Flashcards
Kite Runner - Themes, Motifs and Symbols
Flashcards do conjunto (10)
- 1The Search for Redemption- Amir’s quest to redeem himself makes up the heart of the novel
- As a child tries to redeem himself in Baba’s eyes as he feels responsible for mothers death
- Thinks he must win the kite tournament
- As a boy he fails to stand up for himself - As an adult, he can only redeem himself by proving he has courage to stand up for what is right - 2The Love and Tension Between Fathers and Sons- Amir has complex relationship with Baba, he loves him but rare feels Baba fully loves him back
- Baba has own difficulty connecting with Amir feels guilty treating him well when can’t acknowledge Hassan as his son
- He's hard on Amir and can only show his love for Hassan indirectly - 3The Intersection of Political Events and Private Lives- Amir’s recollections of childhood we see the calm state of Kabul during the monarchy
- Then watch as Soviet invasion and infighting between rival Afghan groups ruin the country
- Assefs opportunity to harass Amir because Assef’s father knows the new president
- Destruction of Kabul means A+B move to california
- Taliban take over and murder Hassan and give Assef a position that lets him indulge his sadism without repercussions
- Amir’s redemption by confronting Assef, implying Afghanistan will have its own redemption - 4The Persistence of the Past (Theme)- All the characters feel the influence of past, but none like Amir and Sohrab
Sohrab
- Past has been so traumatizing that it affects all his behavior and flinches at a touch
- Fears abandonment he experienced when parents died and attempts suicide when Amir says he may go back to an orphanage
Amir
- Past always with him as he defines himself as his past
- His guilt motivates him
- Feels responsible for Taliban murdering Hassanas he thinks he set events that led to Hassan’s death when when he pushed Hassan and Ali out of Baba’s house - 5Rape (Motifs)- Most significant instances of rape are Assef’s rape of Hassan and later rape of Sohrab
- Hassan’s rape source of Amir’s guilt, which motivates search for redemption, stopping Sohrab’s rape is way of redeeming himself
- Baba stopping the rape of the woman in the truck
- Kamal was raped
- Physically violent, but also attack on the victim’s emotions and dignity
- Rape in this sense represents complete physical and mental domination of those who don’t have power by those who do - 6Irony (Motifs)- Adult A recognizes ironies in own story
- Grasped irony in his writing as a child
- Greatest but tragic irony centers on Amir’s choice not to stop Hassan’s rape
- Doesn’t intervene wants Baba’s approval can only earn by bringing home the kite and proving he's a winner
- By not stopping he becomes the coward Baba didn't want him to be
- Further irony when Amir realizes how much he resembles Baba when he discovers that Baba conceived Hassan with Sanaubar, Ali’s wife
- Wanted to share his best traits but shared the betrayal of friends
- Irony stems from Amir recognizing the unintended consequences of his actions or desires. - 7Regressing in Time (Motifs)- Does not exactly have flashbacks
- Repeatedly moves the story back in time to give a history of what he is talking about
- Provides critical information about character’s history, it reinforces thematic idea that the past defines the present. - 8The Cleft Lip (Symbols)- Most representative features as a child, and the feature Amir refers most in describing him
- Marks his status in society and signifies his poverty
- Pays a surgeon to repair Hassan’s lip as birthday gift, signifying secret fatherly love
- Assef splits Amir’s lip as he beats him, leaving Amir with a permanent scar - 9Kites (Symbols)- Symbol of Amir’s happiness and guilt
- Recollections after the rape portray the kite as a sign of his betrayal
- Amir does not fly a kite again until he does so with Sohrab at the end of the novel - 10The Lamb (Symbols)- In Islam, as in Christianity, the lamb signifies the sacrifice of an innocent
- Hassan and Sohrab as looking like lambs waiting to be slaughtered.
- Assef put mascara on Sohrab’s eyes, just as Amir says the mullah used to do to the sheep before slitting its throat
- Sacrifice is portrayed as the exploitation of an innocent.
Informações
- Descrição
- A-Level English Literature (AS English Literature) FlashCards sobre Kite Runner - Themes, Motifs and Symbols, criado por samanthaball.x em 04-05-2015.
- Criado por
- samanthaball.x
- Visualizações
- 100
- Avaliação