The Kite Runner Essay

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In Chapter 3 of The Kite Runner, Baba tells Amir, “There is only one sin, only one. And that is theft. Every other sin is a variation of theft. When you kill a man, you steal a life… you steal his wife’s right to a husband, rob his children of a father. When you tell a lie, you steal someone’s right to the truth. When you cheat, you steal the right to fairness… there is no act more wretched than stealing.” This one quote sticks with us throughout the entirety of the book as we gradually learn the importance of truth and the dangers of deceit. 

The truth is always important, especially in The Kite Runner as it is used as a motif. We are introduced to the importance of truth when Baba explicitly states that stealing is the worst thing that someone can do, emphasizing the importance of truth to Amir so that he would live a truthful life. Although not apparent at first, this is Baba’s way of trying to prevent Amir from making the same mistakes he did and live with the guilt for the rest of his life. The second time we were exposed to truth was right after Hassan was raped. Amir decides to keep the truth to himself and is essentially repeating the act of deceit which his father had previously warned him about. This is not only ironic because this scene happened not long after the previous one, where Baba tells Amir about the dangers of theft, but also plays into the idiom expressed in the book, Like father, Like son, hinting at the similarities between the actions of Baba and that of Amir. By keeping the truth from Hassan, that Amir knew about the rape, we see the effects of the lie not so much on Hassan but more so on Amir, as evident from the insomnia resulting from his lie. Later, Amir lies about Hassan stealing his watch and other belongings, leading to Hassan and Ali leaving the house to live with their cousin. Again, this scene displays the importance of truth and the long lasting effects of it. At this point, it becomes apparent that the author conveys the message that the covering up of truth will always hurt the liar, and in some cases, hurts the liar more than the person they deceive, and no one should lie as it benefits nobody in the long run. Later in Amir’s life, the motif of truth reappears in the form of Soraya’s confession to Amir. This scene is one of, if not the only scene in the book where the truth is not covered up, and someone is actually honest. The author uses this confession not only as a foreshadowing of Amir’s confession, but also as a way to compare Amir’s future confession with Soraya’s.  This scene hints to the hidden truth of Amir’s past which, at that point, was known only to a select few. Near the end of the book, the truth is finally revealed when Rahim Khan’s letter indicates that he knew the truth all along, that Amir had seen Hassan’s raped and did nothing, and that he was the reason why Hassan and Ali had to leave their home. This is the final turning point for Amir and his truth as it is this final letter that brings him to tell Soraya about his relationship with Hassan in its entirety. 

Khaled Hosseini, the author of The Kite Runner, uses truth not only as a motif, but as a driving narrative for much of the story. It is the alteration of the truth that led to Amir believing that Hassan was not in fact his brother, but instead his servant.  It is probable that this led to the separation of Amir and Hassan, but what if Amir knew that truth that Hassan was his half brother? How would the story then progress? If Amir had treated Hassan like a brother instead of a servant and comforted him after the rape, I believe that they would’ve continued to live together and Hassan would’ve went with Amir and Baba to America. This could’ve prevented Hassan’s death at the hands of the Taliban but it would also mean that Sohrab wouldn’t’ve been born as Hassan would have never met his wife. 

The Kite Runner refers to Baba’s sin as a necessary occurrence, but why is this the case? If Baba’s lie about Hassan being his son led to additional suffering in the form of the separation of Ali and Hassan from Baba and Amir, then why did he have to lie? This allows us to identify another motif in the story, the ever so prevalent Afghani pride. This is apparent in all of the characters, especially those who were born and raised in Afghanistan. In Chapter 17, Rahim Khan reveals the truth about Hassan’s identity and says, “Please think, Amir Jan. It was a shameful situation. People would talk. All that a man had back then, all that he was, was his honor, his name, and if people talked… We couldn’t tell anyone, surely you can see that.” This identifies the reason for Baba’s lie, that he and most people around him valued honor over anything else, even their family. It is Baba’s desire for an honorable image that kept him from telling anyone the truth about Hassan, including Amir and Hassan. We see less of the Afghani pride in Soraya and Amir, the two characters that lived a substantial amount of their late teens to early adulthood in America. This is made noticeable when Amir and Soraya consider adopting a baby and are met by disappointment from Soraya’s father, showing how different the culture in America is to Afghanistan. However the case, it is obvious that the author shifts his focus towards the distinction of Afghani pride and how it affects all Afghani families, regardless of where they live. 

