Alexandra Amaral     Chap 16-22

A quote in the story The Kite Runner, which I found was very significant, is the simile that Amir uses in his head to describe how he felt when he finds out that Baba was Hassans father too, not Ali. Amir says, “I felt like a man sliding down a steep cliff, clutching at shrubs and tangles of brambles and coming up empty handed..” This simile appears to describe that as he thinks, he is trying to fight the truth and grab onto facts that would lead him back to be believe that Ali was his father, but he can’t seem to find or think of anything. Amir then knows that Rahim Khasn is right. He has always truly believed and knows to himself as a fact; Hassan was born from Ali’s wife so it is then shown that Baba and Amir have more in common. Baba had betrayed his best friend by sleeping  and having a child wife his wife, just as Amir had let Hassan get raped. I would agree that this would be a very shocking experience. In my opinion this situation would be very surprising to me, and I’m sure I would do the same and try to grab on  to little facts to continue to believe that what I thought was the truth, was real, even though I know it really isn't. Do you think Amir was over reacting to this news?

A quote that really stood out to me was when Amir was back up in his old room looking out  the window, remembering when he watched Hassan and Ali leave on that cold wet day, he thinks to himself, “I stood on my tiptoes, and saw nothing behind the window but shadows. Twenty-five years earlier, I had stood behind that same window, thick rain dripping down the pains and my breath fogging up the glass“(Hosseini 265).  Amir looks out of this window now and sees nothing but emptiness, but standing there he remembers the memories of that spot, watching Hassan and Amir leave. This makes him realize hiow different things are from the last time he stared  out that window. Also a sad and dark tone is set by this quote as the author uses imagery here to describe the memory with cold rain dripping down the window pain, and his breath fogging glass, you really feel that that is a sad moment. I personally feel that family is very important and that everyone needs people that they can truly be themselves with and family is usually those people. Family is also in this way always there for you in my opinion, and Hassan was always there for Amir. Ali and Hassan  were like family to Amir, so watching them leave was like watching a part of his family leaves and it he was very sad. Do you think you would feel the same way as Amir if you were in that situation?

Also, another quote I found important was what Amir said when Assef was beating Amir with his brass knuckles. Amir thought to himself, “My body was broken—just how badly I wouldn’t find out until later—but I felt healed. Healed at last. I laughed.” (Hosseini 289) This quote is very interesting to me because it was Assef who had raped Hassan years ago, and Amir always felt like he should have been punished for letting Hassan get raped.   To him this was a way to feel like he was getting punished. Amir felt like he was getting what he finally deserved which is why he felt healed and started to laugh. Right after the rape Amir tried to get Hassan to throw pomegranates at him, so he would feel like he was getting punished, but Hassan refused, and now that Assef is beating him up, he thinks that that is his punishment and that puts his mind and some of his regret at ease. I do not really agree with Amirs view of feeling better by getting punished. I personally feel that in order to make it up to Hassan, the only thing to do was to get Sohrab back, and there is no punishment needed. Do you agree?

Hassan and Sohrab

http://www.google.com/imgres?q=father+and+son+afghanistan&hl=en&client=safari&sa=X&rls=en&biw=1016&bih=644&tbs=ic:specific,isc:gray&tbm=isch&tbnid=iWMXH277YySSoM:&imgrefurl=http://www.biwook.net/gallery/funny-shit/random-2008-april-03/A%2Bfather%2Band%2Bson%2Bat%2Bhome,%2BHelmand%2BProvince,%2BAfghanistan.html&docid=gCELvTlLZP3XKM&imgurl=http://www.biwook.net/gallery/funny-shit/random-2008-april-03/A%252520father%252520and%252520son%252520at%252520home,%252520Helmand%252520Province,%252520Afghanistan.jpg&w=900&h=1360&ei=cU1QT-yFBaTh0QG-z43sDQ&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=100&vpy=138&dur=7049&hovh=276&hovw=183&tx=128&ty=186&sig=117915702906677471223&page=1&tbnh=125&tbnw=102&start=0&ndsp=16&ved=1t:429,r:0,s:0