Scenes & motifs in TKR:
The Kite Flying Motif:
- Kites have symbolised the childhood innocence and freedom before the rule of
the Taliban. In Chapter 6, Amir’s detailed description of kite flying and the
illustration of winter in Kabul is used later in the novel to contrast Kabul after the
rule of the Taliban. The poetic imagery used to paint a picture of the city having a
“sky seamless and blue, the snow so white my eyes burn” is used to reflect how
Kabul is untouched by the rule and authority of other dictatorships. This is how
Amir portrays Kabul before the Russian invasion and before the control of the
Taliban. This, with the theme of kite flying represent Afghanistan's freedom. Kite
flying politically, could represent Afghanistan’s “glory days" of the monarchy.
- The description of kite flying being a contest represent typical, proud Afghan
attitudes and the way they fight for their beliefs and values. However, this vivid,
inspirational depiction is transformed into something sinister for Amir. The winter
of 1975 was the last “winter that Hassan stopped smiling.” From chapter 7 and
onwards, Hosseini transforms the theme of kite flying from childhood innocence
and freedom to betrayal, guilt, constraint.
- In Chapter 16, Rahim Khan tells Amir how “A few weeks later the Taliban banned
kite flying. And two years later, in 1998, they massacred the Hazaras in Masar-i-
Sharif.” A moment which explores political conflict more than personal. Serving as
one of the most heartbreaking, pivotal lines of the book Hosseini places the ban of
kite flying directly along the massacre of the Hazaras to indicate how the control
of the Taliban and their corruption began with taking over small, frivolous aspects
of joy. Hence, here, Hosseini uses the theme of Kite flying to represent the start of
the Taliban rule and their oppression.
- In the final chapter however, Amir running off with a kite with Sohrab in American
symbolises a glimpse of hope for the redemption of both Amir’s sins and
Afghanistan's freedom.
Chapter 10: The basement Scene
- This scene is a vivid description of a claustrophobic restaurant which Amir and his
father wait for the final part of their journey. Amir describes how he can see
“shapes huddled around the room, their silhouettes thrown on the walls by the
dim light of a pair of kerosene lamps,” and later, “I discovered the source of the
scratching sound. Rats.” In this short passage, a claustrophobic environment is
laid out suggesting entrapment and hopelessness.
- Hosseini incorporates this scene to act as a stark contrast to Amir’s earlier
description of Baba’s house in Kabul. It is the first moment indicating the change
in social status for Amir and Baba, reducing them to mere refugees of war which
their flight to Afghanistan has caused.
- This scene is and sense of degradation is extended into the present tense for the
description of the oil tanker in which they make their final leg of the journey.
However, despite being horrific, later the death of Kamal from suffocation could
act as a subtle symbolism of Amir’s chance to escape his past and problems,
moving on to a new country which is continuously portrayed as a place of
freedom.
, Chapter 16: Rahim Khan’s narrative.
Prior to the scene in chapter 15 - “Nay its much worse they don’t let you be human.”
Reflection of his experience in Afghanistan, exposing realities.
This is the only chapter in the novel which is not narrated by Amir. Rahim Khan acts as
father figure to Amir acting a source of redemption. His narrative contrasts to Amir’s
narrative, speaking more softly, considerate and thoughtful. Hassan’s return to Kabul on
the death of Baba mirrors Amir’s return to Pakistan on the news of Rahim Khan’s illness.
Both men see a chance to regain what they have lost as children at the point at which
they lose the support of their father figures. By granting Rahim Khan a narrating chapter,
Hosseini disrupts Amir’s narrative, lending moral authority to an alternative voice that
both exposes suppressed truths and propels the novel from retrospective guilt towards
ethical action. Rahim Khan’s narration allows us to see the effect s of the Taliban and the
realities of their corruption. “Outside the walls of that house there was a war raging on.”
This moment of moral perspective represents the fragility of the world Rahim khan has
created with Hassan and foreshadows the collapse of it. It allows Amir to understand how
his past will always catch up with him and confrontation is inevitable.
Chapter 17 - Hassan’s letter:
Hassan’s letter and the photograph attached to it allows the story to be up to date, with
a physical representation of him in adulthood. Hassan’s letter, like Rahim Khan’s
narrative provides us with a separate voice from Amir with a different style of speech.