The Worldview that the author presents is one that values honor and devalues shame. In Afghanistan, much like other asian countries, there is more emphasis on honor and few consider it to have a price which is too high to pay. This is considerably different relative to western countries like America. The author illustrates this change in worldview through Baba. Before coming to America, Baba strived to be honorable, and everyone either admired him, or was jealous of his possessions.  After coming to America, Baba still strived to be honorable, evident of his rejection of welfare from the government, but the fact that he found work in a gas station shows a decrease in the value he held for honor. His work at the gas station was also filled with tough and arduous labor, as described by Amir in Chapter 11, “I glanced at him across the table, his nails chipped and black with engine oil, his knuckles scraped, the smells of the gas station–dust, sweat, and gasoline–on his clothes.” This hard labor could’ve altered his view of honor and shame as less Americans were fixated on this worldview. This altered view could also be a reason as to why he softened and overtime, grew closer to Amir. 

The worldview of honor and shame found in The Kite Runner does not connect with my personal worldview. This is because I have been subject to western influence which does not emphasize an idea of honor and shame nearly as much as the book does. Instead, the western influence generally fits into a guilt society as it is the reinforcement of guilt for certain bad behaviors that lead to fewer occurrences. An example of this is when someone commits murder. On one hand, a shame society like the one used in the book would look at that and say that the murderer has dishonored their family and the family of the deceased. As punishment, the family of the deceased could seek revenge on the murderer or sentence him to a life of ostracism. The murderer’s family would also likely have to pay for the murder in some form of ostracism or be dishonored in their community. On the other hand, a guilt society like the one I have would look at that and say that the murderer has broken the law and therefore, has to pay the price. This perspective of the law has been built on the reinforcement of guilt from bad behavior which leads to less bad behavior and more good behavior. When someone breaks the rules, like the murderer here, he is pressured to confess for his crimes as the feeling of guilt has been reinforced ever since childhood. There will likely not be as severe a punishment on the family of the murderer as they will not receive as much shame in a guilt society as if they were in a shame society. 

Khaled Hosseini’s The Kite Runner shares many similarities to Edgar Allan Poe’s poem, The Tell Tale Heart. Both stories depict a man so stricken with guilt that he remains restless day and night, recounting the cruel act that he had produced. This goes on until the protagonist decides to confess to the crime and finds relief in it. They also both do a good job showing the psychological dismay that the protagonist goes through after the act, which leaves both of them scared for life. Lastly, both The Kite Runner and The Tell Tale Heart illustrates the relationship not of enemies but of friends who grew apart as a result of the cruel act the protagonist does. 

At first glance, The Kite Runner is a narrative portraying Amir’s path of redemption, but a deeper look into the cultural atmosphere, themes, motifs, and ideals, and you find a culturally expressive piece which comments on social differences in various societies. In any case, The Kite Runner offers an introspective tale on guilt, remorse, and redemption, which warns against lying and inflates the merit of truth. 

Works Cited:

Hosseini, Khaled. “The Kite Runner.” THE KITE RUNNER.docx, Afghan Mellat Online Library, 2003, 4.files.edl.io/6871/06/08/18/022525-43226dc5-2c90-438d-887e-0e3f6e4c450a.pdf.

Poe, Edgar Allan. The Tell-tale Heart And Other Writings. New York : Bantam, 1982. Print.

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Other Drafts and Brainstorming: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1UIITvZZDXnoQF9kJ2LLqqW-DoFL5ulahMML1GcFFxrg/edit?usp=sharing