In Khaled Hosseini’s The Kite Runner, Amir’s characterization changes throughout the novel from a desperate boy, to a guilty young man, and finally to a satisfied adult, as he journeys on the path of redemption. In the beginning of the novel, Amir is a young boy so desperate for his father’s approval that he allows Hassan to get raped, all so he does not lose the “key to Baba’s heart.” Amir knows that this betrayal makes him a sinful person, and he lets his guilt haunt him day in and day out. After the Russian invasion forces Baba and Amir to flee to America, Amir uses the country as “a place to bury [his memories].” Hosseini characterizes Amir in the middle of the novel as a man who tries to push his memories aside, yet they remain a burden