Hassan begins the letter keeping in regard the power of God, symbolising Hassan’s
religious and good-natured character. In the letter, Hassan touches upon the same things
we hear about in Amir’s story; the cemetery, the pomegranate tree, the storybook were
as significant to Hassan as they were to Amir, symbolising the unspoken tie between
Hassan and Amir and represents Hassan's everlasting loyalty towards Amir. The letter
also gives voice to the memory frozen in Amir’s consciousness, shaping his perspectives
of life. Throughout the novel, Amir always associates Hassna with guilt, but this letter
offers a glimpse of redemption serving as the catalyst for Amir’s transformation.
Sacrifice – Lambs:
Amir constantly remembers Hassan’s “look of a lamb” from the alleyway in chapter 7.
This recurring image acts as Amir’s consciousness reminding him of his betrayal to
Hassan. From the beginning in chapter 2, Hassan’s loyalty to Amir has always been
evident. Hosseini portrays how “the foundation for what happened in that winter of 1975
and all that followed was already laid in those two words. Right from the beginning of the
novel, Hosseini hints at the betrayal and the events of the alleyway scene in chapter 7.
Amir states how “maybe Hassan was the price I had to pay, the lamb I had to slay, to win
Baba.” The parallel to Eid in Chapter 10 is a significant to showcase Hassan’s acceptance
of Amir’s abuse. From Chapter 2, Hassan has always remained loyal towards Amir, so
Hassan embodies the nature of the lamb to symbolise how he refuses to challenge Amir’s
authority, possibly because of his unwavering love towards Amir. The transition to the
story in “Tomorrow is the Tenth Day of Dhul-Hijjah" also suggests Ami’s cowardice.
Unlike God who intervenes with Prophet Ibrahim sacrificing his son, Amir chooses not to
intervene, allowing it all happen in front of him. He chooses to sacrifice Hassan to “win”
Baba’s love. In Hassan’s letter “Like wolves looking at a flock of sheep.” Pastoral
imagery and Hassan’s vulnerability.
The Pomegranate Tree:
- The novels most symbolically significant setting.
The Kite Flying Motif:
- Kites have symbolised the childhood innocence and freedom before the rule of
the Taliban. In Chapter 6, Amir’s detailed description of kite flying and the
illustration of winter in Kabul is used later in the novel to contrast Kabul after the
rule of the Taliban. The poetic imagery used to paint a picture of the city having a
“sky seamless and blue, the snow so white my eyes burn” is used to reflect how
Kabul is untouched by the rule and authority of other dictatorships. This is how
Amir portrays Kabul before the Russian invasion and before the control of the
Taliban. This, with the theme of kite flying represent Afghanistan's freedom. Kite
flying politically, could represent Afghanistan’s “glory days" of the monarchy.
- The description of kite flying being a contest represent typical, proud Afghan
attitudes and the way they fight for their beliefs and values. However, this vivid,
inspirational depiction is transformed into something sinister for Amir. The winter
of 1975 was the last “winter that Hassan stopped smiling.” From chapter 7 and
onwards, Hosseini transforms the theme of kite flying from childhood innocence
and freedom to betrayal, guilt, constraint.
- In Chapter 16, Rahim Khan tells Amir how “A few weeks later the Taliban banned
kite flying. And two years later, in 1998, they massacred the Hazaras in Masar-i-
Sharif.” A moment which explores political conflict more than personal. Serving as
one of the most heartbreaking, pivotal lines of the book Hosseini places the ban of
kite flying directly along the massacre of the Hazaras to indicate how the control
of the Taliban and their corruption began with taking over small, frivolous aspects
of joy. Hence, here, Hosseini uses the theme of Kite flying to represent the start of
the Taliban rule and their oppression.
- In the final chapter however, Amir running off with a kite with Sohrab in American
symbolises a glimpse of hope for the redemption of both Amir’s sins and
Afghanistan's freedom.
Chapter 10: The basement Scene
- This scene is a vivid description of a claustrophobic restaurant which Amir and his
father wait for the final part of their journey. Amir describes how he can see
“shapes huddled around the room, their silhouettes thrown on the walls by the
dim light of a pair of kerosene lamps,” and later, “I discovered the source of the
scratching sound. Rats.” In this short passage, a claustrophobic environment is
laid out suggesting entrapment and hopelessness.
