Looking Back

At several points in the novel, Khaled Hosseini narrates a moment that recalls a previous moment in the text. For each of the examples below, do the following.
Find the previous moment in the text that Hosseini refers to.
Explain in writing how the present moment compares to or contrasts with the past moment.
Explain in writing why you think Hosseini refers to the moment from the past. Is his purpose to create a point of contrast with the previous moment? Does he try to develop a character, theme or idea?

Amir’s putting the money under the mattress at Wahid’s house

As Amir places money under the mattress at Wahid’s house, he says that this is only the second time in his life, he has done this. One can look back and remember the first time Amir does this for Hassan. However, in the first instance, Amir’s intentions were not good. His intentions were to make it look like the money was stolen. In the second case, Amir is very genuine and shows that he cares for Wahid and wants to help with his families’ conditions. The theme that Hosseini develops is that the second time around, people change and learn how important it is to give.

The sheep reference to Sohrab

“Sohrab’s eyes flicked to me. They were the slaughter sheep’s eyes. They even had the mascara-I remembered how, on the day of Eid of qorban, the mullah in our backyard used to apply mascara to the eyes of the sheep and feed it a cube of sugar, before slicing its throat. I thought I saw pleading in Sohrab’s eyes.” While Amir is witnessing Sohrab’s helplessness, he recalls the sacrificing of the lamb. This refers back to the first half of the novel, when he sees Hassan is being raped. In both cases he sees that these characters are about to have something stolen from them. The sheep has been robbed of its life. When Hassan was raped, innocence was stolen from him. And Now Amir is realizing that Sohrab’s childhood has been taken from him. There is contrast between the reference to Amir witnessing the look in Sohrab’s eyes and the look in Hassan’s eyes. Earlier in the book, Amir says, “I watch because of the look of acceptance in the animal’s eyes.” With Sohrab, however, the look seems less helpless. This time, he feels that he can help. While comparing Hassan and the sheep, Amir said that he felt that they knew that they were making sacrifices for a higher being. Hosseini is trying to tell readers that by humbling yourself and sacrificing, you are always freeing yourself of guilt and a false superior feeling.


Amir’s laughter when Assef beats him


“I don’t know at what point I started laughing, but I did. It hurt to laugh, hurt my jaws, my ribs, my throat. But I was laughing and laughing. The harder I laughed the harder he kicked me, punched me, and scratched me.” The reason for Amir’s laughing is that since the winter of 1975, this is the first time he has felt at piece. The difference between now and the past is that Amir is the one who is being attacked. In the past, he has always been either the attacker or the witness. The fact that, he himself is being attacked is cleansing to him. Amir says “… I saw that, in some hidden nook in a corner of my mind, I’d even been looking forward to this.” Also, Amir feels that being attacked physically helps him heal from the mental beating his conscious has given him. Assef’s abuse is cathartic to him.

Amir’s kite running for Sohrab

In the first instance of the story, Amir is focused on himself, and his hopes of winning. In chapter seven, Amir treated Hassan as well a kite runner rather than a friend. Hassan was okay with being a modest boy who lived to serve Amir. The purpose of ending the story with Amir running for Sohrab is a metaphor saying that Amir has agreed to live primarily to serve Sohrab by looking after him, and treating him as a son. This symbolizes the most important theme of the story: “Hassan and Amir were kids, who had learned to crawl together, and no history, ethnicity, society, or religion was ever going to change that.” Though history and religion are difficult to overcome, the ties that connect you to friends and family prove to be stronger than the rules that separate Pashtuns and Hazaras. We are unable to change the past, but the future is in our control.