Saturday, September 6, 2014

In the book The Kite Runner how can you describe the relationship between the two boys?

This is an excellent question as clearly the relationship
between Amir and Hassan and what happens to it is a key theme of the novel that is only really
resolved at the very end of this gripping tale. It is clear that, in their childhood, Amir and
Hassan have an unequal relationship. Hassan is officially Amir's servant, and yet it is clear
that they have a closer friendship. However, at the same time, this "friendship" is one that Amir
feels he can use to bully and to be cruel to Hassan as and when the occasion suits him. One
particularly key moment in Chapter 5, that foreshadows the rape of Hassan that Amir does nothing
to stop, is when Assef bullies Hassan and Amir and Assef verbally attacks Amir for having Hassan
as a friend:


readability="14">

But he's  not my friend! I almost
blurted. He's my servant! Had I just thought that? Of course I hadn't. I
treated Hassan well, just like a friend, better even, more like a brother. But if so, then why,
when Baba's friends came to visit with their kids, didn't I ever include Hassan in our games? Why
did I play with Hassan only when non one else was
around?



This quote is key for a number
of reasons. In it we gain an insight into Amir's mind as he is forced to admit the fact that he
doesn't treat Hassan like a friend, even though at times (and highly ironically) he says he
treats him like "a brother." It captures the ambiguity in Amir's relationship with Hassan and how
he only treats him as a friend when it suits him and there is something he can gain from it. In
their relationship, however, Amir always plays the part of the master and Hassan is always the
servant.

No comments:

Post a Comment

How is Anne's goal of wanting "to go on living even after my death" fulfilled in Anne Frank: The Diary of a Young Girl?I didn't get how it was...

I think you are right! I don't believe that many of the Jews who were herded into the concentration camps actually understood the eno...