- Hosseini incorporates this scene to act as a stark contrast to Amir’s earlier
description of Baba’s house in Kabul. It is the first moment indicating the change
in social status for Amir and Baba, reducing them to mere refugees of war which
their flight to Afghanistan has caused.
- This scene is and sense of degradation is extended into the present tense for the
description of the oil tanker in which they make their final leg of the journey.
However, despite being horrific, later the death of Kamal from suffocation could
act as a subtle symbolism of Amir’s chance to escape his past and problems,
moving on to a new country which is continuously portrayed as a place of
freedom.
, Chapter 16: Rahim Khan’s narrative.
Prior to the scene in chapter 15 - “Nay its much worse they don’t let you be human.”
Reflection of his experience in Afghanistan, exposing realities.
This is the only chapter in the novel which is not narrated by Amir. Rahim Khan acts as
father figure to Amir acting a source of redemption. His narrative contrasts to Amir’s
narrative, speaking more softly, considerate and thoughtful. Hassan’s return to Kabul on
the death of Baba mirrors Amir’s return to Pakistan on the news of Rahim Khan’s illness.
Both men see a chance to regain what they have lost as children at the point at which
they lose the support of their father figures. By granting Rahim Khan a narrating chapter,
Hosseini disrupts Amir’s narrative, lending moral authority to an alternative voice that
both exposes suppressed truths and propels the novel from retrospective guilt towards
ethical action. Rahim Khan’s narration allows us to see the effect s of the Taliban and the
realities of their corruption. “Outside the walls of that house there was a war raging on.”
This moment of moral perspective represents the fragility of the world Rahim khan has
created with Hassan and foreshadows the collapse of it. It allows Amir to understand how
his past will always catch up with him and confrontation is inevitable.
Chapter 17 - Hassan’s letter:
Hassan’s letter and the photograph attached to it allows the story to be up to date, with
a physical representation of him in adulthood. Hassan’s letter, like Rahim Khan’s
narrative provides us with a separate voice from Amir with a different style of speech.
Hassan begins the letter keeping in regard the power of God, symbolising Hassan’s
religious and good-natured character. In the letter, Hassan touches upon the same things
we hear about in Amir’s story; the cemetery, the pomegranate tree, the storybook were
as significant to Hassan as they were to Amir, symbolising the unspoken tie between
Hassan and Amir and represents Hassan's everlasting loyalty towards Amir. The letter
also gives voice to the memory frozen in Amir’s consciousness, shaping his perspectives
of life. Throughout the novel, Amir always associates Hassna with guilt, but this letter
offers a glimpse of redemption serving as the catalyst for Amir’s transformation.
Sacrifice – Lambs:
Amir constantly remembers Hassan’s “look of a lamb” from the alleyway in chapter 7.
This recurring image acts as Amir’s consciousness reminding him of his betrayal to
Hassan. From the beginning in chapter 2, Hassan’s loyalty to Amir has always been
evident. Hosseini portrays how “the foundation for what happened in that winter of 1975
and all that followed was already laid in those two words. Right from the beginning of the
novel, Hosseini hints at the betrayal and the events of the alleyway scene in chapter 7.
Amir states how “maybe Hassan was the price I had to pay, the lamb I had to slay, to win
Baba.” The parallel to Eid in Chapter 10 is a significant to showcase Hassan’s acceptance
of Amir’s abuse. From Chapter 2, Hassan has always remained loyal towards Amir, so
Hassan embodies the nature of the lamb to symbolise how he refuses to challenge Amir’s
authority, possibly because of his unwavering love towards Amir. The transition to the
story in “Tomorrow is the Tenth Day of Dhul-Hijjah" also suggests Ami’s cowardice.
Unlike God who intervenes with Prophet Ibrahim sacrificing his son, Amir chooses not to
intervene, allowing it all happen in front of him. He chooses to sacrifice Hassan to “win”
Baba’s love. In Hassan’s letter “Like wolves looking at a flock of sheep.” Pastoral
imagery and Hassan’s vulnerability.
The Pomegranate Tree:
- The novels most symbolically significant setting.
