Is Redemption Truly Free?
What is the worst thing you have done to a friend or family member? Lied to them? Stolen
from them? After the dreadful deed, did they forgive you? And, more importantly, did you
forgive yourself? While I am sometimes nostalgic for lost friendships, I know that for various
reasons, history, distance, and self-preservation, there are some friendships better left in the
past. But with exceptional friendships, when two souls collide and recognize and accept the
humanity in each other, I believe we should all make the effort to sustain that growth.
In the new movie, The Kite Runner, director Marc Forster poignantly portrays the main
character’s release from guilt as he negotiates memories of his betrayal of his childhood
friend. The scenes of innocent, yet precarious, friendship between two boys, Amir and
Hassan (the son of Amir’s father’s servant), focus on what it means to be a true friend while
mirroring the gritty conflict of Afghanistan’s volatile political and cultural history. The
opening credits of Arabic-inspired calligraphy seem to represent the connection of all the
characters in the story. This is a story of two boys in 1975, but also one that stretches the
limits of culture and time to represent the most important of redemption stories.
Spoiler Alert
The movie begins with a phone call to the now-adult main character, Amir, played by
British/Egyptian actor Khalid Abdalla, who has been hiding a shameful secret for over 25
years. The voice over the phone lines urges him that “There is a way to be good again.”
This leads me to question what it takes to be good again. When we sin, do we essentially
become bad? Christians are taught that redemption is solely brought about through Christ’s
sacrifice? Can it possibly be this simple? Is it possible that a symbolic act on Christ’s part
can, in fact, save all of us from all our sins? If this is the case, why are we often unable to
forgive ourselves? Why do we feel compelled to perform penance when we are told that our
debt has been paid? Is there some action—work, not faith—required of us beyond believing
in Christ’s gift of salvation? Do we, as human beings, have a debt to pay to fellow human
beings (and animals) when we have wronged them? Can salvation truly be free, or, in order to
believe that we deserve it, do we need to make retribution before being able to open ourselves
to salvation? Is the act of salvation tied to the act of self-forgiveness? For Amir, achieving
redemption requires more than faith in a Savior.
In The Kite Runner, despite the two main characters being from different cultural
backgrounds (Pashtun and Hazara) that traditionally clash, the boys are raised together from
birth, their fathers’ close relationship setting the stage for the boys’ relationship. Hassan
(played by newcomer Ahmad Khan Mahmidzada) serves Amir (played by newcomer Zekeria
Ebrahimi) cheerfully. He is the all-sacrificing Christ-figure, the one who, even in death, calls
Amir to redemption. His character is an uncanny mix of innocence and strength. As a child,
he is not petulant or resentful. As an adult, he reaches out to Amir even when one would
expect the opposite.
Amir’s personal conflict stems from his perceived inability to please his father, Baba (played
by Homayoun Ershadi). Amir tries to win approval by writing stories that his father never
reads. To his father’s disappointment, Amir is a coward; he relies on Hassan to defend them
from their bully, Assef. Amir’s only adult supporter is his father’s friend Rahim Khan, played
by Shaun Toub, to whom Baba despairs that Amir will ever amount to much by saying, “A
boy who won’t stand up for himself becomes a man who won’t stand up for anything.”
Rahim Khan, however, sides with Amir and encourages him in his writing. He willingly
plays the role of a mother figure in the young man’s life, encouraging, comforting, and
balancing Baba’s harshness. He also acts as Amir’s conscience throughout the movie, urging
him to confess, to make things right.
As a child, Amir finds that the only way to gain his father’s limited approval is to win the
traditional kite-flying contest.
Hassan always knows exactly where a kite will drop once its string has been cut. He becomes
Amir’s kite runner (hence the book and movie title), chasing down fallen kites as Amir works
his way to winning the competition. As Amir cuts down the last opponent’s kite, Hassan,
eyes shining, shouts a farewell, “For you, a thousand times over,” and triumphantly runs to
collect the trophy that Hassan will carry home to gain his father’s approval. This is the last
time we see Hassan smile.
