-
The Kite Runner: Slingshot
One morning as Amir and Hassan were walking to the pomegranate tree, they encountered Assef who threatened to hurt them but to fend them off, "Hassan held the slingshot pointed directly at Assef's face" (Hosseini 42). This event foreshadowed what would happen many years later when Amir wound up in a similar situation only this time it was with Sohrab. Amir was getting attacked by Assef and to save Amir's life, Sohrab shot something in Assef's eye with a slingshot. -
The Kite Runner: The Plastic Surgeon
For Hassan's birthday in 1974, Baba hired a plastic surgeon to fix Hassan's harelip and after the surgery, "it was just a pink jagged line running up from his lip" (Hosseini 47). This present was extremely thoughtful and valuable because it would last for Hassan's entire life and this would be one less thing for him to be bullied about. After experiencing what Baba had done for Hassan, Amir realized that Baba cares about Hassan much more than he thought he did. -
The Kite Runner: Hassan's Rape
On the same day that Amir and Hassan won the annual kite tournament, "Assef knelt behind Hassan, put his hands on Hassan's hips and lifted his bare buttocks" (Hosseini 75). Assef threatened to hurt Amir but Hassan got raped to stop him because he was such a loyal friend to Amir but after that, he was never the same. As for Amir, he stood there and watched because he was too cowardly to stand up for Hassan. Afterward, he felt extreme amounts of guilt from that moment for the rest of his life. -
The Kite Runner: The Kite Tournament
In the winter of 1975, Amir and Hassan won the kite tournament and Amir said, "And that right there was the single greatest moment of my twelve years of life, seeing Baba on that roof, proud of me at last" (Hosseini 66). Amir's father, Baba, has made it very clear in the past that he is disappointed to be his father because Amir isn't as masculine as his father. For his whole life, Amir just wanted to please his father and that winter day of 1975 was when he accomplished his goal. -
Period: to
1975-1977
From the years 1975-1977, "Khan proposes a new constitution that grants women rights and works to modernize the largely communist state. He also cracks down on opponents, forcing many suspected of not supporting Khan out of the government" (Admin 1).
Source: http://www.pbs.org/newshour/updates/asia-jan-june11-timeline-afghanistan/ -
The Kite Runner: Goodbye Hassan and Ali
After spending almost a lifetime serving Amir and Baba, Ali told Baba that "Life here is impossible for us now, Agha Sahib. We're leaving" (Hosseini 106). Amir wanted Ali and Hassan to leave because he thought it might help ease the guilt he was feeling after Hassan got raped but Baba didn't want them going anywhere. Baba grew up with Ali and Hassan was his son so when Ali told him they were leaving, it was like Baba was losing part of his family. -
Period: to
1978
In the year 1978, "Khan is killed ... Nur Mohammad Taraki ... takes control of the country ... Babrak Karmal is named deputy prime minister ... Taraki signs a friendship treaty with the Soviet Union. But a rivalry between Taraki and Hafizullah Amin ... leads to fighting between the two sides ... conservative Islamic and ethnic leaders ... begin an armed revolt ... In June, the guerrilla movement Mujahadeen is created to battle the Soviet-backed government" (Admin 1).
Source: http://www.pbs.org/ -
The Kite Runner: The Russian Soldier
While Amir and Baba snuck out of Kabul, they met a Russian solider who threatened to rape a mother traveling with them. After hearing the threat, Baba says, "Tell him I'll take a thousand of his bullets before I let this indecency take place" (Hosseini 116). In this event, one of the differences between Amir's morals and Baba's is shown. When Hassan was about to get raped, Amir stood there and watched but when the mother was about to get raped, Baba put his life on the line for her wellbeing. -
Period: to
The Kite Runner: America
After Afghanistan became a dangerous place to live, Baba and Amir moved to America in an apartment near "Lake Elizabeth Park in Fremont" (Hosseini 125). Their move to America meant a new beginning. In Kabul, Baba and Amir's did not have a good relationship. However, in America Baba is no longer wealthy so he and Amir will have to work together to thrive in America which will force the two to cooperate with each other and as a result, their relationship will be mended. -
Period: to
1982
In the year 1982, "Some 2.8 million Afghans have fled from the war to Pakistan, and another 1.5 million have fled to Iran. Afghan guerrillas gain control of rural areas, and Soviet troops hold urban areas" (Admin 1).
Source: http://www.pbs.org/newshour/updates/asia-jan-june11-timeline-afghanistan/ -
Period: to
1984
In the year of 1984, Osama Bin Laden "claims to have traveled to Afghanistan immediately after the Soviet invasion ... makes his first documented trip to Afghanistan to aid anti-Soviet fighters." Additionally, "The United Nations investigates reported human rights violations in Afghanistan" (Admin 1).
Source: http://www.pbs.org/newshour/updates/asia-jan-june11-timeline-afghanistan/ -
Period: to
1986
In 1986, "The Mujahadeen are receiving arms from the United States, Britain and China via Pakistan" (Admin 1).
