Kite fighting—one of the most popular …show more content…
The relationship between Amir and Assef represents the struggle against the fall of that innocence. As a coup, which changes the climate of this book, passes in the background, Assef speaks against the Hazara people: "His people pollute our homeland, our Watan. They dirty our blood." He attempts to take away Amir 's innocence by convincing him he should feel guilty for only being Hassan 's friend when no one else is around. Amir never questions Hassan 's loyalty to him, and Hassan never gives Amir a reason to do so.
Assef and his two thugs corner Amir in an alley. Hassan proves his loyalty to Amir by confronting the three boys. Assef threatens to Kill Amir—a threat Amir thinks he intends to make good on. Hassan rescues Amir when he cocks his slingshot and points it at Assef 's face. Hassan rescues Amir, and Amir goes free.
On the day of the final kite festival Hassan runs for Amir, Amir takes first place. He cuts the line of the final kite, and his faithful kite runner chases it through the streets. Late into the afternoon, Hassan does not come back with the kite, and Amir begins to worry. He finds Hassan trapped in an alley by Assef and his two thugs. Amir watches the attack, yet he never tries to stop Assef. Amir watches Assef violate Hassan 's innocence; he watches his own chance of ever proving his loyalty to Hassan …show more content…
At the moment when Amir watches Assef attack Hassan in the alley, it becomes the story of Amir 's guilt. F. Scott Fitzgerald 's The Great Gatsby consists of a cast of elite characters the average American could identify with; Khaled Hosseini 's The Kite Runner consists of a cast of Afghan characters the average American can identify with.
The story of Afghanistan—a history of stories—does not begin with the story of Amir and Hassan. The Kite Runner—a story of turning points—tells the story of Afghanistan 's innocence that only an author such as Hosseini could tell. A major turning point in the book happens when Amir watches Assef attack Hassan in the alley.
Amir outruns his guilt when he and his father move to America, as a result of the invasion of the Roussi. Amir leaves Hassan, Afghanistan, and his past behind. He runs from his past, as he chases his childhood dreams. His past catches up with him, and he must live with his guilt or face his past. Amir can never relive the past, and his choice to face his past leads him back to face his most heinous