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Kite Runner & the History of Afghanistan
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Baba is Born and Ali Joins Baba's Family
Ali's parents were killed in a car crash when Ali was very young. When the case was brought before court, Baba's father "adopted him into his own household, and told the other servants to tutor him, but to be kind to him. That boy was Ali" (Hosseini 24-25). Ali and Baba grew up together as playmates, similar to Hassan and Amir, and Ali stayed as Baba's servant. This friendship is why Baba was so devastated to see Ali's family leave. -
Amir Is Born
One year before Hassan was born, "my [Amir's] mother died giving birth to me [Amir]" in the middle of summer (Hosseini 6). Amir lives with dad, called Baba. As a central character and narrator of the novel, Amir has a very influencial role on the course of the plot. -
Hassan Is Born
In the small house in the corner of Amir's property, "Hassan was born in the winter of 1964" (Hosseini 6). One week after his birth, his mother Sanaubar joined a group of traveling singers and dancers. Hassar grows up to be Amir's best friend of sorts and a very important character in the novel. -
Amir Discovers his Talent for Writing
Amir was reading a story to Hassan, who is illiterate, when he "strayed from the written story... [He] pretended... [he] was reading from the book, but... [he] had abandoned the text altogether, taken over the story, and made up... [his] own" (Hosseini 30). Later that day Amir writes his own short story, which Baba refuses to read but Rahim Khan says that the story is excellent. The experience drives another wedge between Baba and Amir but strengthens Amir and Rahim Khan's relationship. -
Afghanistan Becomes a Republic
In the very early morning of July 17, 1973, gunshots are heard on Amir's street. No one was shot, but "Kabul awoke the next morning to find that the monarchy was a thing of the past. The king, Zahir Shah, was away in Italy. In his absence, his couse Daoud Khan had ended the king's forty-year reign with a bloodless coup" (Hosseini 36). This is the start of a very troubling time in Afghanistan. During the gunfire, Hassan and Ali embrace, and Amir feels jealous of the affection he never receives. -
Amir Wins the Kite Flying Competition
Every winter, the boys of Kabul fly kites and try to cut each other's kite strings with their own. This year, Amir won the competition by having the last kite flying in the air. He was very proud of himself, but the "single greatest moment of [Amir's] twelve years of life [was] seeing Baba on that roof, proud of [Amir] at last" (Hosseini 66). For too long, Amir has strived in vain for his father's approval and affection. Now, for the first time in his life, he is respected by Baba. -
Assef Rapes Hassan
On the day that Amir wins the kite flying competition, Hassan runs the second place blue kite and reaches it first. However, on the way back home he is beat up and raped. Amir watches this encounter and notices that "Hassan didn't struggle. Didn't even whimper... [Amir] saw the resignation in [Hassan's face]" (Hosseini 76). Hassan accepts the cruelty, but it doesn't mean that the experience doesn't hurt him inside. Amir instead is crippled with guilt and tries to numb himself through isolation. -
Hassan and Ali Move Away
Amir frames Hassan for stealing a watch and some money, Surprisingly, Baba forgives Hassan for the pretend crime, but Ali announces that they are leaving anyway because "life here is impossible" (Hosseini 106). Hassan and Ali now both understand that Amir's attempts to bury the guilt will only result in pain and conflict for the servants, and Amir and Hassan would then rather leave. Baba, meanwhile, is heartbroken watching his childhood friend and his son walk away forever. -
Soviet Union Invades Islamic Repulic of Afghanistan
Starting a bloody, violent, ten year war, "[t]he first Soviet troops parachuted into Kabul on Dec. 27, 1979, to assist Babrak Karmal, who had become president in a coup within the Afghan Communist leadership" (NYT 2). -
Baba and Amir Flee Afghanistan
The Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan, and Kabul is no longer safe. Spies lurk everywhere, and not even family can be trusted. Baba and Amir flee the "grim-faced Russian soldiers patrolling the sidewalks... tanks rolling up and down the streets... [and the] Russian Army... weaving through the bazaars" (Hosseini 113). Leaving their riches and reputations behind, Amir and Baba head towards America to save their own lives. They know only that what awaits them is preferable to what lies behind. -
Amir Graduates High School
At age 20, Amir graduates high school with the intention of going to college the following year and majoring in creative writing. Baba came to the ceremony and told Amir that he was "moftakhir... Proud" (Hosseini 131). Baba finally sees that his son is growing up and has become an independent man with the ability to do something with his life. At last, Baba can see a fraction of himself in Amir, which gives him pride for his son. -
Amir Meets Soraya Taheri
On Saturday, Baba and Amir go to many garage sales to buy used goods and sell them at the flea market on Sunday, along with many other Afghans. One day, General Taheri comes to speak with Baba, and Amir is introduced to Soraya, his daughter. She is "a slim-hipped beauty with velvety coal black hair" (Hosseini 140), but due to a scandal involving the running away with a boy, no suitors have come for her hand. However, in America, the customs are different, and Amir falls in love. -
Baba Gets Cancer
In the summer, Baba catches a cold that develops into coughing blood. After seeing the doctor, it becomes clear that smoking had caused a cancer "called 'Oat Cell Carcinoma.' Advanced. Inoperable" (Hosseini 156). With death as a certainty, Baby turns down medication and forbids Amir from telling anyone about the illness. As Baba starts to rely more on Amir and the days together seem more numbered, the two men start to see the good in each other and appreciate the other's company and friendship. -
