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Amir's Birth
Amir's birth is quite significant within the context of the book, because the book is about him and his life experiences, and why and what has shaped him to be Amir. Amir himself said, "I became what I am today at the age of twelve" (Hosseini 1). The book goes through Amir's life story and what shapes him to be the way he is now, older, wiser, married and independent. Amir's birth basically was the beginning to all the events that occurred. -
Assef Bad-Mouthing Hassan
Assef is being mean to Hassan.He tells Hassan that, "Afghanistan is the land of the Pashtuns" (Hosseini 40). Assef rants about how Hazara's are not allowed or should not be living in Afghanistan because it is Pashtun land. Though Assef himself is only half Pashtun. -
Hassan's Surgery
Hassan gets a surgery done to fix his cleft lip. This is all payed for by Baba, because Baba is Hassan's Father. Amir describes Hassan as a, "Chinese doll face perpetually lit by a harelipped smile" (Hosseini 4). Amir tries his best to describe what Hassan looks like, though it comes off rude. Hassan's cleft lip is now nonexistent and fixed. -
Kite Run and Hassan's Rape
One day while trying to catch a kite,Hassan is raped by Assef. Amir implies that, "Maybe Hassan was the price to pay, [to be good again] the lamb I had to slay to win over Baba" (Hosseini 3). Amir knows that what he did was wrong.He thinks that when Rahim Khan tells him that "there is a way to be good again" (Hosseini 2), that, to Amir, implies that by leaving Hassan, alone and vulnerable, giving Baba the kite is redemption -
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History of Afghanistan
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Ali and Hassan Leave
On Amir's birthday, Hassan and Ali both leave town. Amir never necessarily acknowledges his friendship with Hassan, but when Hassan left Amir realized that, "It always hurts more to have than lose to not have in the first place" (Hosseini 211). This means that when Hassan left, Amir never realized how much Hassan meant towards him. Amir did not realize how hard it would be without Hassan in his life. -
Invasion
Afghanistan ," has known little peace...when the Soviet Union invaded" (NYT 1). -
1979
Babrak Karmal was assisted by Soviet troops who had parachuted to Kabul. -
Russians Invade Afghanistan
In 1981, the Russians had invaded Afghanistan, so Baba and Amir left Afghanistan for a better life. Baba especially wanted to leave because since Amir killed his mother, he wanted to make sure Amir was not robbed of a father, the greatest sin. Or as Baba put it, "there is only one sin, only one. And that is theft" (Hosseini 17). What this means though is that Baba wanted to give Amir the best life possible. In Baba's eyes, that meant to move quickly to avoid theft of Baba's life. -
Amir and Soraya Meet
In 1984, Amir is working at a flea market and finds Soraya, his wife. At the time, the two did not know each other, but Amir kept the thought of her and how, "her luminous eyes fleetingly held mine" (Hosseini 142). Amir basically had love at first sight. Amir and Soraya, later on talked and began to realize their true feelings for one another. -
Marriage Awaits
Amir and Soraya get married. Amir had left Soraya though, "after fifteen years of marriage" (Hosseini 342). He left her not because of a bad or unhealthy relationship, but because he had to go. Rahim Khan was not well. -
Hassan and Amir are Brothers
Amir finds out that Hassan and him are actually brothers. When Amir figures this out, he is basically paralyzed, he's shocked and does not know what to say or do. Amir says that he, "never thought of Hassan being more than a friend" (Hosseini 4). What Amir means by this is that he did not ever think of Hassan being his friend, let alone his brother. Amir feels betrayed in the way that nobody told him they were brothers, but also feels saddened he was not there for his brother all these years. -
Baba's Death and Amir's Admiration
Baba is tired of taking his medications and that very same night, he dies. Amir even said that he, "even dreamed about it. And in those dreams I couldn't tell Baba from the bear" (Hosseini 3). What makes this more sad is that Amir admired Baba dearly. Amir wanted to be just like him. -
Change
After the year of 1986, "the Soviet Air Force was also rendered [changed] largely uselessly advanced [forces] (NYT 2). -
Amir's Publication
Amir has always been a great poet, and his poetry was published in 1988. Baba does not love that Amir is so into poetry because it is not "manly" to Baba, and Rahim Khan tries to convince Baba that Amir is still a good kid and states, "Children aren't coloring books. You dont' get to fill them in with your favorite colors" (Hosseini 4). This shows how Baba does not approve of Amir's love for poetry. Nonetheless, his poetry was published and widely loved and appreciated. -
Taliban Comes In
A very important man, Mullah Omar, "had nearly 12,000 followers" (NYT 2). -
Taliban Invasion
The, "Taliban also provided a haven for Mr. bin Laden, who arrived by chartered jet at Jalalabad Airport" (NYT 3). -
Hassan and Farzana are Killed by Taliban
Hassan and Farzana are sadly killed by the Taliban. The author writes how, "he died and the guard [Taliban] threw him from the window" (Hosseini 32). The Taliban killed Hassan first, saw Farzana and killed her as well. Amir is obviously, heart broken, because this is when he realized Hassan and him were really best friends, he feels he found that out too late. -
Sohrab's Suicide Attempt
Sohrab, Amir's friend, attempts at suicide because he felt as if he would never be adopted by Amir for several reasons. When Amir finds Sohrab attempting suicide he simply screams, "NO" (Hosseini 363). Afterwards, Sohrab is cared for. But what is really important about this quote is how it really defines AMiras well, how he shows his care towards Sohrab, because it is his "way to be good again", since he was not always there for Hassan. -
Amir Stands Up for Sohrab
Amir stands up for Sohrab when the General makes an offensive comment towards Hazara's. -
Al Qaeda
The United States helped in taking down Al Qaeda. The United States military's, "invasion succeeded in dislodging Al Quada" (NYT 1). -
Taliban Strikes Back
Despite that years ago they had lost, "the Taliban continued to wage a guerrilla warfare" (NYT 3). -
Kite Flying
Sohrab and Amir simply fly a kite on New Years. This is the very end of the book and it ends the book well, with not necessarily a happy ending, but with an ending that seems realistic and could and has happened in reality. -
David H. Petraeus
David H. Petraeus "had commanded American forces in Afghanistan" (NYT 1). -
Obama's Plans
Obama delivered a speech announcing that, "his plan to deploy 30,000 additional troops" (NYT 4). -
Obama
Obama had increased, "the idea that the United States will have forces in the country until at least the end of 2014" (NYTi 1).