How Does Amir Create Tension In The Kite Runner

The Kite Runner is a brilliant book by Khaled Hosseini. This novel tells the story of a Pashtun family and their Hazara servants. Amir, who is the narrator, witnesses an event that becomes a pivotal moment in his life that leaves him with a vast amount of guilt. After Ali and Hassan leave, Baba and Amir escape to America in hopes of having a better life. Amir is forced to grow up much faster, so he can take care of his father, and meets the daughter of General Taheri, Soraya; eventually they get married. When Amir returns to Afghanistan he learns some dramatic secrets that change his life forever. The Kite Runner uses ethic tensions to dramatize a world of secrets. Ethnic tension is not a new concept. Ethnic tension occurs when two

“In it [a history book], I read that my people, the Pashtuns, had persecuted and oppressed the Hazara. It said the Hazaras had tried to rise against the Pashtuns in the nineteenth century, but the Pashtuns had “quelled them with unspeakable violence” (Hosseini 9). School and society are pushing Amir to behave in one manner, while growing up with Hassan is pushing him towards another. This push and pull is important because most of Amir’s actions are a result of this. The most salient example for readers is the scene when Hassan is being raped by Assef. During this scene Hassan is confronted by Assef and a couple his friends. Assef demanded that Hassan give him the kite that Amir had won in the kite competition. Assef taunts Hassan, but Hassan does not back down. As Amir watched from around the corner, Assef and his friends overpowered Hassan and Assef violated him. Amir tried to justify not intervening in his head, but he knew that his reasons were only excuses. “In the end, I was a Pashtun and he was a Hazara, I was Sunni and he was Shi’a, and nothing was ever going to change that” (Hosseini 25). The guilt that Amir carries with him about that event is what drives the novel. A similar sentiment exists when Amir returns to retrieve Sohrab. As his dying wish, Rahim Khan asks Amir to go and get his nephew, Hassan’s son. As the novel progresses, secrets come out that change the way

This quote accurately describes the secrets of The Kite Runner. Some secrets are bigger than others, but nonetheless they are important to the plot. The biggest secret revealed is that Hassan is actually Amir’s half-brother. Rahim Khan explains Ali, Hassan’s father, was actually sterile. “He [Ali] was married once before, to a Hazara woman from the Jaghori area. This was long before you were born. They were married for three years” (Hosseini 222). From this statement Amir figured out that this father procreated with Sanaubar. After discovering this Amir was angry with everybody. Upon reading about this secret, the readers are left with a myriad of questions. The biggest question is if Amir and Hassan knew that they were half-brothers would Amir have intervened and stopped what happened to Hassan. My honest opinion is that despite the familial relations, Amir would not have stopped Assef. Until he finally has his face-off with Assef, Amir lack the ability to stand up for anything. This is obvious to many of the characters and the readers. The social tensions between the Pashtuns and Hazaras and Amir’s need to feel like he belongs to something would out weight his guilt. He even wanted to to shout “But he’s not my friend . . . He’s my servant” (Hosseini 41). Amir could not even speak his mind about how he truly felt about Hassan. Another secret revealed is that Rahim Khan, who