Motifs

Rape

"It's just a Hazara," Assef said. But Kamal kept looking away.

"Fine," Assef snapped. "All I want you weaklings to do is hold him down. Can you manage that?"..... Assef knelt behind Hassan

(chapter 7 pange 75  )

 

Guilt

"Then Baba rolled his head toward me. "I wish Hassan had been with us today," he said. A pair of steel hands closed around my windpipe at the sound of Hassan's name."( P.141, chapter 11)

Death

“Hassan has loved me once, loved me in a way that no one ever has or ever would again. He was gone now, but a little part of him loved on.it was on Kabul.”

(Chapter 18 page 237)

Motifs write up

 

Amir was simply unable to breathe at the thought of Hassan and what he had done to him before. In the midst of happy time for Amir, he is actually reminded of what he had done to Hassan and the guilt literally takes the air away from him. Amir thinks he has full of guilt to Hassan and he is very sorry about it. On the other hand, The guilt that Amir carries with his for not helping or taking a stand to help Hassan, stays with him for a life time. No act of redemption is large enough to mask the guilt that he feels from that day. No matter how hard he tries to forget about the rape, it always manages to come back and haunt him. 

Rape, death and guilt are the three significant motifs from my perspective. There are three rape scenes in this novel. They locate at significant moments in the story, allowing the plots changing smoothly. The first rape scene is Hassan get raped by Aseff. This scene caused the move out of Hassan, because Amir doesn’t have the courage to face Hassan since he left Hassan in danger. The second rape scene happens when Amir and Baba flee from Kabul. Baba saved the woman who is going to get abused by a soldier. It is a very different comparison from what Amir did when Hassan get raped. Baba decides to stand out for the justice and weakness. The third rape is Sohrab’s rape. Amir saved Sohrab from Assef, compare to what Amir did to Hassan. He tries the best to stop the abuses. These rape scenes significant the turning points in Amir’s life, also the experiences on the way of his redemption.

 Amir starts to realize that all people who close to him are leaving him because of death. Baba’s and Rahim Khan‘s death are very heavy to Amir. Baba is his only family after fled and the only person he can counted for. Rahim Khan is a loyal reader of Amir’s book. He is the closest friend to Amir since Hassan left him. These two people’s death significant Amir has to carry on all the destiny and responsibilities by himself.

 Hassan’s death makes Amir to know the harm that he did to Hassan will never be redeemed. He will be live with this guilt for the rest of his life. Amir was too naive; he betrayed the devotions of Hassan. Guilt is the result of regret, we always regret for what we did wrong but keep missing the right person or the happiness in our life. Regret and guilt don’t do anything good, for me, I choose to forget. These things are like the drags to me. I can’t move on with carrying them with them. Sometimes you just have to drop them off. Because, emotions are useless.



Bibliography

Bibliography

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Themes

Redemption

”There is a way to be good again”

(Page 239 chapter 18)

 

Devotion

"And suddenly Hassan’s voice whispered in my head: For you a thousand times over."

(Chapter 1 page 2)

Discrimination

"Assef’s blue eyes flicked to Hassan.” Afghanistan is the land of Pashtuns. It always has been always will be. We are the true Afghans, the pure Afghans, not this Flat-noses here. His people pollute our home land, our watan. They dirty our blood "

(Chapter 5 page 44)

Theme write up

    Themes can be analyzed from many ways in the novel “The kite runner”. The most crucial theme should be the redemption of Amir. Amir thinks Baba far away from him because Amir has responsible for his mother’s death. Therefore Amir tries to do anything that can impress Baba; one example is the kite tournament. But the kite tournament also leaves irreparable harm for Hassan, who is later known as the son of Baba. Amir feels guilty about Hassan, because he didn’t help Hassan when he is in danger. Amir doesn’t have the courage to face Hassan, so he framed Hassan and want Hassam disappear in his life. After Amir grows up, he tries to redeem for Hassan but Hassan and his family were killed in the war.

     Hassan’s devotion to Amir is also an important theme. Hassan loves Amir and extremely loyal to him. But Amir doesn’t cherish this relationship. He stands still and watches Assef to rape Hassan. After that He framed Hassan steals his watch.  Even though Amir betrays this devotion of Hassan again and again. Hassan never blames Amir or stop contributing .Hassan is selfless to Amir but Amir does not understand because he is too young. When he eventually regret for what he has done, everything is too late that can never be redeemed.

     Another significant theme is discrimination. Hassan and Ali work as servants and they always discriminated by people because they are Hazaras , which is the lowest class in Afghanistan . This is also the reason why Baba doesn’t admit Hassan as his son. The author gives Hassan the lowest social class that takes the most abuses and terrible experience but at the same time emphasize the strong will power and positive attitude.

 These themes go through the whole novel, make the story impressive , also contains some life lessons what we need to learn.

 

Symbols

Symbols

Kite:

‘Hassan was standing at the blind end of the alley in a defiant stance: fists curled, legs slightly apart. Behind him, sitting on piles of scrap and rubble, was the blue kite. My key to Baba’s heart’(chapter 7)

Slingshot:

“His hands was cocked above his shoulder, holding the cup of the slingshot at the end of the elastic band which was pulled all the way back…it was one of the brass balls.”(P.304, chapter 22)

Pomegranate tree

"Hassan had said in his letter that the pomegranate tree hadn't borne fruit in years. Looking at the wilted, leafless tree, I doubted it ever would again."(P.276, chapter 21)

write up

These three symbols all symbolize different important elements in the story. Including, the kite, slingshot and the pomegranate tree.

The kite is a symbol for the good times Amir and Hassan used to spend together flying kites as children. It is Amir's "key to Baba's heart" because with it he hoped to gain Baba's attention and make him proud. It is also a symbol for achievement at winning the kite fights and running the last fallen kite with other children. However, it is also a symbol and reminder of Amir's weakness. Amir failed to come to Hassan's aide when he needed him most. Hassan was always loyal to Amir no matter what the cost; he proved his loyalty in the alley by refusing to give up the kite and accepting whatever Assef would do to him. Amir watched his childhood friend be beaten and raped in an alley and did absolutely nothing about it. He let Assef and his gang get away with it; he did not attempt to get help or even to console Hassan after it. He took the much desired kite without a simple word to Hassan. The kite serves as a symbol and constant reminder that Amir failed to help his friend, his brother. Instead, he watched in fear.

The slingshot represents loyalty and protection.  At the beginning of the story, Hassan fires walnuts using the slingshot to prove his loyalty towards Amir. The slingshot is also used as a defensive tool and portray Hassan’s protective nature towards his master. This is then repeated when Sohrab, Hassan’s son, fires a ball using a slingshot to save Amir from Assef. This which shows either Hassan and his son has a sense of justice to Amir. I think is called "A chip off the old block; he acts exactly like his dad."

 The pomegranate tree symbolizes the relationship between Amir and Hassan. At the peak of their friendship the pair claimed the tree as their own by carving their names into the tree. They would spend countless hours under the tree where Amir would read to the illiterate Hassan and they would both share their love of literature. It becomes symbolic that the tree represents their relationship as we read about how Amir, fuelled with guilt and anger, takes the fruit from the tree and hits Amir with the fruit in a way to provoke him into giving Amir a physical punishment to lessen his guilt. All Amir does is break the fruit over his own head. Years later after Hassan is dead and Amir has returned again to the tree as an adult , we read how the tree is fruitless and dead. This symbolizes the deterioration in their relationship and how the friendship died due to the anger, guilt and betrayal all those years ago.