Essay- Betrayal and Redemption

Julia Chiaramonte

Mr. Freitas

ENG3U1-13

23 July 2018

Betrayal and Redemption in The Kite Runner

There are many evident themes throughout Khaled Hosseini’s The Kite Runner that make the story powerful and meaningful. However, betrayal and redemption is the theme that impacts and influences the characters the most.  Amir puts other through pain so he can feel accepted, but it just leaves him feeling guilty. Baba keeps secrets from his family that end up hurting himself, and his loved ones. Sanaubar makes mistakes that seem like the right choice at the time, but she ends up regretting them. All of these characters make mistakes when they are young, and do not realize right from wrong. Eventually, they realize what they have done, and try everything to make it right. This plays a major part in the way that the decisions they make, and without these problems, there would be no plot to the story, therefore betrayal and redemption is the most important theme in this book.

The Kite Runner’s main focus is Amir mistreating Hassan, and then Amir working hard to redeem his misfortunes at the end of the book. When Amir is a child, he misuses and takes advantage Hassan’s loyalty to him. He allows Hassan to get raped in order to receive the kite from Assef, just so he can feel accepted by Baba. He does not intervene because he sees this as the only opportunity to please his father, but he knows that it is wrong, “Maybe Hassan was the price I had to  pay, the lamb I had to slay, to win Baba. Was it a fair price? The answer floated to my conscious mind before I could thwart it: He was just a Hazara, wasn't he?” (Hosseini 65). Amir knows that Hassan willingly sacrifices his innocence for him, but he has to live with the guilt for the rest of his life. As Amir gets older, he tries to push away his guilt from treating Hassan badly. Despite these attempts, the guilt catches up to him when he visits Rahim Khan in Peshawar. When Rahim Khan tells he called him here to save Sohrab, Hassan’s son, Amir does whatever it takes to get him to safety, “I realized something: I would not leave Afghanistan without finding Sohrab. ‘Tell me where he is,’ I said” (237). Amir puts himself through all this trouble to save him because he knows that Hassan would, no doubt, do the exact same, and more, if it was Amir’s son. Lastly, Amir commits his life to raising Sohrab, so he can redeem himself for treating Hassan horribly for all these years. At the end of the book, he is fly kites with Sohrab in San Francisco. Amir then runs to catch the kite, which “puts himself in the ‘servants’ position instead of lording his Pashtun, wealthy status over a Hazara. He takes the opportunity to do all that he can for Sohrab, since he cannot do so for Hassan” (qtd. in Pimpernel 1). His actions are symbolic, since Hassan was his servant and would always run for the kite, but now he is taking his place and honouring all Hassan did for him. Amir made horrible mistakes in his childhood that he knew were wrong, but he thought it would help him feel better. As he grows up and matures, he understands that it is wrong, so he spends the rest of his life raising Sohrab, as a way to repay Hassan for everything he did to him, which is what fuels the storyline, making betrayal and redemption the most important theme in the book.

Baba is a man that many people adore and look up to for all his impressive accomplishments. Unfortunately, Baba betrays the people he loves in a way that is frowned upon in society. Baba has a secret that only his closest friends knew. He keeps this secret from Hassan and Amir, hoping that he can ignore the guilt from what he did. Rahim Khan reveals to Amir that Baba is Hassan’s father, which makes Amir feel betrayed, “‘Did Hassan know?" I said through lips that didn't  feel like my own. Rahim Khan closed his eyes. Shook his head” (190). Baba betrays Ali, and his wife, by being seduced by Sanaubar. When Baba’s secret is finally uncovered, it becomes clear as to why Baba treated Hassan with such pride and love. Amir always feels that Baba loved Hassan as a son, ”Then how could he just forgive Hassan? And if Baba could forgive that, then why couldn't he forgive me for not being the son he'd always wanted?” (89). Amir finally understands why Baba would hold Hassan on a pedestal, and always try to include him. Despite Amir and Baba’s differences growing up, they appear to be almost exactly the same, “Even though Amir and Baba are very different they have one thing in common, that his they both committed a sin of theft.” (qtd. in Kim V. 1). They both redeem try their best to redeem themselves, but it does not get rid of the lifelong regret for their unfortunate actions. Baba’s betrayal to Ali, his wife, Hassan and Amir has a major effect on the storyline for The Kite Runner. Without him trying to redeem himself through giving Ali and Hassan a good life, the neglect that Amir felt would have never happened, thus not creating a plot.

Sanaubar, Hassan’s mother, is a character who does not appear to have a great impact on the others. However, her story is powerful and gives insight into how one can regret their decisions that they made when they were young, and though they had it all.When Amir talks about Sanaubar, it is mostly negative, which makes her appears as rude and self-centred. After Hassan is born, and she sees his cleft lip, she instantly judges him,  “‘There,’ she had said. ‘Now you have your own idiot child to do all your smiling for you!’ She had refused to even hold Hassan, and just five days later, she was gone” (8). Sanaubar is a young, beautiful woman who wants to live freely, so she believes that having a child is holding her down from that. She makes impulsive decisions, and does not think of the future. Sanaubar neglecting Hassan is heartbreaking, and she robs him of having a mother. Sanaubar does not have good intentions when she still in Kabul. She seduces Baba, which contributes to his uprise and downfall as a father. Although it is not obvious, there is parts of the story where it suggests that Sanaubar does this, “I have heard of Sanaubar’s suggestive stride and oscillating hips sent men to reveries of infidelity” (6). Sanaubar betrays her vows as a wife to Ali, and influences Baba to commit a crime in his eyes.  As Sanaubar gets older, she realizes that her way of life was not a good one. She does everything she can to return to Hassan, hoping that she will accept him, and redeem herself by committing her life to loving him, “You should have seen Sanaubar with that baby, Amir jan. He became the center of her existence” (181). She sees Sohrab as an opportunity to be a mother to him and make up for not being there for Hassan.Sanaubar is a woman who has an influence on many of the characters. Her betrayal in her youth is the cause of her deposition in adulthood. Although her redemption mainly focuses on Sohrab, it shows how committed she is to redeeming her sins.

The Kite Runner is a book with many hidden and strong messages. Hosseini includes a wide array of themes that helps the readers relate to the story. The most touching theme is evidently betrayal and redemption. Amir abuses the trust that Hassan gives him as a child, but he changes his morals to try to honour all Hassan does for him. Baba tries to keep a major secret in the dark, however it reveals itself later on in life, and connects all the dots. Lastly, Sanaubars

childish actions backfire onto her, and she realizes that she should have never left her family behind. All of these characters betray someone that they love dearly. They all turned a blind eye, even though they knew it was wrong. When reality finally hits, and they decide to change their ways, it gives an anticipation that the audience wants in the story. The character’s mistakes is what fuels the story, therefore it is the most important theme in The Kite Runner.

Works Cited

Pimpernel, Scarlet. “How Does Amir Gain Redemption in The Kite Runner?” Enotes, www.enotes.com/homework-help/how-does-amir-gain-redemption-95187. Accessed 22 July 2018.

Review of The Kite Runner, by Kim V. Scholieren, 8 Oct. 2009, www.scholieren.com/boekverslag/68524. Accessed 23 July 2018.