Amir then commits the shocking act that requires redemption. He encounters his best friend
being bullied, and ultimately raped by Assef, but does nothing to stop or even acknowledge
this act. He simply hides, watching his friend’s assault, and then acts ignorant when Hassan
limps to him with the kite. This act of cowardice so haunts Amir that just when we think that
it cannot get worse and that Amir will confess or at least make up with Hassan, he further
betrays his friend by forcing Hassan and his father out of their home. As Hassan and his
father leave, Baba’s confusion and pain at the loss of the servant he grew up with do not
prompt a last-minute confession from Amir. It seems as if he will truly have to live with his
guilt as all chances of redemption pass by.
Amir and his father flee to the United States when the Russians invade Afghanistan. Amir
graduates from community college and establishes a relationship with his father only when
Baba is no longer a successful businessman and philanthropist. There is another opportunity
for Amir to come clean when he asks a woman to marry him and she tells him of her lessthan-exemplary reputation. This is the perfect time for Amir to also confess, but he simply
clams up. The moment passes. As Baba grows weak and dies, Amir still does not confess.
And then he receives the phone call from Rahim Khan. The way for Amir “to be good again”
is to return to Afghanistan. He learns that the Taliban have Hassan and his wife and Amir can
redeem himself by rescuing Hassan’s son, Sohrab, from the Taliban leader Assef—the same
man who bullied Hassan. Even Amir’s rescue seems to go wrong as Assef realizes who Amir
is and refuses to allow Sohrab to leave. It is Sohrab who takes on the role of his father when
he uses his father’s slingshot to shoot Assef in the eye, an act of vindication, although he does
not know its significance.
Upon returning to the United States with Sohrab, Amir is unsure how to relate to this
traumatized boy with silent eyes. While walking through the park several months later, he
buys a kite and, while flying the kite for Sohrab, shouts, “For you, a thousand times over,”
echoing Hassan’s greeting to Amir 25 years earlier. As Amir flies the kite, we are left with a
view of Sohrab’s hesitant smile. Things are going to be right. Amir is good again. And with
this release of guilt, Amir’s conscience is light enough to soar with the kites.
As a side note, the behind-the-scenes drama of The Kite Runner movie garnered attention
with a story of its own. Amid possible reprisals and reaction in response to the rape scene, the
movie’s release date was postponed so Paramount could secure the safety of the child stars.
They were moved from Kabul to the United Arab Emirates, where the movie studio will
continue to support them until they wish to return to their home country.
Betrayal & Redemption
Betrayal, which can be considered a form of sin, is enduring and ends up being cyclical in The Kite
Runner. For most of the novel, Amir attempts to deal with his guilt by avoiding it. But doing this
clearly does nothing toward redeeming himself, and thus his guilt endures. That is why he still
cringes every time Hassan’s name is mentioned. When Amir finds out about Baba’s betrayal of Ali
(and subsequent betrayal of Hassan), he realizes that everything he thought he knew and
understood about his father was false. And Amir himself feels betrayed. But Baba has been dead for
fifteen years, and there is nothing he can do about the situation. Neither feelings of betrayal nor
punishment are enough to redeem Amir. Rescuing Sohrab from Assef is not enough either. Only
when Amir decides to take Sohrab to the United States and provide his nephew a chance at
happiness and prosperity that was denied to his half-brother does Amir take the necessary steps
toward atonement and redemption.
Forgiveness
Ideas about forgiveness permeate The Kite Runner. Hassan’s actions demonstrate that he forgives
Amir’s betrayal, although Amir needs to spend practically the entire novel to learn about the nature
of forgiveness. Baba’s treatment of Hassan is his attempt at gaining public forgiveness for what he
has not even publicly admitted to have done. Yet the person who speaks most poignantly about the
nature of forgiveness is Rahim Khan. In his letter, he asks Amir to forgive him for keeping Baba’s
secret but also writes explicitly “God will forgive.” Rahim Khan is confident that God will forgive all
transgressions, and he encourages Amir to do so, too. Rahim Khan understands that it is God who
readily forgives those who ask for forgiveness, but it is people who have a hard time forgiving. Thus,
the only way complete forgiveness can occur is when one forgives oneself, and that will only occur
when one has truly attempted to atone for the mistakes that one has made.
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