themes in KR

themes in KR

1. Father-Son relationships

   • The novel examines the relationships between men in the absence of women.this can be seen with Baba and Amir. Its is a problematic relationship in that Baba has mixed feeling towards Amir, both because of Sofia's death and because of his fathering Hassan. while Amir is not aware of this second reason, it is clear to him that his father is not as warm to him as he would like. His attempts to close the distance between them greatly influence Amir, his personality and the events of his life. The relationship is finally reconciled on Baba's part when he sees his son grow into a man with a wife. This is made clear when Amir catches Soraya reading his stories to his father. Baba says 'I put her up  to it. I hope you don't mind'. Not only is he admitting to wanting to hear Amir's stories that he had dismissed before, but he seeks his son's forgiveness. an act of respect that we have not seen before.
   • Baba is also Hassan's father however the relationship is never acknowledged and reconciled. Baba always carries the guilt both over his betrayal of Ali and the fact that he can never formally acknowledge his other son.
   • Hassan and Sohrab are another father son pairing. Their lives and relationship are very similar to that between Ali and Hassan (which was always loving) but with the added fact that Hassan is Sohrab's real father. Amir later takes on Sohrab as his own son. This is significant as both Hassan and Sohrab are not raised by their true fathers.
   • Rahim Khan is also a father figure: he acts as a surrogate father to Amir. In his later role, providing Amir with a chance to make amends, he does and says things that Baba may have wished to without ever being able to, and finds a way for Amir to reconcile both himself and Hassan with their father. In his letter he says "I want you to understand that good, real good, was born out of your father's remorse." and goes on to detail some of Baba's actions e.g.: building the orphanage . Through this we understand that the actions which had made Baba such a legend in Amir's eyes were driven in large part by his remorse over Hassan. This allows Amir to equate his won guilt with his father's and therefore feel close to him.

2. Redemption

   • the search for redemption is a major theme in the novel. Amir's story is encapsulated in the offer made to him by Rahim Khan in the opening chapter. "there is a way to be good again." It is the desire to make up for the events of his childhood, and the fear of what it might cost I'm to achieve this, which drive all of Amir's decisions in the novel and form the basis for his character. His return to Afghanistan is also a key part of his search for redemption because going to USA- and fitting in so well- he has effectively run away from the events of his childhood and also from his heritage and all the things that should form the person he is. Only by returning can he reconcile the person he is with the person he wants to be. He returns to rescue Sohrab from the Taliban, and in doing so, symbolically rescues Hassan from his tormentors, thus finally making up for his lack of action all those years ago.
   • Baba is also a character in search of redemption, both through is public actions e.g.: building the orphanage and his private actions i.ie.: his interactions with his two sons, Baba tries to atone for his infidelity with Sanaubar and his inability to acknowledge Hassan. He is able to reconcile with Amir while in USA however he never gets a chance to resolve his remorse over Ali and Hassan.
   • Soraya is also seeking redemption for past sins. This is one reason why she and Amir would seem such a good match. He is in a position to understand her need for forgiveness and is therefore able, when she informs him of her disgrace to reply "Nothing you said changes anything. I want us to marry." Later when he finds out more details, he once more dismisses the topic adding "Let's never talk about this again."
   • Rahim Khan is also seeking redemption. He carries guilt over his failure to speak up at a time when it could have  made a difference, regarding both Hassan's rape and his past. Unable to seek atonement for himself, his request that Amir rescues Sohrab from Kabul is his way of achieving his redemption.

3. Religion and Ethnicity

   • Religion and ethnicity form key parts of the narrative for all characters in the novel.Amir's story is mostly a journey of redemption however this is closely tied with the idea of what it means to be an Afghan. Part of the problem between Baba and Amir results from Baba's idea of what a man should be like. Baba considers himself an Afghan, no matter the situation, this is what informs both his bravery in the face of the Russian soldier, and also his anger and confusion when asked for identification in the American mini-market. His ethnicity is an integral part of him and so, when Amir does not match up to his ideal image of what it means to be n Afghan man, this drives the two of them apart. Amir easily fits in the American society, as we can see from his success in his studies and as a writer.
   • The tension between the Pashtuns and the Hazara ethnic groups also form a thread throughout the novel. The teasing and bullying Ali and Hassan incur because of their ethnicity, and the befriending y Baba and Amir of those Hazaras puts them on the wrong side of the ethnic divide. Baba passes on a liberal attitude to his son however Amir is not brave enough o act on these beliefs until the end of the novel, when he stand up for Sohrab against his father-in-law's disrespect. Farid also had a similar discriminatory views as were present in Amir's childhood, showing that this is an on going problem in Afghanistan
   • As Hazaras and Shi'a muslims, Hassan's family sufferes from both religious and ethnic persecution.

4. War

   • War is a theme that prevails through out the novel and influences the events that take place.   We find out about the 19th century war that took place between the Pashtun and the Hazaras in which the Hazaras were "quelled...with unspeakable violence."  This was the war that established the below the Pashtuns and therefore can be seen as a cause of the central events I the novel i.e.: Hassan's rape which is such a crucial event in the novel, leading to Amir's entire journey in the search for redemption.
   • Another central event caused by the war was Amir and Baba's move to America which was caused by the 1983 soviet invasion. America to Amir represented respite from his sins. He says "America was a river, roaring along, unmindful of the past." However, we see the past still haunt him in America. This can be represented by Rahim Khan's phone call.
   • War represents the loss of innocence in the novel. This is because the winter of the Soviet invasion is the same winter of Hassan's rape. It is the winter that "...came along and changed everything." This same effect of war if seen almost a generation later when Sohrab is used as a sex slave by the Taliban as a result of war once again. He regards himself as "dirty and full of sin" even after Amir rescues him. Hosseini uses this to reflect the impact of war on innocence.
   • War also has damaging effects on relationships. This can be seen when Hosseini describes betrayal between neighbors and friends in Afghanistan. Aimr says " You couldn't trust anyone in Kabul anymore- for free or under threat, people told on each other, neighbor on neighbor, child on parent, brother on brother..: however we do see positive results on relationships due too the war. When Amir and Baba move to America, not only does their relationship grow closer, but Amir also meets the woman he loves "Soraya." The war brings people together as can be identified at the end of the book when different countries and ethnicities come together to end the destruction in Afghanistan. As Amir describes "That December, Pashtuns, Tajiks, Uzbecks and Hazaras gathered in Bonn, under the watchful eye of the UN, began the process that might someday end twenty years of unhappiness.