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Rahim Kahn tells Amir he will be a great writer
In his letter to Amir, Rahim writes that, God has given [Amir] a special talent" (32). Rahim is telling Amir that he has a great talent and that he should use it to the best of his ability. This letter encourages Amir to be confident in his writing and also in himself. -
Hassan and Amir get threatened by Assef for the first time
While confronting Amir and Hassan, Assef says, "You're a disgrace to Afghanistan" (41). This is the first confrontation between Amir, Hassan and Assef. Throughout the book, the confrontations between these characters shape the life of Amir in an extreme way each time. -
Amir wins the Kite Fighting Contest
Hassan says, "You Won, Amir Agha! You Won!" (66). This is the first time that Amir feels he is being acceptred by his father. This is also the precursor to Hassan being raped by Assef due to Hassans loyalty to bring back the kite to Amir. -
Assef rapes Hassan
Assef says to his friends, "All I want you weaklings to do is hold him down" (75). This is the event that changes the whole relationship between Amir and Hassan. Amir lets Hassan be raped by Assef and spends the rest of the book, around 20 years, trying to firgive himself. -
Amir and Baba leave for America
Amir believes that going to Peshwar is the way "to freedom...to safety" (120). Amir and Baba are leaving Afghanishtan to start a new life in America. Together they leave Afghanistan and change the way they live entierly. -
Soviets Invade Kabul
Soviets first "paracheted into Kabul on Dec. 27 1979" to help The new President (NYT 2) -
Amir meets Soraya
Amir thinks that Soraya is "the morning to [his] yelda" (144). Amir falls in love with Soraya from the moment he sees her. He keeps trying to talk with her and connect, even though its against the Afghan tradition. -
Baba has cancer
The Doctor tells them that baba has, "a spot oin his right lung" (154). Baba has been smoking his whole life and when Amir sees him coughing blood, he decideds to take him to the doctor. The doctor reveals that Baba may have cancer, and effectively gives Baba his death sentence. -
last Soviet Troops leave Afghanistan
According to the NYT, "the last soviet troops left Afghanistan in February 1989" (2). -
Soraya and Amir get Married
Amir is "accepted into [Sorayas] family" (168). Bsba is dying and in Afghan tradition the father of the man must ask for his son to wed a woman. Due to this, Amir rushes his dad into asking for Sorayas hand in marraige -
Baba Dies
Baba dies when he says, "There is no pain tonight" (172). Baba has had cancer for a while now and has been on morphine for his pain. He has seen Amir very happy and believes that its his time to go peacefully. -
The Creation of Taliban
Mullah Omar, the founder of the taliban had "nearly 12,000 forllowers" by the end of 1994. (NYT 2) -
Osama lands in Afghanistan
Osama bin Laden, "arrived by chartered jet at Jalalabad" in may of 1996 (NYT 3) -
Taliban Take control of Afghanistan
"The Taliban by 1996 had taken control of Afghanistan" with the help of Pakistani aid (NYT 2) -
Amir Goes to see Rahim khan
Amir tells Soraya that he, "has to go to Pakistan" (191). Rahim Khan has just called Amir and informed him that he is dying. Amir responds by coming to see Rahim Kahn and eventually go back to Kabul. -
Amir finds out Hassan was his half brother
Rahim tells Amir that, "Ali was sterile" (222). This is brand new knowledge to Amir: He has just found out that Hassan was his brother. This changes his perspective on what happened, from it happening to a friend to it happeneing to his brother. -
Amir finds Sohrab
Amir tells Assef that he wants to take Sohrab, "to a better place" (284). Amir finds Sohrab being abused sexually by none other than Assef. To get Sohrab from Assef, Amir has to fight him, which almost kills Amir. -
Sohrab attempts suicide
Amir says, "My hands are stained with Hassan's blood; I pray God doesn't let them get stained with the blood of his boy too" (346). Amir believes that Hassan is dead becuase of his actions to get him fired as their servants. When Sohrab attempts suicide, Amir is desperate for Sohrab to be alive so he didnt have to deal with the death of Hassans son too. -
Sohrab comes to USA with Amir
Sohrab knew that he had, "no other choice" (356). Sohrab is just coming out of the hospital, and Amir offers to take him to the United States. Sohrab either could go to the US, or go back to being an abandoned orphan in Kabul, and Amir wouldnt allow that. -
world trade centers go boom boom
Osama bin Laden and al qaeda led "an attack on the World Trade Center in New York on Sept. 11, 2001" (NYT 3) -
Hamid Karazi named interi president Of afghanistan
In December of 2001, Hanid Karzai "took office as interim President' (NYT 3). -
Amir and Sohrab go kite fighting
Amir asks Sohrab, "Do you want to try?" (368). Since Sohrab came to the United States, he has been very quiet and hard to interact with. By Amir and Sohrab flying kites, they begin to bond over their pasts through their common relative: Hassan. -
General Petraeus takes charge
General Petraeus took charge of the "United States central Command in October 2008" (NYT 4). -
Obama delivers Speech
At west point in december 2009, Obama 'announced his play to deploy 30,000 additional troops" into Afghanistan (NYT 4) -
All US troops out of Afghanistan
The Obama Administration says that the US will have "forces in [Afghanistan] until at least the end of 2014" (NYT 4)