The Kite Runner: Sin and Redemption

The Kite Runner: Sin and Redemption

1. Amir

   • WHY DOES HE FEEL GUILTY:
     • His mother's death
     • Not being the son Baba wanted him to be
     • Death of Hassan
     • Unable to have a child with Soraya
     • Betrayal of his friendship with Hassan
       • Amir hides his brand-new watch in Hassan's hut so it would seem like Hassan had stolen it
       • Lack of layalty
       • Throws pomegranates at Hassan
       • Pretending to be reading something that he wasn't, in that way making fun of Hassan's illiterature
       • Lets Hassan take the blame for Amir's wrondoings
       • Using Hassan for his own entertainment
   • HOW DOES HE TRY TO REDEEM HIMSELF:
     • Goes after Sohrab in order to redeem himself for everything he did to Hassan
     • Gets involved in the construction of a hospital, like Baba did with the orphanage
     • Wins the kite tournement for his dad
     • Gets married
     • Treats Sohrab the same way Hassan used to treat him
     • Confronts Assef, something he could have done earlier
     • Tries to give Sohrab the life that Hassan deserved to have
     • Gets beaten by Assef
     • Gives out money and wristwatch to Wahid's family
     • Runs the kite for Sohrab
     • Takes the role of Hassan (protector)
   • WHO IS HE?
     • Main character and narrator
     • Pashtun
     • Baba's son
     • Anti hero
     • Inner tension between wanting to be his own man and the desire to be the man his dad wants him to be

2. QUOTATIONS:

   • "A boy who doesn't stand up for himself becomes a man who can't stand up for anything" - Baba
   • "I became what I am at the age of twelve" - Amir
     • Winter of 1975
   • "There is a way to be good again" - Rahim Khan
   • "We spoke our first words. Mine was Baba. His was Amir. My name" - Amir
   • "For you, a thousand times over" - Hassan and Amir

3. Baba

   • WHO IS HE?
     • Amir and Hassan's father
     • Important businessman
     • Rich
       • Nicest house in the Wazir Akbar Khan district
     • Good reputation and impressive figure
     • Lost his wife Sofia
     • Amir's idol
     • Hypocrite
     • Rahim Khan's best friend
     • Grew up with Ali, like Amir did with Hassan
     • Lost father at a young age
   • WHY DOES HE FEEL GUILTY:
     • When treating Amir well when he cannot acknowledge Hassan as his son
     • Commits his worst sin: theft
       • Lying: Stealing someone's right to the truth.  About Hassan not being his sonCheating: Getting Saunabar pregnant (Ali's wife)
     • Blaming Amir for the death of his wife
   • HOW DOES HE TRY TO REDEEM HIMSELF:
     • Being generous to Hassan
       • Paying for his surgery Taking him to trips (movies, lakes) Birthday presents
     • Building an orphanage
     • Connecting with Amir more once they were in America
     • Arranging Amir's marriage

4. Hassan

   • Amir's friend and protector
   • Had a cleft lip
   • Hazara
   • Understanding and loyal
   • Wrote a letter to Amir
   • Never acknowledges the fact that Baba is his biological father
   • Victim of Amir's incrimination
   • Innocent
   • Gets raped by Assef
   • Assumes responsibility for Amir's actions
   • Sohrab's father
   • Happy with what he was
   • Servent

5. Sanaubar

   • Hassan's mom
   • Leaves him at birth, however, she comes back and asks for forgiveness
   • Ali's wife and cousin

6. Soraya

   • Runs away with an Afghan man
   • Tells Amir about her sin and is able to move on

7. Rahim Khan

   • HOW DOES HE TRY TO REDEEM HIMSELF.
     • Tells Amir about Baba's secret, in order to redeem himself before his death
   • WHO IS HE?
     • Baba's business partner and friend
     • Sensitive and patient
     • Like a father to Amir
       • Pinky finger in the picture Gave him a diary to write his stories
     • Aware of what happened in 1975

8. Assef

   • Bully
   • Taliban
   • Uses his position to fulfill his wishes
   • Half German
   • Rapes Hassan

9. Sohrab

   • Raped by Assef
   • Hassan's son
   • Similar to Hassan
   • Deadly with the slingshot just like his dad
   • Amir's way of redeeming himself
   • Named after the hero of Hassan's favorite story

10. Ali

    • Gives love to Hassan despite not being his biological father
    • Loyal
    • Limps (polio)

11. OTHER TEXT

    • THE GREEN MILE
      • Paul Edgecomb
        • Prison officer , in charge of the death row (also called "the Green Mile"
        • Has severe bladder infection but is cured by John Coffeys supernatural powers
        • Believes in John Coffeys innocence
        • Has to execute an innocent man (John Coffey) and is haunted by this for the rest of his life (this was his last execution)
        • Has flashback as an old man in an assisted-living home while watching "The Top Hat"
        • Him and Mr Jingles have an unnatural long life. He sees this as punishment for the wrongful execution.
      • John Coffey
        • Physically imposing, but mentally challenged
        • Accused of having raped and murdered two white girls
        • Believes the world is a cruel place
        • Has supernatural powers
        • Had never seen a movie before, so he watches "The Top Hat" shortly before his execution
        • Heals Paul, the mouse Mr. Jingles and the wife of the prisons' chief warden
        • Is being innocently executed
      • Eduard Delacroix
        • sentenced to death
        • Has mouse Mr. Jingles as pet
        • Dies terrible death (sabotaged by Percy)
        • Regrets his sins and seeks redemption
      • Death sentence
        • Redemption through death : "May god have mercy on you"
        • Highly controverisal