Soraya and Amir Marry
After Baba goes and formally asks the general if Amir can have Soraya's hand, Amir and Soraya finally wed. One moment that Amir remembers is when he "whispered to her for the first time that [he] loved her" (Hosseini 171). They are very happy together and the night was wonderful, but Amir secretly wonders the entire time if Hassan ever wed. Clearly, Hassan is never far from Amir's mind. America might have helped bury Amir's guilt, but it is far from erased. -
Baba Passes Away
There was a large gathering in Amir and Soraya's apartment on Baba's last day. Though Baba was too weak to take part, he watched as Amir seemed truly content. This, in turn, put Baba at peace, seeing that Amir had found a place in the world. Baba even declined his medication, saying, "there is no pain tonight" (Hosseini 173). Despite his serenity, Baba died with many problems left to solve. Amir atones for Baba's sins along with his own, but Hassan, the victim of all, never saw these apologies. -
Rahim Khan Finds Hassan
Rahim Khan had been living in Baba's old house after he left Afghanistan to maintain it and keep is safe. As Rahim grew older, upkeep became harder, but when Rahim heard of Baba's death, he also became unbearably lonely. It was then that he "went to Hazarajat to find Hassan" to bring him back to Kabul for company and a servant. Hassan accepted, not knowing that the move would cost him his life, since in Kabul the Taliban were even fiercer. Hassan only saw the opportunity to help an old friend. -
Soviet Troops Leave Afghanistan
The Soviet Union was struggling trememdously, and eventually gave up on the war, the last troops leaving "Afghanistan in February 1989, in what was in effect a unilateral withdrawal. They left behind a country that was not only devastated by the war but that had become a beacon to Islamic estremists from across the globe" (NYT 2). -
Amir Publishes his First Novel
Amir is informed that his first novel will be published. The night that the news arrives, the entire family celebrates, but Amir thinks of Hassan's praise. Reflecting on life, he realizes "there was so much goodness... [he] wondered whether [he] deserved any of it" (Hosseini 183). The book is released next summer, 1989. Amir couldn't be happier, but Hassan lurks in his subconsious, bring guilt and shame. Hassan is a slash with permanent marker, unable to be erased or ignored. -
Pakistan Begins to Support the Taliban
Pakistan has played a fundamental role in the success of the Taliban. Pakistani support was very helpful to the Taliban, and "as early as 1994, Pakistani intelligence officers began funneling arms, money, and supplies to Mullah Omar's men, as well as military advisers to help guide them in battle" (NYT 3). -
Afghanistan Descends into Anarchy
The country was devastated and depleted of resources after the war. Despite desperate attempts to keep control with the central government, "by the summer of 1994, peower was anarchicallly divided among competing warlords and individual fiefdoms" (NYT 2). -
Taliban Gains Support and Momentum
One group immerged victorious from the power struggle. Founded on the principles of a student movement, the leader of the Taliban "Mullah Omar had nearly 12,000 followers and was rolling up the warlords to the north and east. With his promise of restoring the centrality of Islam to daily life, her created a genuinely popular movement in a country weary of corruption and brutality" (NYT 2). -
Rahim Khan Calls Amir
In June of 2001, Amir receives a call from Rahim Khan after many, many years of no contact. Rahim is very sick and wants Amir to go to Afghanistan to visit him. In passing, Rahim mentions on the phone that there "is a way to be good again" (Hosseini 192). This piques Amir's interest, for of course he still feels the weight of the guilt, and it also forshadowes the sacrifices that will be made on the journey. It is possible for Amir to atone, but it won't be easy. -
Al Qaeda Attacks the Twin Towers in New York
Another Islamic extremist group in Afghanistan, the Al Qaeda, led "the attack on the World Trade Center in New York on Sept. 11, 2001" (NYT 3). -
The United States Deploys Troops to Afghanistan
In response to the Sept. 11 hijacking and murders, the United States sent troops to Afghanistan, and now "[t]he United States has been militarily involved in Afghanistan since 2001" (NYT 1). -
Hamid Karzai Assumes Leadership
Karzai was a very popular governmental figure who "was named chairman of an interim government that replaced the defeated Taliban, making him the leader of the country...During the Bush administration, Mr. Karzai... was also a White House favorite. His popularity, though, steadily plunged, at home as well as abroad, as Mr. Karzai faced and Afghan population that blamed him for the manifest lack of economic progress and the corrupt officials" (NYT 3). -
Original Deadline to Withdraw Troops from Afghanistan
The Taliban seemed to be growing weaker, lulling the United States into a false sense of security. Unaware of the dificulties ahead, the govenment "vowed to start bringing American forces home from Afghanistan in the middle of 2011, saying the United States could not afford and should not have to shoulder an open-ended commitment" (NYT 4). -
New Deadline to Withdraw Troops from Afghanistan
It became clear that troops were still needed in Afghanistan to keep peace. To display the US commitment to eradicating the Taliban, "the United States will have forces in the country until at least the end of 2014. Administration officials are trying to convince Afghans that the United States is not walking away and to warn the Taliban that aggressive operations against them would continue" (NYT 4).