The theme of love is deeply intertwined with the narrative of The Kite Runner, a novel by Khaled Hosseini. Throughout the story, we see how different characters express and experience this emotion in various ways – from Amir’s unconditional devotion to his friend Hassan, to the powerful bond between Baba and Ali, to the young lovers Soraya and her husband Amir.
Despite the many forms that love takes in The Kite Runner, it is ultimately an element that unites the disparate members of this complex and moving story. Whether through sacrifice or strength or passion, love demands our attention and inspires us to reflect on its profound power and transformative potential. And in doing so, The Kite Runner offers us a timeless reminder of what truly matters most in life.
In the novel The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini, Amir shows the price one is willing to pay for love. Throughout the book, Amir, Hassan, and Baba are faced with significant events that shape them into who they are. Each of them gave up a part of their own happiness for the sake of the person they loved. Even though as children Amir was not a good friend to Hassan, Hassan is loyal to him. In order to provide an education in America to Amir, Baba sacrifices his life in Afghanistan. To repay what he did wrong to Hassan, Amir risked his life for Sohrab’s son (Hassan).
The novel is ultimately a story about atonement and redemption. The central theme of the book The Kite Runner is love. The author, Khaled Hosseini, does an excellent job portraying how love can change a person for the better or for the worse.
Love is defined as an intense feeling of affection. The definition of love cannot be fully described because everyone experiences love in different ways. In the novel The Kite Runner, Khaled Hosseini uses the literary devices figurative language, symbolism, and irony to develop the theme that love changes people.
One way the author develops the theme that love changes people is through the use of figurative language. Figurative language is words or phrases that are not meant to be taken literally. An example of figurative language used in The Kite Runner is when Amir says, “For you, a thousand times over” (Hosseini 276). This quote is spoken by Amir to Hassan after he finds out that Hassan was raped.
Amir feels guilty because he did not do anything to stop the rape from happening. He says this quote to show Hassan how much he truly loves him and regrets not being able to help him. Another example of figurative language used in The Kite Runner is when Khaled Hosseini writes, “I wondered if that was how forgiveness budded; not with the fanfare of epiphany, but with pain gathering its things, packing up slowly” (Hosseini 407).
The author is talking about how Amir finally forgives himself for not being able to stop Hassan from being raped. He compares forgiveness to packing up slowly because it is a gradual process. The use of figurative language helps develop the theme that love changes people by showing how love can make someone forgive even the worst transgressions.
In addition to the use of figurative language, Hosseini also uses symbolism to develop the theme that love changes people. Symbolism is the use of symbols to represent ideas or qualities. One example of symbolism used in The Kite Runner is kites. The kites represent freedom and hope. The kites also symbolize Amir and Hassan’s friendship. The kites represent Hassan because he is always the one who catches Amir’s kite. The kites also represent Amir because he is the one who usually wins the kite fighting competitions.
The fact that the kites represent both Amir and Hassan shows how close their friendship is. Another example of symbolism used in The Kite Runner is Sohrab’s toy monkey. The toy monkey symbolizes Sohrab’s innocence. It also symbolizes Hassan because Sohrab was very close to Hassan and views him as a father figure. The use of symbolism helps develop the theme that love changes people by showing how love can make someone see things in a different light.
The last literary device Hosseini uses to develop the theme that love changes people is irony. The type of irony used in The Kite Runner is situational irony. Situational irony occurs when the opposite of what is expected happens. An example of situational irony that occurs in The Kite Runner is when Hassan reveals his feelings for Soraya to Amir and instead of helping him, Amir ends up humiliating Hassan by laughing at him. The use of irony helps develop the theme that love changes people because it shows how pathetic Amir really is and how selfish he can be towards those he loves.
Overall, Khaled Hosseini’s novel The Kite Runner demonstrates how love can change a person for the better or worse through figurative language, symbolism, and irony. Hosseini develops the theme that love changes people by showing how love can make someone forgive even the worst transgressions, see things in a different light, and act in ways they never thought possible. The next time you experience love, think about how it has changed you as a person.
Through Hassan, Baba, and Amir, the theme of sacrifice for the ones you care about is expressed in every chapter. Throughout his childhood, Hassan and Amir are separated by their economic status. On behalf of their financial condition and ethnicity, hazaran, Amir and Hassan are friends. When compared to differences between them as children, Amir understands that they are not equal which causes loyalty to be divided. As a youngster, Hassan’s moral compass has always been pointing in the right direction.
Hassan was always there for Amir and never thought twice about it. The Pashtun tribe started the custom of Ba’ad, which is exchanging a boy for another boy, usually to settle disputes. The Akhundzada family exchange Hassan for their son Sohrab in order to have closure from the past. This shows the lengths people will go to in order to make amends for wrong doings, even if that means making the ultimate sacrifice.
Love is a major theme shown all throughout The Kite Runner and its many different forms. The first type of love that is evident, is familial love. Baba loves Hassan as if he were his own son and would do anything for him. Even though Amir did not have much of a bond with Hassan because of their different statuses, he still had the same love for him. The other type of love in The Kite Runner is romantic love and that can be seen through Amir and Soraya.
As you can see, there are many different types of love explored throughout The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini. Whether it’s familial or romantic, this novel highlights the importance and significance of these powerful emotions. If you’re looking for a gripping and thought-provoking read, then The Kite Runner is definitely the book for you!
Hassan does not know that he is in a hazardous situation, and as a result, his loyalty stays strong. Amir believes that Hassan is unaware that Amir did not aid him in the ally until one day he finds out. “He knew I’d seen everything in that alley, that I’d stood there and done nothing. He knew I had betrayed him, but he was rescuing me once again, maybe for the final time” (Hosseini 105).
The kite runner is a novel that shows the power of love and loyalty between two friends who grew up together. The author, Khaled Hosseini, does an amazing job at using symbolism to show how important these themes are in The Kite Runner. The theme of love is very prevalent throughout this novel and helps drive the story forward. The strongest example of love in The Kite Runner is Hassan’s selfless act of saving Amir’s life even though Amir had betrayed him numerous times.
Hosseini uses characters such as Baba and Ali to demonstrate how people can still be good despite their past actions. In The Kite Runner, love is often used in relation to loyalty and betrayal. For example, when Amir betrays Hassan by not helping him at the alleyway, he feels immense guilt and is unable to express his true feelings.
The theme of love is also closely tied to redemption. The way that Baba redeems himself by starting a new life in America shows how powerful love can be in healing past wounds. Overall, The Kite Runner is a moving exploration of the complexities and power of human relationships, and of the many different forms that love can take.
