One of my biggest concerns when I was considering teaching Kite Runner was whether 9th graders could really understand the concept of regret and redemption. Perhaps somewhat naively I think not many of us have done something we spend a lifetime regretting like Amir does in the course of this book. Sure, there are things I wish were different in my life but I don't think I can pinpoint one action that I did or did not take that changed the lives of the people closest to me forever. Amir can do that without hesitation...and he is not proud of that fact.
I feel sorry for Amir--I understand his feelings of confusion and regret even if I haven't been in a similar situation. I think sometimes in class discussions many of you don't empathize--you don't understand his feelings or his point of view. We seem quick to judge because we claim we would never have done what he did. Easy to say as an outsider sometimes.
So if we as readers have judged Amir as cowardly and disloyal how do we bring ourselves to forgive him? What does Amir need to do to earn forgiveness and get redemption? Is it even possible for him to recover from his childhood full of regret?
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I do not think that Amir is a coward, just that the situation he was thrown into was too great for a young boy to fathom. Should he have done something about it? Yes. He should have told an adult or someone. But one cannot say that they would take action in a situation like that unless they themselves have been put into one.
I think that this question directly addresses the second part of the book. Amir's journey to Rahim Kahn and to save Sohrab and confront Assef earned him his redemption. I think that the prompt also makes the mistake of assuming that students think that they would not have been as cowardly as Amir. I can understand and relate to acting cowardly in a situtation that requires bravery. But I think the character of Amir makes the mistake of letting that one act of cowardice define who he is as a person; and letting it control the rest of his life. Amir should have been emotionally strong enough to dismiss or atleast accept his one moment of cowardice.
Obviously when reading a novel, there will be a point where you strongly disagree with the actions of the main character. In The Kite Runner, the whole first section focuses on the developing mind of a confused, privileged young boy who is dealing with something far greater than he can understand. From an objective point of view, we can see that what he chose to do was wrong, as Amir ends up seeing in retrospect. But it is to be expected that a little boy would mistreat someone that he cares about when put in a confusing situation.
I agree that it is easy to say, oh that would never happen to me. When your in the situation though, you act on instict and you don't always think of the affect it will have on you. To feel free of his guilt, he needs to do the same for Hassan that Hassan always did for him. He needs to do what he should have done many years ago, and fix his mistake.
I think that Ms. Schuller is right, people just quickly say that they don't like Amir because of what he did wrong with Hassan. However, if I were to be put in his situation, and even if they were my best friend, i really don't know if i'd be able step in and help out. Not because i'm a coward, but because I wouldn't know what to do. I agree with Peter that it's unfair to call Amir a coward if you have yet to be in a situation like his. However, he could've helped out a little more then he did. By things such as telling an adult..
As a reader, one always has a sense for what is to come. For instance, when the Hassan-rape-scene was in the process, the readers were inwardly screaming 'Amir. Help him, fool.' yet while those events are happening its hard to say what goes through ones mind. We need to give Amir more of a chance and give him some slack for his decision.
Not only was Amir very young, but events like these traumatize, and badly. Amir did not have an adult figure he could confide in, and overall Amir lacked guidance pase his own conscience. Children are not designed to comprehend everything they see and act accordingly. However, in the second section when Amir is off in Pakistan/Afghanistan again, he gets what he leasts expects from Assef, which is relief from his past. He was kind of like those souls that haunt the living until they finish their last task or something, and than they can rest in peace. Now his mind can be at ease, that his past sins have been paid for accordingly.
Everyone jugdes Amir because they dont know what he is going through, but i dont think that Amir will ever be able to do anything that will make him feel better about his past .
I feel sorry for Amir too but now (in chapter 18 or something) he is granted an oppourtunity to redeem himself and save Hassan's son. If he does the right thing, then he has clearly changed for the better but if not then he has not learned from his mistake.
I think it's pretty much impossible to understand what Amir went through, but I dont think I would have talked about it with anyone. I think that what he should regret more than letting that happen is allowing that one day to ruin his friendship with Hassan, and his father's friendship with Ali.
I dont exactly agree with saying Amir is a coward, he was a young boy and being faced with such a situation is someimes too much to handle. But, as the years go by and all Amir does is forget is cowardly. His first action is dismissed because of the fact of his childhood, but becoming an adult and not doing anything is another story. Now as he reunites with Rahim Kahn and comes back to his home land he should contact Hassan. Of course, he will regret this action his enitre life but there is a way to regain a little bit of forgiveness and that way would be to at least contact Hassan again.
