The Kite Runner Essay Example for Free

The Kite Runner Essay What would you do to redeem yourself for a very bad thing you’ve done? In the novel The Kite Runner, the main character, Amir, will redeem himself for what he had done in his childhood by doing good things. In Afghanistan, there is a segregation of ethnic groups between the Hazara and the Pashtun. Hazara people work for the Pashtun people. Hassan Is a Hazara and Amir is a Pashtun. Although Amir and Hassan are best friends, Amir never consider Hassan as his best friend or even a friend. Even though Amir is a mean and jealous character when he is young, he evolves into an entirely different person. He redeems himself by showing unselfishness and generosity to a stranger. He grants Rahim Khan’s last request and risks his life to go help Sohrab in Afghanistan. As a child, Amir’s character shows jealousy and selfishness because he doesn’t receive enough attention from his father. Amir is always jealous of Hassan for being treated the same as him by Baba. In his head, Amir thinks that he is Baba’s true and only son, so he doesn’t understand why Baba treats Hassan the same way he treats him. When Amir and Hassan go to buy kites, they get the same kind of kite, and when Amir asks for a fancier one, Baba buys the same for both of them. â€Å"Sometimes I wished he wouldn’t do that. Wished he’d let me be the favorite. † Amir doesn’t like Hassan to be treated the same way as him because he is jealous. He once thought that the orphans should have died along with their parents because he is jealous of the kids that get to spend time with his father. This shows that when Amir is young, he was mean and selfish. To run away from his jealousy and guilt, he frames Hassan for stealing his watch and money by placing it under the mattress. After Amir frames Hassan for stealing his watch and money, he never had the chance to see Hassan again in his life. Although he purposely pushes Hassan out of his life, Amir is obsessed with Hassan throughout the novel. He thinks about Hassan when there was war, wonders if Hassan is still alive. He thinks about Hassan when he was grown up, wonders if Hassan was alive or if he has any wife yet. Its because Amir is full of guilt and obsession over Hassan. Deep inside, he thinks that if Hassan dies, it might be because of him. Amir also regrets the action in the past. Amir regrets that he wasnt mature enough to understand that Hassan is his best and only friend. He regrets that he wasnt strong enough to stand up for himself. He regrets how he was ignorant, and didnt know that Hassan is his brother. Throughout the novel, Amir has evolves into an entirely different character. He changes from a mean and jealous boy to a generous and kind man. Amir plants fistfuls of crumpled money under the mattress. He shows kindness to a stranger like Farid. Amir wants to help Farid’s family because he understands what his family has to go through in Afghanistan. When Amir was searching for Sohrab at Afghanistan, he met a beggar that knew his mother. Amir gave the beggar on the streets three dollars. Three dollars is not a lot of money but to give three dollars to a beggar is not a common thing that happens. This proves that Amir also evolves into a character that has empathy towards people, and changes into another level of kindness. He also evolves into a character that has more courage. As a child, he won’t fight people back and needs Hassan to help him. He also couldn’t stand up to the General but now he can finally stand up to the general, when he said to the general that, â€Å"you will never again refer to him as’ Hazara boy’ in my presence. He has a name and it’s Sohrab. † â€Å"There is a way to be good again†. These words come out from Rahim Khan’s mouth. He convinces Amir to be a good person after he finds out what Amir has done in the past. Amir tries to redeem himself by meeting with Rahim Khan and grants him his last request before he dies. He goes back to Afghanistan to help Sohrab out of that poor and dangerous place. This shows Amir’s commitment to Hassan. He redeems himself to Hassan. Amir would risk his life to go help Sohrab, even though he has other responsibilities like how he has his wife at America. If he dies in Afghanistan, it will really affect Soraya’s life. He even accepts Sohrab in his family and adopts him. It shows that Amir is really dedicated to this redemption. The novel shows the evolution of Amir as a character. He becomes more kind and generous to other people. He also redeems himself for the bad things that he did to his half brother. His regrets lead him to his redemption. After Amir finds out that Hassan is his half brother, and that he has passed away, that is when Amir starts to evolve into a different character. He starts showing kindness and generosity because it is Amir’s way of redeeming himself. I think at last Amir really did become a good person.