The Kite Runner: Opinion Two

"'I am moftakhir, Amir,' he said. Proud. His eyes gleamed when he said that and I liked being on the receiving end of that look." 

(page 131)

One of the themes of the book is the relationship between father and son. In The Kite Runner, the simple, easy father and son relationship is Ali and Hassan. I realized very quickly that their relationship is one of great love, as Ali is incredibly proud of Hassan, especially since the boy is all he has. However, the audience then sees the relationship between Amir and Baba; theirs is definitely one of great complexity and cannot be so easily categorized. For instance, it seems that Amir believed throughout his childhood that he was a great disappointment to Baba; he spent his entire childhood waiting for the moment when he could say "Baba and I were finally friends" (page 85). However, when they arrived in America, it seems that Amir's relationship with Baba changed quite a bit. They became closer and Baba did not seem to be so disappointed in his son; this could just be from the maturing of Amir, but I thought it had more to do with the peace and freedom American meant for Amir. He was more comfortable in the new country, and Baba relied upon him for much. I also found it to be interesting that once cancer struck Baba, he and Amir's relationship definitely improved; I feel as if this happens most times in relationships such as this. The first half of the book caused me to recognize the importance of the father/son relationship of Amir's maturation. If Baba and Amir's relationship would have been different, Amir would be a very different individual and many of the moments that occurred in The Kite Runner would not have happened how they did.

The Kite Runner: Opinion One

"PANIC. you open your mouth. Open it wide so your jaws creak. You order your lungs to draw air, NOW, you need are, need it NOW. But your airways ignore you. They collapse, tighten, squeeze, and suddenly you're breathing through a drinking straw..." 

(page 121)

At this point, I am really enjoying The Kite Runner. Yes, it is extremely depressing, and every time I think Amir's life can't get worse, somehow it does, but the novel is well-written and keeps my attention. For instance, moments such as the one above are incredibly powerful to read. I almost felt as if I were with Amir experiencing the horrifying situation of being stuck in a fuel tank. The emotions he was experiencing were almost palpable much like other moments in the book (i.e. the kite running tournament, Hassan's rape, Baba's death, his wedding, etc). In order for me to truly enjoy a book, the author must write it in such a way that I stay thoroughly intrigued. Through the last three literary terms I blogged about (foreshadowing, imagery, and vernacular), Hosseini proved to me that his novel was one worth reading. I feel as if I am in suspense on every page because I never know what to expect or what is coming next; Hosseini throws curveballs at a constant rate. I am excited to read the rest of the novel and see what other unpredictable conflicts come up. Shockingly, The Kite Runner is becoming one of those books that is difficult to put down.

The Kite Runner: Vernacular

"'Insallah,' I echoed, though the 'God willing' qualifier didn't sound as sincere coming from my lips." (page 58)

"You offered tassali, condolences, for the death of a parents, congratulated for the birth of children, and shook your head mournfully when the conversation turned to Afgahnistan and the Roussis-which it inevitably did." (page 138)

One of the most important things to realize about The Kite Runner is that the Amir often slips in the language of his childhood in the chapters. When using the Dari language in his story, Amir is employing the use of vernacular. In my opinion, this adds a sense of authenticity to the novel. Using the vernacular allows the reader to be exposed to even more of the Afghan culture, which causes their understanding of the novel to increase as a whole. Amir makes certain though, to define the Dari words he uses right after he speaks them, such as in the excerpts above. I also liked how the Dari words were italicized when used; this caused a little click in my brain realizing that another language was being used, and I needed to look for the definition. The use of the vernacular was vital in causing the reader to gain a further understanding of the importance of culture to the storyline presented in The Kite Runner. The vernacular in this case only strengthened the story and added to the impact the Afghan culture had on Amir and those around him. It caused me greater interest in the novel as a whole.

The Kite Runner: Imagery

"The poplar trees lined the redbrick driveway, which led to a pair of wrought-iron gates. They in turn opened into an extension of my father's estate. The house sat on the left of the brick path, the backyard at the end of it...A broad entryway flanked by rosebushes led to the sprawling house of marble floors and wide windows. Intricate mosaic tiles covered the floors of the four bathrooms. Gold-stitched tapestries lined the walls; a crystal chandelier hung from the vaulted ceiling..." (page 4)

In The Kite Runner, imagery is definitely an important focus; the narrator explains every surrounding in great depth and detail. For instance, the above explanation of the house continues for almost two pages; he explains almost every aspect of the house in order to present the reader with an accurate view. Throughout the rest of the novel, Amir focuses intently on the use of imagery in his memories. He wants to make certain to present the reader with the ability to see the world he grew up in and the places he experienced. For me, reading about his life in Afghanistan was definitely a culture shock. I don't think by any means I am a small-town girl. Since my dad is a pilot, my family has traveled the world quite a bit. However, my impression of Afghanistan has always been that it is a war-torn country that is falling apart. Amir's description of his early childhood helped me to understand that this was not always the case; it caused me to imagine the beauty of the Afghanistan before the Taliban overtook the government. The detailed imagery in this novel is absolutely vital to understanding the story as a whole because readers can't understand a country that is worlds away. The imagery allowed me to paint a clear picture of Afghanistan in my mind as well; I hate to admit it, but before I started reading this novel, I didn't even know what to imagine as the setting, except for sand. Lots and lots of sand. And a few camels here and there. Therefore, I feel descriptive imagery is necessary for the telling of Amir's story.

The Kite Runner: Foreshadowing

"I thought of the life I had lived until the winter of 1975 came along and changed everything. And made me what I am today." (page 2)

From the very first chapter of The Kite Runner, I was able to recognize Hosseini's love of using foreshadowing; although he begins his novel with a line of foreshadowing, I felt that the one with the most gravity is the last sentence in the first chapter. Throughout the entire first half of the novel, Hosseini writes using this technique in order to keep the reader in great suspense, such as the above excerpt. He ends the chapter with this phrase and piques the reader's interest as to what the narrator is referring to. When I read this line, I knew that the this change would be a drastic one for the narrator because of the dark way the sentence is written. It caused me much intrigue and made me want to keep reading to discover what had changed for the narrator. Employing the use of foreshadowing causes The Kite Runner to move quickly; Hosseini writes with the intent of causing this suspense at the end of nearly every chapter, and oftentimes, he uses it in the middle of chapters too. Amir doles out bits and pieces of information about himself that the reader begins to put together to answer the questions that were formed in their minds by this very first statement. The foreshadowing technique creates an opportunity to keep the audience in the dark, but cause them to remain very interested at the same time.