Amir's Guilt In The Kite Runner By Khaled Hosseini

“Maybe there's more we all could have done, but we just have to let the guilt remind us to do better next time.” In The Kite Runner, written by Khaled Hosseini, an Afghan-born man named Amir is facing the repercussions of betraying his best friend of his childhood. Now living in the United States, Amir is haunted by his guilt and faces an opportunity to make amends for his past. The guilt of Amir’s betrayal of Hassan leads to his prolonged guilt, causing him to seek redemption. He seeks it through his rescue of Sohrab by standing up to Assef, flying to Afghanistan, and taking Sohrab with him to America.
Amir seeks redemption because of his guilt of not helping Hassan whom was being raped. Hassan, the son of Amir’s family’s servant who is Amir’s

After the incident of Hassan’s rape, the tension between Hassan and Amir increases as Amir resents to see Hassan every day. This is caused by not only the regret of not saving Hassan but the jealousy of the love and attention that Baba gives Hassan. Amir soon causes Hassan and his father to be driven out of the home, as Amir accuses him of theft as he puts his own watch underneath his pillow. Hassan, who still remains loyal to Amir does not deny the accusations because “Hassan knew. He knew I [Amir] had betrayed him and yet he was rescuing me once again, maybe for the last time" (Hosseini 111). Even though Hassan is framed guilty of the accusation, Amir’s father still forgives Hassan which shocks Amir as he feels that is father loves Hassan more than his own son. After Amir had been married and finished college in America, Baba dies of lung cancer, and Amir begins to reflect on Baba’s life and words. He wonders if he would ever become like his father, and he thinks about the great love Baba showed towards Hassan. Amir feels guilty that he never showed his gratitude to his devoted friend whom not once tried to blame Amir for anything wrong he’s done. The words of Baba, that “there is no act more wretched than stealing” rings in Amir’s ears and he thinks of what he’s stolen from Hassan; his dignity from rape, his confidence, and a chance to relationship to further with Baba (Hosseini __).

After the Soviet Union invades Afghanistan, Amir and Baba flee out of the country to begin a new life in America, leaving Hassan behind. Amir and Baba believe that America is a place where their pasts can concealed easier, as it is a place with “no ghosts, no memories, and no sins” (Hosseini 144). As Amir is raised in a country of civil peace, equality and wealth, Hassan is left to an injustice war tor country. He feels wrong to live a life with such peace as “[his] actions may have cost Hassan a chance at those very same things” (Hosseini 238). When Rahim Kahn, an old friend of Amir calls and tells him that “there is a way to be good again”, and Amir is interested in the chance to rid the guilt of his past (Hosseini 2). During a visit to Rahim in Pakistan, Amir is told that Hassan was actually his own half-brother, as Baba had an affair with Hassan’s mother. This causes shock, anger, and increased guilt for Amir’s sins, and causes a bigger drive to help the only thing left of Hassan, his son. Amir saves Sohrab from both the Taliban and suicide. Because Hassan couldn’t afford to leave the country when Amir and Baba did, Amir wants to give him the same opportunity of a safe, happy life in America. Although Amir may not be able to adopt Sohrab, the novel ends with a spark of hope for Amir’s redemption as they both fly their kites and begin to build a caring relationship. Because of all of the abuse