Redemption In Khaled Hosseini's 'The Kite Runner'

Escalator of Redemption
There is always a chance for a scar to heal, no matter how long it is left to fester. In Khaled Hosseini’s The Kite Runner, since his childhood, Amir feels guilty towards his beloved ones. The more Amir acknowledges mistakes he makes and how they accumulate, the more redemption he yearns to achieve. Amir’s guilt originates after feeling accounted for his mother’s death—Baba’s true love. Subsequently, Amir resists to aid Hassan in his difficulty, fearing he will lose his father’s ‘love’, creating regret that will haunt him for the rest of his young life. As his faults—and guilt—develop during his adulthood, Amir was dedicated to redeem himself and determine “... a way to be good again” (192). Amir is a ‘tortured soul’

Because Baba’s love for Amir is conditional, Amir feels as though he is an inadequate son in his father’s eyes—pushing him forward to attain Baba’s pride. Initially, Amir writes his first short story and goes to read it to Baba in his study. He receives a message from Rahim Khan admiring his gift of creative writing; Rahim Khan wrote to Amir that “It is now … [his] duty to hone that talent, because a person who wastes his God-given talents is a donkey” (34). In consequence, Amir would have been inspired to write Baba the best of stories. However, before Rahim’s commentary, Baba was not interested in reading or listening to his story; Amir mentions that “Baba nodded and gave a thin smile that conveyed little more than feigned interest” (33). Amir remembers Baba say that "If… [he] hadn't seen the doctor pull him out of my wife with … [his] own eyes, [he would] never believe he is… [his] son" (22). correspondingly, Amir wants to win Kabul’s annual kite fighting competition to attain Baba’s pride, and reflect his personality. On the day of the tournament, Amir cuts the last kite and watches as Baba and the crowd applaud for his victory; he sees the look of delight in his father’s eyes. However, Amir is not satisfied until he catches the last kite to impress his father even more—little did he know that by doing so he will risk the companionship of Hassan and the comfort of being

In an attempt to relieve himself from shame in his father’s eyes, Amir stands by watching Assef rape his best friend, Hassan, so that he will not risk losing the last kite—his key to Baba’s love. Amir mentions that “Hassan was the price… [he] had to pay, the lamb… [he] had to slay to win Baba” (82). Amir’s remorse intensifies after acknowledging how his ignorant behaviour as a child exacerbate the life of his blood brother to the worse. For instance, Amir states just as Hassan is about to leave to Hazarajat that “ This was Hassan’s final sacrifice for me… And that led to another understanding: Hassan knew. He knew I’d seen everything in that alley, that I’d stood there and done nothing. He knew I had betrayed him and yet he was rescuing me once again, maybe for the last time” (...). In consequence, Amir realizes how his action accumulated to cause Hassan to travel away from his home to somehow retain his dignity and recover from an unpleasant past. Amir meets Rahim Khan in Peshawar to discuss the recent events in Afghanistan. Rahim told Amir that the Taliban killed Hassan, and later that they are half-brothers. After recognizing that Hassan is his half brother, Amir feels great remorse for treating the closest person he knows with such inadequacy. Amir mentions