The Kite Runner
Introduction
The Kite Runner is the first novel of author Khaled Hosseini of Afghan origin. The author in this work tells the story of Amir, a young man from the district of Kabul, and his closest friend Hassan. The story in this novel is developed from the tantrums of events, from the fall of the great Afghanistan Monarchy, cutting through the Soviet paramilitary interventions to the exit of the captives in the US and Pakistan, and the rise of the Taliban Regime. At the beginning of the story, Hosseini commences the work by painting the Kite Runner a story of great parenthood background. The parenthood relationship network in the story of the kite runner reveals a lot about the familial backgrounds of Baba, Amir, Hassan, and Ali. The good relationship between children and parents, lead to sharing even the buried secrets, and this helps in strengthening the bond between the child and the parent.
Comparison
Afghanistan is a nation where culture and tradition are of monumental importance. Baba and Amir depict contrasting personalities from the view of the reader. Amir is brought as a timid character and an insecure child. On the other hand, Baba is courageous, and a respected person. Despite their differences, Amir and Baba are confidants just like Hassan and Ali. The two share their secrets and hide the secrets from anyone else. Baba and Amir both spend their significant time in the lives atoning for their sins. They even betray those who mean a lot to them, Ali and Hassan. However, Baba does not understand why the interests of Amir are different from his. “He is always buried in books, or shuffling around the house like a person lost in drams… I was not like him” (Hosseini, 23). “I had not seen the doctor pull him out of my wife, I would never believe he is my son” (Hosseini, 25). Baba shows emotional attachment to his son.
On the contrary, Hassan and Ali enjoy a happy relationship. Hassan’s relationship with Ali demonstrates the importance of an empathetic father even though they are not related by blood. Even though Ali knew Hassan was not his biological son, he loved him and sacrificed for his benefit. “It’s not flesh in the blood, but the good heart which makes us sons, and fathers” (Hosseini, 139). Ali and Hassan demonstrate that people can face difficulties and still overcome. The relationship between Baba and Amir improved time by time to a point when Amir started getting interested in sports like Baba, and won the Kite-fighting competition. The two became close confidants. Similarly, Ali and Hassan were confidants too. Hassan was open to his paternal father and went ahead to tell him about his rape incident.
Conclusion
A good relationship, especially between a parent and a child, means doing things for one another. It also means sitting your siblings to share with them, and in the process, they also share their secrets. Parenthood is not all about building walls between parents and children. It is all about sharing with them even if the children are not your biological sons, and daughters. In the world today we may find ourselves under the parental care of paternal parents. The truth is that children may not know what might have transpired that the condition is the way it is. Regardless of the situation, such children always deserve warm parental care just like the others. The Kite Runner presents a different case in the initial relationship between Baba and Amir. However, the relationship between Ali and Hassan depicts the picture of a real empathetic father.