Accountability In The Kite Runner

Accountability and other definite actions are the key to gaining redemption from your past mistakes. In his novel The Kite Runner, Khalid Hosseini reveals this idea through Baba and the actions he made till his death. Now under the same circumstances as Amir, Baba made an effort to be more understanding towards Amir. However, after Baba’s death, Amir learns that Baba has been lying about his relations with Hassan, his brother. Baba was not able to take accountability for what he did damaging his sons. Because of Khalid Hosseini’s novel, The Kite Runner, the mending of Baba’s relationship with Amir only redeemed how he acted towards Amir in his childhood; his lie has not been acknowledged nor redeemed.

Baba’s selfishness behind his decision

Baba had an immense amount of guilt from his lie, making him do good for the community to compensate for his mistakes. That is why Rahim Kahn writes that “guilt leads to good” (302). However; this never rectifies Baba from the secret he keeps. His sons still don’t know the truth about their father no matter what good acts Baba completed. It is because of his ignorance that he dies unredeemed. When Baba later starts to fix his relationship with Amir it has the same impact as the good acts. While he genuinely tries to understand Amir more, he also sees it as an adequate excuse to not confess. Baba dies at peace with himself, but dies “[betraying the people who give their [life] for [him]” (226). His attempt to be good was for nothing because he never paid for the actions he committed. All the good actions and fatherly behavior did was quell the guilt burdening Baba. Implicating that Baba’s motive for his service to others was not to amend his wrong doings, but to feel free from any liability. Because Baba only cared about how his actions made him feel he failed to fix the effects of his

In Kabul Baba tries to lighten up his guilt by doing multiple good Samaritan acts giving him less time to connect with Amir, and making Amir feel not enough. Even when Baba had moments with Amir to connect, he would seem disinterested making Amir wish to “open [his] veins and drain [Baba’s] cursed blood from [his] body” (32). This causes their relationship to become strained, making Amir take irrational actions in order to gain Baba’s favor. Amir shows this in the alleyway as he chooses to not interfere out of fear of Baba’s reaction to the outcome. This makes Baba directly at fault for the decision Amir makes. If he had made an effort to connect with his sons and face his past, Amir might have made a completely different decision at the alleyway. When in America, Amir stood up to Baba because the last time he listened he had “damned himself” (135). This reveals most of Amir’s motivations center around Baba’s expectations and that it leads to unsound decisions. Because of those expectations, Amir frames Hassan, making both Ali and Hassan leave. Through Baba, Hosseini shows how a single mistake that affects someone momentarily can cause hardships to many in the future. That is why Baba’s lack of transparency will indirectly be the cause for Hassan's death. If he had been true to himself and others, many of the hardships faced by Hassan and Amir could