The Kite Runner History of Afghanistan

  • Khan becomes King

    Khan overthrew the previous king and with the support of the People’s Democratic Party of Afghanistan, Khan rises to power. Khan then destroys the monarchy and pronounces himself as president. With this power, he established alliance with USSR.
  • Assef seeks revenge

    Assef seeks revenge
    After Hassan pulls out a slingshot to protect himself from Assef, Assef seeks revenge. "'I'm a very patient person. This doesn't end today, believe me.' He turned to me. 'This isn't the end for you either, Amir...'"(Hosseini 43). Because Assef is a bully, he will not tolerate the actions of Hassan. I think this foreshadows the fact that Amir and Hassan will be attacked or harassed by Assef in the future.
  • Khan proposes new constitution

    Before the year 1975, Khan has just overthrown the previous king and has taken his spot. In the year 1975, Khan then proposes a new constitution which gives additional rights to women and begins to moderizied larger states. In addition, he begins to remove government officials who disapprove of his ideas.
  • Hassan getting raped my Assef

    Hassan getting raped my Assef
    After Hassan gets raped my Assef, Amir pretends he wasn't there. "I forced myself to wait ten more minutes...'Where were you? I looked for you,'"(Hosseini 78). Amir knows where Hassan was, however, the guilt he feels for not standing up for Hassan causes internal conflict for Amir. Amir regrets the decision he made which causes him to feel responsible for letting Hassan get raped.
  • Getting to America

    After finding out Baba's truck is non-repairable, they decided to cram in a fuel tank to get to America. "Panic. You open your mouth. Open it so wide your jaws creak. You order your lungs to draw air, NOW, you need air, need it NOW. But your airways ignore you," (Hosseini 121). The harsh environment shows how bad the war in Afghanistan really is and what Amir, Baba, and others are willing to go through to get to America.
  • America vs. Afghanistan

    After American Ambassador Adolph Dubs is killed, America feels betrays and proceeds to remove assistance to Afghanistan. During this time, Khan has also been killed and a race for power begins between Taraki and Deputy Prime Minister Hafizullah Amin. This quickly ends when Taraki is met with Amin supporters, who ends up killing him.
  • War of Afgahanistian

    A war broke out in Afghanistan which cause around 2.8 million people to flee from Afghanistan and to Pakistan and another 1.5 million people to flee to Iran. Afghan guerrillas take control of the countryside while Soivet troops gain control of urban areas
  • Amir's Graduation

    Amir's Graduation
    After Amir's graduation, Baba guides Amir to an unfamiliar area to give Amir his present. "He reached in his coat pocket and handed me a set of keys. 'There,' he said, pointing to the car in front of us,"(Hosseini 113). Although Amir did work hard during his high school years, this shows that Amir is a little spoiled which really shows in his personality. Amir's privileges are also showed is his personality as he tends to take things for granted.
  • Hassan moves into Baba's house

    Out of respect, Hassan moves into the small hut next to Baba's house instead of moving into the guest bedrooms, "'What will Amir agha think?' he said to me. 'what will he think when he comes back to Kabul after the war and finds that I have assumed his place in the house?'(Hosseini 208). Even though Amir hasn't treated Hassan right, he still cares so much about him that he is willing to sleep in the hut without even knowing if Amir will come back.
  • Birth of Sohrab

    Hassan and Farzana are deciding names for their baby, "They named him Sohrab, after Hassan's favorite hero from the Shahnamah, as you know, Amir jan"(Hosseini 211). Hassan shows that Hassan still cares very much about Amir by naming his firstborn after a fictional character in one of Amir's stories.
  • The death of Hassan

    The Talibs were trying to take Baba's house away but Hassan refused, "'Hassan protested again. So they took him to the street-' 'No,' I breathed. '-ordered him to kneel-' 'No. God, no.' '-and shot him in the back of the head'"(Hosseini 219). This event shows that Hassan is willing to give his life up if anyone who messes with Amir and his family and it shows that he cares about Baba and Amir like family.
  • There is a way to be good again

    Before hanging up, Rahim Khan said a message that gets Amir thinking, "Come. There is a way to be good again, Rahim Khan had said on the phone just before hanging up. Said it in passing, almost as an afterthought. A way to be good again"(Hosseini 192). I believe that this quote foreshadows the fact that Amir will finally redeem himself for everything he did to Hassan.
  • 911

    911
    Four passager airplanes have been hijacked and crashed into the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and a Pennsylvania field. This causes chaos in the U.S. and later find out that Bin-Ladin was responsible for the attack.
  • Amir feels "healed"

    While Amir is getting beat by Assef, he thinks to himself, "My body was broken–just how badly I wouldn't find out until later–but I felt healed. Healed at last"(Hosseini 289). Amir is healed by finally being able to let the guilt of leaving Hassan in the alley off his chest and feels like he finally got what he deserved for leaving him.
  • Like father like son

    Realizing that he had almost killed a man, Sohrab feels like he did something wrong, "'Will God...' he began, and choked a little. 'Will God put me in hell for what I did to that man?'(Hosseini 218). Sohrab is just like his father, who always feels bad for other people, no matter what they have done to him. The quote shows an example where he feels like he shouldn't have shot Assef in the eye, even though Assef has hurt almost everyone he loves.