-
Baba's Present to Hassan
On Hassan's birthday, Hassan and Amir are playing in the yard when they are called by Ali so Hassan can receive his gift. Hassan's gift is a surgeon to fix his cleft lip, the surgery didn't fix everything. In fact, "...that was the winter that Hassan stopped smiling" (Hosseini 47). Earlier in the scene, Hassan seems reluctant to the idea of surgery, however, he is respectful and doesn't protest. After the surgery, Hassna's personality changed. He was once very joyful, now he hardly smiles. -
Hassan is Raped
Amir tries to find Hassan after the tournament when he sees Hassan cornered by Assef and his friends, about to rape Hassan. He debates about whether or not he should stand up and help him, "... stand up for Hassan... or I could run. In the end, I ran" (Hosseini 77). Here, we see a cowardly side of Amir, where he chose his father's acceptance over his friendship with Hassan. We see Amir's values, yearning his father's love instead of disappointment, leading to him allowing Hassan to be raped. -
Victory for Amir
When Amir and Hassan are left only to face the blue kite, Amir thinks to himself, "All I smelled was victory. Salvation. Redemption" (Hosseini 65). We are shown the emotions Amir dreads for and why winning means so much to him. Amir wants the victory to gain Baba's admiration because he always thought he was a sin for killing Baba's wife. Amir's goals are primarily based on his motivation to gain Baba's attention, he never thinks of himself. Therefore, he later lets Hassan get raped. -
Ali and Hassan Leave
The following day of Amir's birthday party, Ali and Hassan tell Baba they are leaving. During the conversation, Amir says "... I understood the depth of the pain I had caused, the blackness of the grief I had brought onto everyone..." (Hosseini 107). Amir regrets not admitting he saw Hassan being raped to Ali and everyone else as well. Amir finally recognizes the consequence of not being truthful or a good friend. He lost his friend, who was also his half-brother, just to have Baba's love. -
Amir's Birthday Party
In the morning, Amir is opening his gifts, when he thinks about why he had earned a party, "I didn't want any of it- it was all blood money; Baba would have never thrown me a party like that if I hadn't won the tournament" (Hosseini 101). The evidence suggests that Baba's future actions will partially be based on Amir's success at winning the tournament. In doing so, we see what Amir values, his father's admiration. While for Baba, he needs Amir to succeed in order to forgive, love Amir. -
Soviet Union invades Afghanistan
Afghanistan has mostly been in conflict and turmoil since "1979, when the Soviet Union invaded" (New York Times). -
The Start of Afghanistan's Conflicts
The primary source of Afghanistan's conflicts trace back to " the 1979 invasion by the Soviet Union and the reaction both by Afghans and by their allies in the United States and Pakistan" (New York Times). -
The Alliance
On December 27, 1979 "The first Soviet troops parachuted into Kabul... to assist Babrak Karmal, who had become president in a coup within the Afghan Communist leadership" (New York Times). -
Amir by himself
After meeting the doctor, Amir is scared to be without Baba and asks, "'What about me Baba? What am I supposed to do?' I said, my eyes welling up. A look of disgust swept across his rain-soaked face. It was the same look he'd give me when, as a kid, I'd fall, scrape my knees, and cry" (Hosseini 156-157). The disappointment Baba shows, demonstrates that even with success Amir earns, it never lasts long. Amir is reliant on Baba he doesn't know how to do things without him, making him a coward. -
Baba's Generosity
Amir is thinking about how Soraya and him would be able to live while at the wedding ceremony. Then, Amir reveals how much Baba spent on the wedding, "Baba spent $35,000, nearly the balance of his life savings, on the awroussi, the wedding ceremony" (Hosseini 169). Throughout the book, we had an ongoing feeling that Baba didn't love Amir. However, in this quote, we see Baba giving his entire life worth of money, to spend on his only son's wedding day. -
Amir on his own
