“I had one last chance to make a decision. One final opportunity to decide who I was going to be. I could step into that alley, stand up for Hassan--the way he’d stood up for me all those times in the past--and accept whatever would happen to me. Or I could run.”
Many believe that life is all about making the right choices. Some are big, life-changing choices, but many are small, day-to-day ones. These choices, small or big, are the hinges upon which the paths of our lives turn. They will define what course we set sail upon. Once awhile, perhaps, we will probably sit down and ponder upon one choice we take that set our life on a completely different course than if we had chosen one of the other options available to us. Making a life choice and decision is the most difficult thing to do because it brings consequences to our future. One wrong choice might turn your life into a twisted end. It is such exertion of making the right choice that is sourly portrayed in The Kite Runner, a novel by Khaled Hosseini.
Amir, the leading character in the novel, had made a fatal decision that changed his whole life forever. Instead of defending Hassan, his childhood friend, he chose to abandon him into a disgrace. He chose to run away, an act of cowardice. Unable to face his shame, he further devised a wicked scheme to get rid of him and his father. After all, he was a Pasthun, a major tribe in Afghanistan, and Hassan the Hazara, the minority tribe in which the two tribes are divided by race and religious mainstream, Sunni and Shia. He was the master and Hassan, the servant. Despite the betrayal, Hassan did not develop any signs of hatred for Amir. He took the blame of thievery to protect Amir. For Amir, Hassan would always say “for you, a thousand time over”. The nature of their friendship is forever altered.
The Kite Runner tells the story of Amir, the privileged son of a wealthy businessman from Wazir Akbar Khan district of Kabul, who is haunted by guilt of betraying his childhood friend Hassan, the son of his father's Hazara servant. Hassan continually demonstrates loyalty, honesty, and courage to Amir. Every time Amir was bullied, Hassan stood by him to protect. It is described clearly how seeds of hatred grow and develop among the tribes in Afghanistan back then. Thus, the friendship between Baba (Amir’s father), Rahim Khan (Baba’s closest associate), with Ali (Hassan’s father) is regarded absurd and bold. It’s against the prevailing norms. The story is set against a backdrop of tumultuous events, from the fall of the monarchy in Afghanistan through the soviet invasion, the mass exodus of refugees to Pakistan and the United States, and the rise of the Taliban regime.
Despite their different tribe, Amir and Hassan grew up together. They fed from the same breast and learnt to crawl together. They spent their days in a peaceful Kabul, and enjoyed doing anything together. They used to play hide-and-seek, cops and robbers, cowboys and Indians, and they loved insect torture. They took strolls together through the parks and saw many movies together. One of the most memorable times that Amir and Hassan shared together was underneath their pomegranate tree on top of a hill. They climbed the tree and Amir read many stories to Hassan since Hassan was illiterate. Amir had carved on tree the tree "amir and Hassan, sultans of Kabul.” It was Hassan who helped Amir to choose the path of his future career while Amir had only taken advantage of the friendship. He made fun of him whenever he had the chance, but Hassan never took it to heart and still perceived Amir as his best friend.
Baba loved both in a kind of different ways, leading Amir to suspect his father favoring Hassan. In Baba’s eyes, Hassan was physically and mentally stronger than Amir. While Amir was weaker, he never stood up for himself. Amir loved poetry, something that Baba believed was not normal for a young boy. Hassan’s father was was brought to their household by Amir’s grandfather, a judge, after his parents were killed by two drunken men. The judge raised Ali with his own son. Ali became a servant as well as a good friend to Baba. Amir’s mother died in childbirth. Therefore, Amir had the feeling that his father despised him because he was the reason for her death. He craved for his father’s love and blamed Hassan as an obstacle. Meanwhile, Hassan’s mother, Sanaubar, abandoned him after gave birth, to follow a gypsy life. Ali loved Hassan so much. Father and son was so close and full of love. Such relationship was absence in Amir’s that nurtured a constant jealousy within him. Baba was always critical of Amir and did not support his ambition in writing. However, he found a father figure in the form of Rahim Khan, who understood Amir better, and was supportive of his interest in writing stories.