On the first day that we discussed the book, i said that i thought that Hassan was a coward, and Amir wasnt. I feel that hassan never had the courage to stand up to anyone. I also feel like Amir has redeemed himself by going all the way back to Afganistan, leaving everything he has, to attmpt to make up for his wrongdoings.
I was able to somewhat understand the regret Amir has been dealing with, even though I have never done anything at such a great level that I feel the same way he does the rest of my life. He could have done something about his actions, but was clearly to frightened of the consequences. In the end though, he feels so much more regret and needs to fight even harder to redeem himself from his past mistakes. This made him suffer more then he would have if he had simply done something about it in the beginning. He is a coward, but it is understandable because he was put in such a situation that required him to be brave, but in the end was left in an awkward, cowardly phase.
Amir is a really good person at heart. People obviously change drastically from the age of 10 and the age of 40. I could definitely forgive Amir for his wrong-doing because I understand that people don't do the right thing in some situations. I think Amir can "be good again."
I feel that Amir is not only a cowardly disloyal friend but that he is very spoiled and does not appreciate what he has in anyway. He does not realize how important having a friend like Hassan who always stands up for him in every situatioin no matter the consequences truly is. Amir is spoiled not only with his possessions but with his closest friends and relatives. He has a father who is perhaps the greatest man in Kabul and is a true philanthropist. He has a friend who has every good characteristic a good friend could possibly have. He is loyal, nice, protective, fun, and many other things that Amir seems to have forgotten. Amir cannot be forgiven for what he did because after, he has the nerve to be mean to him and cause him to leave forever. One would think that after such physical and mental trauma a person went through, their friend would be there to comfort them, but not Amir.
It really bothers me that everyone's like, "oh Amir's such a horrible person, why is he such a coward," but everyone seems to forget that he was a lttle kid and when little kids look at a situation that traumatizing, all they can see is how they're actions will affect them in that moment. I think that just the fact that he realizes his mistakes means that he's not a bad person.
I don't think you should worry that 9th graders cannot empathize with the characters in the book. Like everyone said, we were not in the situation of the Hassan being raped scene. I think Amir is a good person with flaws as well, like I can stand up and defend him for being too young in a difficult situation when Hassan was getting raped; but there wasn't much of a justifier for when he selfishly framed Hassan for stealing his watch. Yet he is a human too and he does make mistakes and he did try to make up for it later in life.
okay let's be perfectly honest and think about the rape scene. Put yourself in Amir's shoes and think of it this way:
If you saw your friend, someone who you have known your entire life and grew up with, getting raped, you're probably not going to run to the rescue, you'd want to, but you wouldn't. Why? You are going to be watching in shock. I mean, if I saw my friend having something quite as traumatic as that happen to them, i'm would be overlooking it, shocked, and possibly crying.
Just my point of view.
I don't think we should judge Amir's actions when he was a kid. He was influenced by society to do what he did in the sence that he was always told that people like him were superior to people like Hassan. Of course morally Amir did the wrong thing, but he really didn't know better at the time, he was confused and scared. I think now though it is important for him to redeem himself by apologizing to Hassan.
Amir can gain some redemtion in finding sohrab and confronting assef, but I believe that how he was to frightened to help his friend will haunt him still. He can however still have a good life. We need guilt to set us straight and keep us steady; however, if we let one mistake decide what our lives will be like and give into it, it is almost impossible to be whole again.
I myself believe Amir to somewhat cowardly but that's not his fault. He was thrust into a situation in which he had to make a desicion: what should I do? Amir froze. I think what he did is forgiveable by you and I, but that doesn't matter. Amir has to find a way to forgive himself. I don't think that memory or the trauma he experianced will ever leave Amir and unless he gets some professional counciling, I don't think he will heal from that.
I think we were too early to judge Amir, and that as Rahim Khan said, he could make up for his previous deeds in the alleyway. He highly makes up for his deeds as a young boyu when he takes Sohrab in. I was too quick to judge Amir as a character that i hated because , he was young when that happened so through time and age he has beome a likeable and interesting character who adds twits to the novel.
While I was reading the book, I did feel like Amir was a coward for the many things that he did that hurt Hassan and how he took advantage of him. However, as I thought about the story and his situation more, I realized that he was thrown into a situation that he was too young to handle. And when he traveled back to Afghanistan to save Sohrab, he redeemed himself.
I think it was very difficult to remember that Amir was only 11 years old when he watched Hassan get raped. It was very easy to be critical of Amir's actions, but we must remember that he was only a child, and a tramatized one at that. Although Amir did act imaturely it should be undertood he was acting as distressed child.
