Statement of intent: Thave done a formal writing piece of the Kite Runner to show what I know about this novel, and to show some of the ideas in the text that are represented by cruel and kind behaviour. (Analyse how cruel or kind behaviour was used to show one or more ideas in the text Note: ideas may refer to character, theme or setting. ) The Kite Runner In the novel ‘The Kite Runner’, written by Khaled Hosseini, the themes of cruel and kind behaviour helped me with the understanding of the ideas in the text.
Cruel behaviour such as when Assef bullies and rapes Hassan, when Amir frames Hassan for something he did not do, and kind behaviour like when Amir travels back to Afghanistan to seek out Sorab and save him from the abuse of Assef. The first theme of cruel behaviour that I think is a big part in the novel is when Hassan gets raped by Assef. Amir does nothing to stop it, just hides around the corner till it was over, and then ignored the fact that it ever happened. This is cruel behaviour because Amir could have done something to try stop Assef from raping Hassan.
This part in the novel, this behavior, helped me understand the characters more. It shows that Amir is a coward, and he will hide from him troubles instead of face them, it shows how Hassan is loyal, and will do anything for Amir, even if it means getting himself hurt in the process, and it also taught me what kind of person Assef is, that he thinks that because he is older and richer than Hassan and Amir that he can do whatever he wants to them. “I had one last chance to make a decision. One final opportunity to decide who I was going to be.
I could step into that alley, stand up for Hassan – the way he’d stood up for me all those times in the past – and accept whatever would happen to me. Or I could run. In the end, I ran. ” This quote showed how much of a coward Amir was, it shows us how he had the option to save Hassan, but he chose to run away instead because he could not admit to himself that he actually cared for Hassan more than he would like to, he will not admit that they are friends, brothers even. Another example of cruel behaviour was when Amir framed Hassan for stealing money and some of his birthday gifts.
Hassan had took the blame for it because of how loyal he is to Amir, and Amir does not tell the truth behind the lies and lets Hassan and Ali leave. This showed how selfish Amir can be, how he will do anything to get rid of the guilt consuming him, even if that meant making Hassan leave, and lying about stealing the money. “I lifted Hassan’s mattress and planted my new watch and a handful of Afghani bills under it. I waited another thirty minutes. Then I knocked on Baba’s door and told what I hoped would be the last in a long line of shameful lies.
This part of the novel showed that Amir wanted to stop all the lies, that this lie would have been his last one, he had hoped. This also demonstrated the fact that Amir was willing to lie again just so he would not have to tell anyone that he knew Hassan was raped by Assef, so he would not have to face the guilt of knowing about the rape anymore, he would not have to torment himself with the truth The theme of kindness is shown when Amir goes back to Afghanistan to save Sohrab, Hassan’s son and his nephew, from the harm of Assef.
Amir goes back to Afghanistan to try redeem imself from the past that has been haunting him for years, and he finds out about Sohrab and hopes that saving him from the wrath of “Sohrab, I can’t give you your old life back, I wish to God I could. But I can take you with me. That was what I was coming in the bathroom to tell you. You have a visa to go to America, to live with me and my wife. It’s true. I promise. ” This shows that Amir really is trying to save Sohrab from Assef and that he is going to try his hardest to get him to come back with him to America to live with him and his wife, to keep him safe from the world.
Amir is doing this to redeem himself from the wrongs he had made, the lies he had told. Redeeming himself from when he had hidden the truth away. I think this theme was not shown much throughout the novel, but it was one of the most important themes there, because it helped show redemption. In conclusion, the themes of cruel and kind behaviour helped show me the idea of redemption and helped me to understand the characters more in this text.