An incident took place while the boys ran up the hill they used to hang about. They were ambushed by three older Pashtun teens led by Assef, a hostile teen with sadistic tendencies and a follower of Hitler. Assef was the son of another rich Pashtun family who was also the friend of Baba. He regarded Hazara as minority group that should be eradicated from the land. On critical moment, Hassan stood up to defend Amir with his slingshot. As always, he was always be the bodyguard of Amir. Assef swore an oath, he would seek revenge. This incident would foreshadow an event that occurred later in the story in which Amir and Hassan’s lives were changed forever
During the prestigious kite tournament held annually in Kabul, Hassan had prepared everything to ensure Amir’s victory. He used his birthday present kite to compete, and directed Amir to beat all the other kites. It was Amir’s chance to win over Baba’s love for if he won he would acquire pride and glory. The last cut kite was the great trophy of the tournament and whoever got it would got pride and glory. Amir cut the last kite and Hassan chased off the kite for Amir, saying “For you a thousand time over" before he ran.
Hassan, the kite runner, went off searching for the kite, and got ambushed by Assef and his two comrades in the dead alley. Assef was determined to take his revenge. He gave Hassan two options: Either he gave the blue kite or received something bad. Hassan refused to give up the kite. Meanwhile, Amir was worried since Hassan hasn’t returned for long. He looked for him and finally stumbled upon the alley. He stood paralyzed in his hiding place to watch the horror. Amir saw the blue kite behind the back of Hassan; he protected the kite from the one person that he hated the most. He saw how Assef and his gangs molested Amir sexually. He turned his back on Hassan out of fear. He took the path of a coward. “I opened my mouth, almost said something. Almost. The rest of my life might have turned out differently if I had. But I did not. I just watched paralyzed.” He had betrayed the person that once stood up for him; the one person who was willing to do anything for his sake. It was a wrong choice he regretted for the rest of his days. It altered his friendship with Hassan forever.
Ashamed of his cowardice, Amir further devised a wicked scheme to get rid of Hassan for good so that he didn’t have to face him anymore. He falsely accused of Hassan of thievery. To protect Amir, Hassan took the blame for he would always love his friend. Ali eventually took Hassan away from the Baba’s household; it was no longer a safe place for his beloved son. Baba was devastated. Henceforth, nothing stayed the same. Amir’s fatal choice had ruined not only his life but also of those dear to him. After the Soviet invaded Afghanistan, Baba and Amir sought refuge in the United States (US). Their once prosperous life began anew from zero. Yet, no matter how far he went away, the nightmare of the betrayal haunted him constantly.
It’s not until twenty years later; Amir had the chance to redeem his sins and betrayal. After Taliban took over Afghanistan, Amir got a phone call from from Rahim Khan -the best friend of Baba. Rahim Khan told Amir "There is a way to be good again" as if he knew what happened to Hassan that night. It was Rahim Khan who revealed of his father’s secret; Hassan was actually his step brother, born from the same father. Rahim Khan said that there was a child that linked him to Hassan. The child was the key to redeem his past betrayal. The past could not be changed or altered to how he wanted his life to end up but Amir had one chance to make things right. Sohrab was an orphan falling tragically into the hands of one of Taliban leaders. He had suffered sexual abuse and unimaginable cruelty. The boy was trapped in war zone war, a lamb in the lair of the lions. The boy was in dire need of rescue just like Hassan who once waited for a help, a help that was denied to him because Amir run way cowardly. Amir had been given a second chance. Rahim Khan offered him to make the right choice, to redeem his betrayal to his step brother as well as his Baba’s towards Ali. It was a choice that could set him free inside. It was a choice that was likely to be paid by his life by entering the war torn Afghanistan, his homeland that he had deserted 20 years. His choice would eventually bring him face to face with his old nemesis, Aseef. Would he run again and turn his back? Or would he rush to the kid’s rescue and put his life on the thin line of death? And what was the link of the kid to his past? Well… the readers should continue reading the novel to know the ending of the story.
It’s a great historical fiction to read. It’s a story that compels the heart to ponder and experience how it feels to live a life with such a great burden of betrayal. Further, it also makes us see the other sides of life in Afghanistan before and after the wars. The colorful picturesque of Afghan before the war where Baba took Amir and Hassan for sightseeing was just beautiful in description. We are also forced to see how sometimes religion is twisted and manipulated to justify the cruelty for the sake of an individual or a group. Injustice and inequality of the majority towards the minority (like the case of Pashtun with Hazara) had created deep rooted hostility and wars. Such cases can be seen clearly on daily basis. Why can’t we live side by side regardless of color, race, and religion? In reality, we see many Aseef and perhaps many Amirs, Babas or Rahim Khans but such pure heart like Hassan is a rare gem to find.
Every decision we make, every path we take, will foreshadow our future. We are confronted with choices on daily basis in life, and we struggle to take the right ones. Sometimes, we make mistakes and then we are given second chance to make amends. It’s the choices we make and the actions to translate that choices that will make who we really are, not the blood that run within our veins. So, choose carefully, for you hold responsible for every choice you take.
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