Thank you!!! In class I became so frustrated quite often at peoples blind judgements. Many claim to hate Amir for what he did, labeling him a coward, but only if put in that exact situation with the same restricting conditions could one truely see how they would react. It just seems that people aren't fully grasping the situation and the difficulties and regret that Amir feels. He deserves at least a little empathy for what had happened and the way he reacted. He is not a coward, he was afraid and regretful and hurt, but people only see what they would consider heroic actions by Hassan, and cast Amir to shame because he didn't sacrifice himself for Hassan. That doesn't make him a bad person, possibly selfish, but not hate worthy. As far as not telling, well I can somewhat relate because I too had a similar situation, and it took me years to even speak of my event, let alone take action on bettering it.
Everybody makes mistakes, including mistakes that affect other people's lives. Amir's mistake affected many people's lives very plainly, but to me it just seems more visible than mistakes that I, and most people have made. Amir is obviously a very conflicted character through his young whole life, and when he is faced with such an urgent choice, I think that, although disappointing and terrible, it's understandible.
I think that this question directly addresses the second part of the book. Amir's journey to Rahim Kahn and to save Sohrab and confront Assef earned him his redemption. Even though he couldn't stand up for what was right as a child, I feel he has learned to become a brave man through his journey back to his homeland.
I do not believe that Amir was a bad person for watching the rape of Hassan. Amir was just a child, and had not been prepared to handle the situation that he was put in. Many readers may believe that they would have responded differently, and I think they should take into consideration the type of family that they grew up in. I believe that the way a child reacts and responds to difficult situations depends on the way he or she was raised. For example, Amir had not received enough encouragement and love at home. His father disapproved of his writing, and he grew up without a mother. This might have caused him contain his feelings, and take the coward's way out.
Amir was a very confused child. Although Amir and Hassan were friends, Hassan was a Hazara. Being raised in a pashtun family, Amir saw the persecution of the Hazaras. Amir was confused and he had no idea if he should go with society, or support his best friend. What happened to Hassan and Amir shows the reality of the effects of peer pressure and the effect society may play on people. Amir can redeem himself, but not to a full extent. How can you possibly get back your best friends dignity?
I think that Amir is put in a difficult situation in that alley. He doesn't want to get hurt like most of us but he also doesn't want his friend to get hurt either. What he did in the alley was a little selfigh but I think that he had good reasons for not helping Hassan. It is very easy for me to say "Oh I would've helped Hassan" but I'm not so sure that that would be true. I think it is a matter of courage and I don't think you can blame Amir for not having that.
There is still hope for Amir to redeem what he did to Hassan in the Alley. Amir needs to do something big to earn his redemption. He can not just simply go to a mosque and pray for forgiveness. He needs to do something for Hassan. If Hassan forgives Amir that will lead to the readers to forgive Amir.
Though when I hear the name Amir, nothing but feelings of hatred come up, I do understand what you are saying about that we are too quick to judge, and that if we were faced with the same situation, would we too act as cowardly as Amir? When thinking more about that, it makes me have much more sympathy for Amir. I do however begin to see his life moving in the right direction, though it seems his childhood mistake will haunt him forever.
I agree with the fact that we all have things we are ashamed of. But I doubt that most of us have something that is as intense as what happened between Amir and Hassan. I think Hassan deserves redemption but he has to be truly sorry and really make it better.
I agree with Peter that the situation Amir was thrown into may have been to great for him to handle, but even so, his reaction to the incident was unnacceptable, and he shouldn't have taken out his frustration on Hassan.
Amir needs to come to terms with himself, face his fears and conquer them.
By the way, the is the second best book I've ever had to read for school. (1st was Interpreter of Maladies)
So far in my reading, Amir has done two good things. He got his behind kicked, and he let his dad not die. Oh yea, he also gave that family money. Everything else was cowardly, or at least weak. Even when he won his kite fight, he did it for the selfish reason of winning his fathers love. Until he actually turns his life around as opposed to futily trying, he's just a whining coward. He got saved by a sexually abused 11 year old. The only way to go lower than that is to frame your half brother, servant, and best friend for stealing your watch after you watched him get raped without doing anything.
I don't think that i can forgive amir for what he did, he will regret his decison because that was his decision. Actions have consequenses and his consequense will last for as long he remembers it. I have not finsihed the book yet so i do know his further actions. but as of right now he does not deserve redemption becuase it is not like he didn't think about what to do he thought for a while and still made the wrong decision, so he dererves everything he gets.
I think Amir has to do something for Hassan to earn his forgiveness and ours. He was a coward that day in the alley and he should have done something but he didn't and he can't take that back even though he wishes he could. I think the only way Amir can recover from his childhood is if he hears Hassan say it's ok, i forgive you. If Hassan says that to Amir i think Amir may be able to finally forgive himself and forget.
