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Redemption and Atonement in The Kite Runner

Summary:

In Khaled Hosseini's The Kite Runner, redemption and atonement are central themes explored through several characters. Sanaubar seeks redemption by returning to care for Hassan and his son, Sohrab. Baba attempts atonement for his secret about Hassan by building orphanages and supporting his sons. Soraya finds redemption by confessing her past to Amir and caring for Baba. Rahim Khan encourages Amir's path to redemption by revealing family secrets. Ultimately, Amir redeems himself by rescuing Sohrab, thus confronting his past wrongs.

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How does Sanaubar, Hassan's mother, seek redemption in The Kite Runner?

Hassan's mother, Sanaubar, had left Ali's home shortly after Hassan's birth. She had refused to even touch her baby, but one day she showed up at Baba's home and she was welcomed by Rahim Khan as well as Hassan and his wife, Farzana. Once a great beauty, Sanaubar was now a ghastly-looking woman. Toothless with "stringy graying hair," she had been badly cut about the face.

Someone had taken a knife to it and... Amir jan, the slashes cut this way and that. One of the cuts went from cheekbone to hairline and it had not spared her left eye on the way. It was grotesque.  (Chapter 16)

Sanaubar had returned to get a last look at Hassan--a chance at redemption for her sinful past. Although Hassan did not accept her at first, and Sanaubar "cried that coming back had been a mistake," he soon welcomed her back "home with her family." Sanaubar was nursed back to health, and she and Hassan spent their time

... catching up on all the lost years.  (Chapter 16)

Sanaubar personally delivered Farzana's son--her grandson, Sohrab--and

... he became the center of her existence... The two of them were inseparable.  (Chapter 16)

Sanaubar died in her sleep when Sohrab was four, and both Hassan and Sohrab took her death hard. But Sanaubar had found redemption, and when she died,

... she looked calm, at peace, like she did not mind dying now.  (Chapter 16)

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What happened to Hassan's mother, Sanaubar, in The Kite Runner?

Through an arranged marriage, Hassan's father, Ali, married his first-cousin, Sanaubar--a woman with a notorious reputation who was 19 years younger than her husband. While Ali was crippled with polio and stricken with a terrible limp, Sanaubar was renowned for her beauty. Her

... brilliant green eyes and impish face had, rumor has it, tempted countless men into sin... Sanaubar's suggestive stride and oscillating hips sent men to reveries of infidelity.

Like her husband, Sanaubar was a Hazara and Shi'a Muslim; but unlike Ali, "who had memorized the Koran," Sanaubar's primary interests were neither motherly nor religious. When she saw that her newborn son, Hassan, had a cleft lip, she refused to take him in her arms. Five days later, she was gone, running off

... with a clan of traveling singers and dancers.

Sanaubar would return to Baba's house long after he and Amir had left for America. She had lost her beauty but had gained a desire to finally get to know her son--and grandson, Sohrab.

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What sins does Baba commit in The Kite Runner and how does he atone for them?

Baba is a strong character in Khaled Hosseini's The Kite Runner, a man who is not likely to admit that he has any faults or frailties. In fact, however, to some extent he is to blame for many of the awful things that happen in this story. Though Baba does have a moral code, of sorts, his "sins" are significant.

Baba is known as "Mr. Hurricane," and that is an apt description of him. While he is able to move people and get things done, he is also an unstoppable force which does not lend itself to personal relationships and leaves a disaster in its wake. He claims to be a devout man and has a clear moral code; however, in many instances that code applies only to others and not himself.

The primary sin Baba commits is being a detached parent to his only son, Amir. A boy's relationship with his father is important in any case, but since Amir does not have a mother it is even more important for the boy to have a connection to his father. Perhaps even worse than his detachment are Baba's unreasonably high standards and expectations for Amir. The boy is always trying to measure up, to live up to his father's expectations, and he constantly fails. There are only certain ways Baba is impressed with Amir, and Amir spends most of his time and energy trying to accomplish them.

It is this incessant drive to win his father's acceptance, at least in part, which causes Amir to walk away from Hassan when he is being assaulted by Assef. In the end, that choice is as much about needing the blue kite to please Baba as it is about Amir's mixed feelings about Hassan--which were also caused by Baba. It is true that Amir makes the choice, but his conflict is created primarily by his father.

Baba is also a hypocrite. While he preaches to Amir that the worst sin of all is lying, Baba lives his entire life with the huge undisclosed lie of omission that Hassan is also his son.

“When you kill a man, you steal a life. You steal his wife's right to a husband, rob his children of a father. When you tell a lie, you steal someone's right to the truth. When you cheat, you steal the right to fairness.” 

To add to the hypocrisy and insult, Baba has a relationship with Hassan that Amir covets, stirring up all the jealousy that eventually causes Amir to allow Hassan to be abused and to mistreat Hassan himself. Again, Amir makes his own choices based on what has happened to him, but it is certainly Baba who creates so much conflict for Amir. Amir even says their family friend Rahim Khan "rescued" him, and the one from whom he needed rescuing was, of course, Baba.

In Afghanistan, Baba attempts to atone for his sins by the things he most values: money. He builds orphanages and hires a surgeon to repair Hassan's hare lip, for example.

