The Kite Runner: Sins Of The Past

1647 Words7 Pages
Gupta 1 Palak Gupta Ms.Kanika Dang Thesis paper 10th November, 2015 The effects of sins of the past on the present “I became what I am today at the age of twelve.” The very first line of the novel ‘The Kite Runner’, written by Khaled Hosseini, illustrates how one’s present is the very effect of one’s past. Khaled Hosseini introduces to the readers, the protagonist of the novel, Amir. “Therefore, the book begins with the premise that one cannot avoid the past, particularly if one had done something morally wrong; and that it is only a matter of time before one is made accountable for what one has done wrong.” The novel starts with memories of betrayal, sins committed in the past and guilt and hope for redemption. Talking about sin, one needs…show more content…
In fact, it is a sin. Since he was twelve, Amir has been struggling to overcome the force of his nagging guilt caused by the sin committed by him, the fact that he didn’t come to the rescue of his friend, Hassan, when he was being raped by Assef, the antagonist of the novel. Amir witnessed Hassan’s rape. However, instead of standing up for his friend, Amir chose to be a coward, and ran away. Soon, he started drowning in a pool of guilt. Due to this, he was not able to live a peaceful life. His remorse seriously affected the way he felt and acted. It made him provoke Hassan to throw pomegranates at him to be able to get rid of his guilt and fulfil his overwhelming need to be punished, but in vain. Hassan did not do so and stayed loyal as always. His feeling of guilt influenced him to such an extent that he ended up falsely accusing Hassan of theft so that he Hassan doesn’t live with him anymore and he is not reminded about his sin time and again. For most of the novel, Amir attempts to deal with his guilt by avoiding it and Hassan. However, doing this clearly does nothing towards redeeming himself, and thus, his guilt endured. Even though Amir went far away from Hassan, his feeling of guilt and his vital need for redemption were always a part of his life as he was growing up. Rather, “the impact of the traumatic event and his guilt defined the course of his entire lifetime.” Later on in life, Amir learns that “there are additional secrets from…show more content…
Due to this, he experienced feelings of guilt later on in his life which instigated him to call Amir and inform him of all the events that had taken place in the past and what Amir was required to do in order to redeem himself. Rahim Khan told Amir about baba’s sin and that Hassan was his half-brother. He told Amir everything that Amir deserved to know long ago and reopened the old wounds. Rahim khan is the catalyst for Amir’s redemption. Nonetheless, Rahim khan receives his own redemption through Amir, since neither could achieve it on their own. The events that occurred throughout the novel illustrate how all the characters feel the influence of the past. Amir is constantly troubled by his memory of Hassan’s rape, his own cowardice and his guilt and it is this memory that leads Amir to his final quest for redemption. Baba is also haunted by his past sins of adultery and his memories cause him to be both strict with Amir and charitable. Rahim khan too feels guilty of hiding the truth due to which he ends up calling Amir and revealing everything to

More about The Kite Runner: Sins Of The Past

Open Document