I don't have any difficulty understanding Amir's feelings or seeing things from his perspective, that's one of the reasons this book gets to me so much. Of course, not many people at our age have regretted something to the extent Amir has, but I think the author makes it very easy to put yourself in Amir's shoes. I know that if I were in Amir's place, the regret would haunt me for my whole life, and it would even affect my personality as I grew older. I also think that almost everything I saw or heard, would somehow connect to the incident wtih Hassan. I wouldn't be able to live with myself
I think that it's possible to forgive Amir because when he witnessed Hassan's rape he was very broken emotionally. This is because of the neglect that he felt from Baba and the feeling that he needed to impress him. Though Amir should have taken some action after witnessing the rape, I can definitely understand why he didn't. Also, there is some evidence that Amir has learned from his mistake. However, Amir shouldn't let that mistake haunt his for the rest of his life. The only way to truly forgive Amir is if he proves that he can take action if the situation calls for it.
I think Amir was really naiive and innocent when he saw what happened and it's terribly unfair to judge him for what he did, even though it was wrong.
I don't blame him at all, so I don't need a reason for him to redeem himself, although I believe Amir himself thinks he needs a reason to redeem himeself.
I think Amir was really naiive and innocent when he saw what happened and it's terribly unfair to judge him for what he did, even though it was wrong.
I don't blame him at all, so I don't need a reason for him to redeem himself, although I believe Amir himself thinks he needs a reason to redeem himeself.
I think Amir did not want to say anything about what he had done because he did not want the situation to become even worse. If he had talked about what he had done, things would have changed. Amir did not know in what way things would change, so he chose not to take any action at all. Amir needs to tell someone what he did to be redeemed in my eyes. Unfortunately, the people he should have told most may not be alive.
Amir might be labled as a coward, but I do not think that he is one. I think that the absence of mother figure in his life, has effected his way of thinking about serious problems. Amir never learned what is nice or naughty, he had to learn by his mistakes, and many times it was too late to learn different.
I sympathize for Amir very much and can understand how bad he feels since there are things in my life that I regret although not to the extent of Amir's action. However, there is no way for Amir to be completely forgave since he just watched his friend endure extensive pain and suffering from Assef. For Amir to gain some redemption or forgiveness he needs to apologize to Hassan and tell him how he watched Hassan in that alley on that fateful day and tell him how sorry he is and be truthful with Hassan. He also needs to in some way in his actions forgive Hassan. Again I dont think Amir will ever fully recover from his childhood regret.
I think Amir in his childhood was not a coward, but after he didn't do anything for Hassan and he watched Hassan get raped, his mental strengh broke and he became a coward. And as he grows up many movre devastation thngs happen. To earn foregiveness I think he should do little things that people ask him to do. Such as when Rahim Kahn asks him to look for Sohrab as he's dying. I dont thnk he's going to recover because there is just so much devastation in his life.
As much as I sympathize for Amir I still feel what he did is wrong. Being a coward is not always a bad thing, although in this situation it was. By holding his feelings in, it made the situation worse. In fact, if he told his father, Ali, or even Rahim Khan, he would have taken the weight off his chest. If he told either one of those people, Hassan could have recieved help that he needed, and their friendship could have been saved.
I think the first step towards the reader to "forgive" Amir for what happened is to realize what he must have been thinking. He was elated over his tournament win, he begins looking for Hassan to celbrate their win and finds him cornered by Assef. This would confuse him and change his emotions so quickly he wouldn't understand what was happening. Also I think it really scared him to see Hassan who was never afraid and always able to protect Amir, be so defenseless and showing signs of fear. Amir was so lost, even if he could have gotten help in time he wouldn't have been able to figure out how.
We all make mistakes in our lives that will affect other people, but what Amir did seems like it had more impact than the average mistake. We probably are too quick to judge him, and say we wouldn't do the same thing if we were in his place. The thing is, it's not hard to become somewhat of a coward in that kind of situation. For Amir to earn forgiveness and redemption he would have to fix his broken relationship with Hassan. I don't think he'll ever be able to recover his childhood, though. He let the regret stay with him for too long.
Although I didn't exactly forgive Amir for his actions in the first part of the book, I couldn't possibly say that I wouldn't have done the same.
Since Amir felt guilty because of the fact that he could never help Hassan, and the fact that Hassan was never mad at him, Amir could earn forgiveness by doing the opposite; he could do something to benefit Hassan. However, this isn't saying that his guilt will be alleviated totally, but I'm sure that helping Hassan, or rescuing Sohrab, will definitely help him to redeem himself.