Source: http://www.pbs.org/newshour/updates/asia-jan-june11-timeline-afghanistan/ -
The Kite Runner: The Engagement
After deciding Soraya was the woman Amir he wanted to marry, he told Baba to "ask General Taheri for his daughter's hand" (Hosseini 161). Baba hasn't been as proud of a father that Amir would have liked to have so it meant the world to Amir when he pleased his father. His engagement to Soraya meant a proud father and an opportunity to start a family and spend the rest of his life with the woman he loves so Amir was extremely happy at this point in his life. -
Period: to
1989
In 1989, "The U.S., Pakistan, Afghanistan, and the Soviet Union sign peace accords in Geneva guaranteeing Afghan independence and the withdrawal of 100,000 Soviet troops ... the Mujahadeen continue their resistance against the Soviet-backed regime of communist president Dr. Mohammad Najibullah, who had been elected president of the puppet Soviet state in 1986. Afghan guerrillas name Sibhatullah Mojadidi as head of their exiled government" (Admin 1).
Source: http://www.pbs.org/ -
Period: to
1992
During the year of 1992, "The Mujahadeen and other rebel groups, with the aid of turncoat government troops, storm the capital, Kabul, and oust Najibullah from power. Ahmad Shah Masood ... leads the troops into the capital. The United Nations offers protection to Najibullah. The Mujahideen, a group already beginning to fracture as warlords fight over the future of Afghanistan, form a largely Islamic state with professor Burhannudin Rabbani as president" (Admin 1)
Source: http://www.pbs.org/ -
Period: to
1995-1999
Between the years of 1995 and 1999, "Continuing drought devastates farmers and makes many rural areas uninhabitable. More than 1 million Afghans flee to neighboring Pakistan, where they languish in squalid refugee camps" (Admin 1).
Source: http://www.pbs.org/newshour/updates/asia-jan-june11-timeline-afghanistan/ -
The Kite Runner: Hassan and the Taliban
During his trip in Afghanistan, Amir learns that Hassan had been killed very recently. Rahim Kahn explained to Amir how a member of the Taliban "shot him [Hassan] in the back of the head" (Hosseini 219). Many years back after Amir watched Hassan get raped and did nothing to stop it, he could not forgive himself or stop thinking about it because he felt so much guilt. Now that Hassan is dead, Amir will never again have an opportunity to atone for his actions in a way that Hassan can see. -
The Kite Runner: The Truth About Hassan
While in Afghanistan, Amir was told by Rahim Khan that he and Hassan have the same father and in response to this, Amir said, "I'm thirty-eight years old and I've just found out my whole life is one big freaking lie" (Hosseini 223). Knowing that he and Hassan are brothers answers many questions Amir had in the past. For example he always noticed that Baba and Hassan were close for a servant and master. Now he knows that Baba treated him with such kindness because they were family. -
The Kite Runner: Ghazi Stadium
While at Ghazi Stadium, Amir watched as one of the Taliban leaders "hurled the stone at the blindfolded man in the hole" until he died (Hosseini 271). That man and another one died because one cheated on his wife so the Taliban executed them for doing this injustice to God. Amir already knew that the Taliban were extremely powerful and violent but this was the first time he experienced their violence and power in person. He also realized that the Taliban have very little tolerance for people. -
The Kite Runner: Sohrab's Attempted Suicide
After Amir told Sohrab that he would need to stay in an orphanage for a little while, "the boy had cut himself deeply and had lost a great deal of blood" (Hosseini 348). After seeing Shorab's attempted suicide, Amir's heart broke because he felt responsible for killing his nephew. Also, taking Sohrab back to America was Amir's chance to give an orphan a much better life in America and to atone for his actions back in the winter of 1975. It was possible that he could not do that anymore. -
The Kite Runner: Adoption
After Amir rescued Sohrab from the Taliban, he asked him, "Would you like to come live in America with me and my wife" (Hosseini 320). Ever since the winter of 1975, all Amir wanted to do was atone for his actions that affected Hassan. Amir thought that adopting Hassan's kid and taking him out of a third world country would be a great way to do so. He also thought that by doing this he would make it up to Hassan and the guilt he had been feeling for more than twenty five years would go away. -
2001
On September 11 of 2001, one of the most tragic events in U.S. history happened when "Hijackers commandeer four commercial airplanes and crash them into the World Trade Center Towers in New York, the Pentagon outside Washington, D.C., and a Pennsylvania field, killing thousands. Days later, U.S. officials say bin Laden, the Saudi exile believed to be hiding in Afghanistan, is the prime suspect in the attack" (Admin 1).
Source: http://www.pbs.org/ -
The Kite Runner: One-Eyed Assef
When Amir went to get Sohrab from Assef, who joined the Taliban, Assef told Amir that he could take Sohrab if he beat him in a fight. Amir complied and after almost being beat to death, Sohrab shot a small brass ball at Assef and Assef "put his hand where left eye had been just a moment ago"(Hosseini 291). Since Assef was defeated, Amir took Sohrab and they left to try to get to safety. When Amir was much younger, Hassan almost shot Assef in the eye but now his child did it for him. -
The Kite Runner: Sohrab's Smile
After all that Sohrab had been through Afghanistan, he never spoke a single word but one day in America, "One corner of his mouth had curled up just so. A smile. Lopsided. Hardly there. But there" (Hosseini 370). Amir brought Sohrab to the U.S. so that he could feel safe and be happy but Sohrab never spoke to Amir nor Soraya which made the married couple extremely sad. To Amir, this smile potentially meant a new, happier beginning with Sohrab which is what he wanted from the moment he met him. -
Period: to
2011
In 2011, "U.S. forces overtake a compound in Abbottabad, Pakistan, and kill al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden" (Admin 1).