Amir realizes Baba isn't there anymore, "(Amir)... had been defined by Baba... Now he was gone. Baba couldn't show me the way anymore..." (Hosseini 174). We see Amir maturing, accepting his father's fate and knowing he needs to go off on his own. That he needs to redefine himself, not after Baba's life, but his own. -
Amir thinks about Hassan
During the wedding ceremony, Amir thinks "...wondering if Hassan too had married. And if so, whose face had seen in the mirror under the veil?" (Hosseini 171). It's shown that after all these years, Amir still cares very deeply for Hassan. Even on his big day, he wonders about his friend he hadn't seen in years. It shows he cares a lot and wishes him nothing but happiness, even after all they went through. -
The Soviet Union finally leaves Afghanistan
The U.S tried to declare peace, therefore "the last Soviet troops left Afghanistan in February 1989, in what was in effect a unilateral withdrawal" (New York TImes). -
Afghanistan in chaos
After the Soviet Union left Afghanistan, Afghanistan soon "descended into vicious internecine strife; by the summer of 1994, power was anarchically divided among competing warlords and individual fiefdoms" (New York Times). -
Peace would not last long
Although peace was made and the Soviet Union departed, "one group would eventually gain control" (New York Times). -
Another Afghanistan Group
Even after the Soviet Union leaves, another group takes action, "by the end of 1994 Mullah Omar had nearly 12,000 followers and was rolling up the warlords to the north and east" (New York Times). -
Hassan is killed
"Then, in mourning for your father, Hassan wore black for the next forty days" (Hosseini 208). We see how important Baba was for Hassan, he was providing for them and loving. The undying respect Hassan has is significant because of how loyal he is after all the years. -
Taliban Controls Afghanistan
After the Soviet Union , the previous controllers of Afghanistan, left the country "the Taliban, the extremist Islamic group ... seized control in 1996 after years of civil war" (New York Times). -
Amir's Promise to Sohrab
Sohrab is scared Amir will get tired of him, "'I won't ever get tired of you, Sohrab,' I said. 'Not ever, That's a promise'" (Hosseini 324). We can see how much Amir cares for Sohrab, wanting him to feel the same and loved. He wants to make Hassan proud and give his son the life deserved. -
The Truth about Amir and Hassan
When Rahim Khan tells Amir the truth about Hassan and Amir being half-brothers, "'Did Hassan know?' I said through lips that didn't feel like my own. Rahim Khan closed his eyes. Shook his head" (Hosseini 222). After, Amir storms out of the apartment to go on a walk. We witness the anger Amir feels, not only did he not know for his entire life, but Hassan didn't either when he died. Amir feels a great amount of regret for all of the pain he caused Hassan, not just his friend, but his own brother. -
Amir is at Peace
Assef and Amir are fighting while Sohrab watches and thinks, "What
was so funny was that, for the first time since the winter of 1975, I felt at peace" (Hosseini 289). When Amir is going through so much pain during the fight, he is in a way relaxed because he finally got the pain he deserved. After the years of betraying Hassan, he felt this was his punishment that he deserved. -
Sohrab Smiles
When Amir and Sohrab are together flying kites, Amir sees "One corner of his mouth had curled up just so. A smile. Lopsided. Hardly there. But there" (Hosseini 370-371). After Amir betrays Sohrabs trust, he does his best to provide for him and allow him to trust again. The smile is so significant because they have been through so much in the short time together, so Amir has hope their relationship can continue to get better. -
Amir finds out about Hassan's death
Rahim Khan tells Amir Hassan is dead, "'No. No. No'" (Hosseini 219). The amount of pain Amir is caused leaves him in shock of his lost friend. He regrets everything, not telling the truth and now it's too late to go back. -
9/11 Attack on U.S.
The U.S. went to war "in Afghanistan [in] 2001, when it led an invasion after the Sept. 11 attacks by Al Qaeda" (New York Times). -
9/11 attacks the World Trade Center
The U.S and Afghanistan went to war in "2001, when it led an invasion after the September 11 attacks by Al Queda" (New York Times).