Stereotypes In The Kite Runner

“As soon as they learn our nationality, they go through everything, as though we were all terrorists. They treat us as though we have the plague.” (Persepolis 203) Islamophobia has mesmerized the Western world. In recent years, the rise of various islamic terrorist groups and other Middle Eastern conflicts has sent shock through Western society and perpetuated unwarranted negative stereotypes that have caused the marginalization and discrimination of Muslims. Inevitably, these resulting stereotypes and biases now influence the way that many Muslims typically act and feel about themselves in the 21st century. Moreover, in the literary works of Persepolis and Disgraced, Marji, an Iranian Muslim, and Amir, a Pakistani Muslim, both initially attempt

Amir attempts to abandon his identity by changing his last name from his given Pakistani one to an Indian one (Disgraced 13) as well as writing his parents’ birthplace as “India” as opposed to “Pakistan” on his reign form (Disgraced 35). These choices are fundamentally rooted in the belief that they would shield him from the discrimination of his Jewish law firm employers (and even set him up for promotion). When Amir lightheartedly mentions his boss’ gift of a Hindi statue to Emily (Disgraced 11), it is clear that he has tricked his boss and thereby escaped - what seems to be - inevitable discrimination. Although his assumption that his employers are racist grants him short-term success, lying creates a greater risk than any reward it could offer. This risk comes to fruition when Amir’s identity is exposed by his employers (Disgraced 35-36). Although he is not fired yet, Amir’s dream job as a partner is given to Jory instead due to Amir’s duplicity (Disgraced 73). The reader is unsure if the law firm had truly discriminated against Amir because Isaac, who unreliably provides the commentary, is clearly anti-Muslim as seen when he calls Amir a “slave” (Disgraced 70). On the contrary, however, the reader is certain that Mort, the boss, could not trust Amir simply because of the fact that he was deceitful. Thus, for the shot at a promotion, Amir pays the price of losing all credibility and any hopes of ever furthering his career in the