From the story, "A Temporary Matter" in "Interpreter of Maladies", we also learned that time does not heal all wounds. In this story, I think that this is a crucial point. Because of the happenings when he was a twelve year old, Amir's whole life was shifted, and he had never recovered. However, also in conjunction with "A Temporary Matter", Shoba and Shukumar found a way to redeem each other in the end even after a long time, and I am sure that "The Kite Runner" will turn out similarly.
I do not think Amir is a coward, I just think that he was to young to really tell anyone of what had happened. He has been scared for life and at such a young age I feel that it would have been hard for him to tell anyone. I still believe that while he was watching it happen he should have done something. And now that he is older he should do something about it. In this circumstance time did not heal his wound, and he has been living for years with his regret on his chest. He needs to fix that and do something about it now.
I forgive Amir for what he has done.
As Amir is growing up, he is not a coward. However, after he witnesses Hassan being raped, his mental strength weakens and he becomes more of a coward. This affects him later in his life when he moves to America with his father.
I believe Amir can say sorry to Hassan, and Ali for his selfish actions, and they could even forgive him after so many years, but i don't think Amir will every be able to forgive himself, and get over his regret, and shame. I think, as Amir grows older and realizes what he has done and how to fix it, the reader will forgive him, and except him, but I don't think Amir will every except himself for his wrongdoings.
I do not think that it is possible or likely for Amir to make up for what he did. After I thought about what he did, and I thought how i was judging him when I am an outsider, I really think that he is just a coward and there is little he can do to change that. After Hassan was raped, Amir still did nothing and even was angry with Hassan, like it was his fault. I find this to be unforgivable
I believe that we cannot forgive Amir before he forgives himself. If he must live with regret, we cannot forgive him, because that would be taking away his regret. Forgiveness of the actions of Amir would degrade the consequences of his actions.
I do not think Amir was a bad kid or a coward, because if he was he wouldn't have felt bad about not standing up for Hassan. He was a young kid and afraid of Assef. I would hope that if i were in Amir's situation i would stand up for Hassan but you never know until you've actually been in that situation. Amir should have talked to Hassan about it and maybe things would have turned out better but it's easier said than done. I think Amir going to help Sohrab was his way of finally fully accepting his act of so called "cowardice" and saying sorry. I think he knew all along Hassan forgave him but he had never forgiven himself.
Amir did not know how to handle the situation that he was put in when he saw Hassan getting raped. He did not know whether to save Hassan or let it happen. That fact that he chose to sit and watch as Hassan got raped shows that Amir is a selfish coward. He did not necessarily choose to let Hassan be raped, but he could not bring himself to help Hassan. If Hassan were in the situation that Amir was in, it is obvious that he would have saved Amir. This shows that Amir did not have enough bravery or heart to stand up for his "brother".
I agree with laura in that characters like Hassan prove that doing the "right" thing is not always unheard of impossible. But i think we have to remind ourselves that Hassan is a unique and amazing character. Amir to me represents the weakness that is within all of us. He is an exsample of someone who is not perfect or pure in everyway, he is flawed and has a past full of regret. But what makes Kite Runner feel like such an authentic novel is that all of us are like Amir in some way shape or form. Just because we might not be able to connect with his situation on the same grand level doesnt mean we all dont have a little mini Amir that we're all a little ashamed of. But before we judge or dismiss Amir as a coward. We should consider the possibility that we might have more in common with his character than we care to admit.
At first I saw Amir as a coward during his childhood but when thinking about what most people would do I changed my mind. Watching Hassan, Amir was in shock and couldn't react. I think that it is something that always be burnt into Amir's memory
I think Amir is a coward. He is a coward for not only doing nothing in the situation, but also for keeping it a secret.
As a reader, I would be able to forgive Amir. He did do something very bad, but the people around him who know what he did eventually forgive him. I don't think Amir would ever be able to forgive himself. Amir needs to help Sorhab. I do not think Amir will ever be able to recover from his troubling childhood because he can never forgive himself.
I don't think that we can judge Amir from the point we have read up to in his life. I think that at that point when he saw Hassan getting raped he acted like a coward (especially after he heard all that hassan said about him) but the fact that Amir truly still feels bad about it and thinks about it every day i think foreshadows that he will redeem himself at some point in the novel. Basically i think we just need to cut him some slack and give him a little time.
Even though what Amir did seems wrong, it is most likly what the majority of people would do in the situation at that age. I have forgiven Amir, but I don't think he will ever be able to forgive himself.
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