1. The Kite Runner
Khaled Hosseini

2. About the Author First novel written in English by an Afghan
Hosseini is an Afghan-born doctor now living in the U.S.
His childhood was spent in Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan
His family later moved to America.
Much of the detail in the novel is drawn from his own life experience.
Hosseini wrote the book wanting to show the Afghanistan he knew and loved as a child.
His website:

3. The novel is divided into three sections
1) Amir’s boyhood in Kabul chapters 2 - 9
Chapter 10 is a transitional chapter
2) Amir and Baba’s experience in America Chapters 11 – 14
Chapter 16 is a total narrative shift from Amir to the voice of Rahim Khan
3) Amir’s return to Pakistan and its implications chapters

4. What is it about?
A book that provides a window into another world – a world full of its own cultural values, sense of place, religious rituals and history.
It shows us how much we are controlled by events
What makes up good fathering
How someone deals with personal failure
How to identify the marks of great character
The nature of true friendship
Betrayal

5. Setting Kabul, Afghanistan Islamabad, Pakistan Peshawar, Pakistan
San Fransisco, USA

6. Structure Narrative viewpoint Use of Arabic words
Story told retrospectively
Role of letters
Use of dreams
Influence of fables
Unfinished sentence structure
colloquialism

7. Characters
Amir
Baba
Ali
Hassan
Sohrab
Rahim Khan
Assef
Soraya

8. Themes Redemption/atonement Significance of kites
Living a good life ‘there’s a way to be good again’
Role of religion
Betrayal

9. Class activities Timeline of the history of Afghanistan
Map of Afghanistan, Pakistan, Iran: identify the locations mentioned in the novel
Find the meanings of your names - Amir means prince; treetop Hassan means beautiful Ali means high; exalted Sohrab means hero

10. Understanding an essay question:
Hosseini
Social Context: The class division between the
Hazara (servant class Shi’a Muslims) and the
Pashtun ( Educated and more elite class of Sunni Muslims
Historical Context: Afghanistan
Pre 1975 was a democratic/old monarchy run society
and then changed dramatically to a fundamentalist
Islamic society of strict Sharia law under the
Taliban influence during the late 70’s
into the 80’s and 90’s until U.S. invasion in Metalanguage, Literary devices
Cultural Context: The vast differences between living in Metaphors, symbolism, character juxtaposition
In chapter 16 the narrative voice shifts from Amir to Rahim Khan, an insightful use of literary device by Hosseini to demonstrate another interpretive perspective on the event that changes Amir’s life forever.
pre Taliban Afghanistan VS. Life in America VS. Sharia Law in
Taliban occupied Afghaistan in the 90’s
Examiner’s Question: ‘In order to redeem his past, Amir must undertake a journey of atonement to achieve manhood.’ To what extent do you agree? Discuss.