As it seems that this kind of organization works perfectly for us, I'm now making it official for all our tasks regarding The Kite Runner.
Task number 2 is out now: What do you consider as symbols in this book and what are their meanings?
By the way, let me wish us all luck for our Wednesday presentation. Things need to be perfect for a fully comprehension of the action in The Kite Runner
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"Rows of words, created from intricate feelings of friendship."
3 comments:
I am rooting for you guys!
Good Luck on Wednesday! ;]
Blood is usually linked to life, death or sacrifice. In The "Kite Runner", blood is always present, especially when it comes to death. Some of those examples are: the scene of the public punishment of a man “The man in the hole was now a mangled mess of blood and shredded rags” (p.293) and when Sohrad attempted to take his own life “the blood-soaked razor”. On the other hand, during the preparation of Amir’s birthday party, blood is depicted as something good by the butcher Salahuddin “Blood is good for the tree” (p.102). In addition, the animals brought and killed by the butcher were “sacrifices” for Amir’s party, and in a metaphoric way, Hassan, who shared the same blood with Amir, sacrificed himself many times for his brother without being aware of the truth about their family.
I also think that the image of the lamb is associated to Hassan because with his innocence he believed Amir to be his friend, a friend worthy of his loyalty.
One of the most important symbols of the novel is unquestionably the kite. I think it symbolizes redemption. Amir participates in the tournament to conquer his father’s respect and find redemption. “All I saw was the blue kite. All I smelled was victory. Salvation. Redemption” (p.61), he says. However, after winning the tournament, he found Hassan confronting Assef and his friends in an alley. When he saw Assef raping his friend, he did nothing to help Hassan. Therefore, the day of the kite tournament was marked by the “sin” that changed Amir’s life. He symbolically finds redemption, at the closing scene, when Amir and Sohrab fly a kite. This allows him to move forward in life and overcome the pain and shame caused by the events he had experienced. This final scene showed that he found his “way to be good again”. He reconciled with his past and was freed from his ghosts.
The kite may also be considered a symbol of freedom. Freedom and kite fighting were suppressed during the Taliban regime. In my opinion, the final scene that takes place in 2002, when the taliban had already been overthrown, can be seen as a sign of hope. The act of flying a kite can be the first step to reconcile the country with his past and maybe Afghanistan will find “a way to be good again”, as Amir did.
The stories about Rostan and Sohrab in the Shahnamah symbolize the goodness and heroic qualities of Hassan.
I could not resist including the answer that Khaled Hosseini gave in an interview:
The kite is just one of the many symbols in the story. Do you have a favorite symbol?
For me, the scene in the alley [where local bullies corner Hassan while Amir hides in the shadows] has always had a metaphoric quality to it, and the rape scene [of Hassan]. A lot of fellow Afghans feel like that's what happened to their country, if you substitute Afghanistan for Hassan. After Hassan has served his purpose and found what Amir wanted, the kite, then Amir kind of stands by and watches him be attacked without intervening....
A lot of Afghans feel that's what happened [after the Soviet Union left and Western countries failed to help the country].
Read more: http://www.beliefnet.com/story/227/story_22754_1.html
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