The Kite Runner Group

Question:

fk91
fk91
Student
High School - 12th Grade

“I became what I am at the age of twelve”. Does Amir’s opening words prove to be accurate?

I believe what happend to Hassan and the betrayl and guilt Amir feels because of it makes Amir who he is. what happend then reflects on Amir's feelings and actions. 

i need help? :(

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Posted by fk91 on Tuesday May 19, 2009 at 6:41 AM and tagged with amir, the kite runner.

Answers:

  1. eabettencourt
    eabettencourt Teacher
    High School - 10th Grade

    eNotes Editor

    Best answer as selected by question asker.

    You're definitely on the right track.  The violent assault on Hassan, and Amir's witnessing it, certainly shapes who Amir is as an adult.  The themes concerning redemption are quite strong in this novel, and the root of Amir's quest for redemption can be traced back to this event.  As an adult, Amir at first seems to repress his memories concerning his childhood, allowing his American lifestyle to mask his guilt.  But once he discovers there is a chance "to be good again," all his decisions (to go to Afghanistan, to risk his life for Sohrab, to consequently adopt Sohrad) are based on the attack he witnesses as a twelve year old boy, a boy who could not, was not equipped to, process it at the time, but who as an adult seeks out redemption.

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    Posted by eabettencourt on Tuesday May 19, 2009 at 7:12 AM