In America, Baba does seem to soften his moral position, and his rather pious proclamations are more like sage advice from someone who has made his share of mistakes. When Amir graduates, Baba tells Amir that he is proud of him, and that is clearly something Baba would not have done in Afghanistan. He also seems to be trying to atone for his past by arranging Amir's marriage in a way that suits Amir's wishes more than his own expectations. 

Things do seem to get better once Baba and Hassan get to America, and Amir is able to eventually forgive his father for these things. 

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What are two quotes each from Amir, Baba, and Rahim Khan in The Kite Runner that represent the theme of redemption?

The theme of redemption carries through The Kite Runner. Amir must make amends for his earlier mistreatment of Hassan. The primary way he does this is by adopting his nephew, Sohrab. The first step is to get Sohrab back, which involves fighting Assef. After the fight, Amir says, “My body was broken . . . but I felt healed. Healed at last. I laughed.”

At the end, when Amir serves as Sohrab’s kite runner, he echoes the line that Hassan had always said to him. This repetition indicates closure as he now understands that he must serve Hassan’s son “a thousand times over.”

Baba is always aware of the lie that he is living, yet he tells Amir that lying is wrong. His hypocrisy must be overcome, but it turns out he will be unable to accomplish that alone. Amir recalls that his father told him the following:

There is only one sin. And that is theft . . . When you tell a lie, you steal someone's right to the truth. Hadn't he said those words to me? And now, fifteen years after I'd buried him, I was learning that Baba had been a thief.

After Amir finds out his father’s secret, he realizes that Baba had tried to redeem himself through treating Hassan like the son he was, which Amir had seen as playing. When he forgives his father, Baba gains posthumous redemption.

I wondered if that was how forgiveness budded, not with the fanfare of epiphany, but with pain gathering its things, packing up, and slipping away unannounced in the middle of the night.

Rahim Khan plays an important role in Amir’s journey, as he is the one who tells Amir, "There is a way to be good again." He also sets the ball rolling for Amir to re-unite with Sohrab through revealing Baba’s secret, ultimately enabling redemption for both men: “Your father was a man torn between two halves . . . . ”

(Page numbers will vary with editions.)

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How does Baba achieve redemption in the novel The Kite Runner?

There are a couple of errors in the third post.  Baba does not ask Rahim Khan to go get Hassan and bring him back to the Kabul house; this is something that Rahim does on his own. Also Rahim Khan contacts Amir on his own, not because of Baba's dying request; again, he does this on his own as part of his redemption.  See Chapter 16 which is told from Rahim Khan's point of view.

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How does Baba achieve redemption in the novel The Kite Runner?

Baba gains his redemption in the novel in several ways. However, the sad part is that these things take place only after his death. First, I would say that the truth comes out about Amir and Hasan later in life. And he is not judged by Amir, but Amir understands. Second, what Baba wants is for Amir to become a man of integrity and strength and this is exactly what happens as he faces his past and embraces an honorable course of life. Finally, Hasan's seed through his son lives on. This is to say that Baba's grandson lives on through Amir. These points should get you started.

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How does Soraya find redemption for her sin in The Kite Runner?

Soraya had committed a sin that was unforgivable to the strict Afghan community, and especially to her conservative father, General Taheri: She had run off with a man, done drugs, and had lived with him for a month. Her father had to forcibly return her to their home in Virginia, and her mother suffered a stroke because of the ordeal--a physical reminder that would always remind Soraya of her misdeed. They then moved to California to escape the shame that would forever follow them. She found her redemption in one way by simply confessing her sin to Amir, who forgave her and still wanted to marry her.

I envied her. Her secret was out. Spoken. Dealt with... I suspected there were many ways in which Soraya Taheri was a better person than me.

She redeemed herself again when she invited Baba to live with them during his final days battling the cancer that would kill him, and nursing him when necessary. She atones for her sin by unquestioningly allowing Amir to return to Pakistan and, later, Afghanistan, so he can seek the redemption that he so badly desires, following Rahim Khan's promise that

There is a way to be good again.

Finally, Soraya accepts Sohrab into their family, fulfilling her own redemption and Amir's as well, and finding a way to create their own family after her unsuccessful attempts to give birth herself.

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In The Kite Runner, how does Rahim Khan achieve redemption?

Khaled Hosseini's novel The Kite Runner is set in and around Afghanistan during the period between late 1970 and 2003, and deals with family tension in times of war.

The character of Rahim Khan is complex; he is a friend of Amir's family and his father's business partner. In Amir's youth, Rahim acted as mediator when he and his father argued, and encouraged Amir to pursue his love of writing. Later in his life, when he is old and dying, he asks Amir to find Sohrab, Amir's nephew by his half-brother Hassan; Amir was unaware of the relation. At the end of the book, Amir reads a letter Rahim left him:

"...your father was a man torn between two halves, Amir jan: you and Hassan. He loved you both, but he could not love Hassan the way he longed to, openly... sometimes, I think everything he did, feeding the poor on the streets, building the orphanage, giving money to friends in need, it was all his way of redeeming himself. And that, I believe, is what true redemption is, Amir jan, when guilt leads to good."
(Hosseini, The Kite Runner, Google Books)

Rahim Khan, although not related to Amir's family, feels a deep connection with them, as well as the shame of keeping Sohrab a secret. He cannot find and rescue the boy himself, but he decides that if he gives Amir the knowledge and motivation to perform the task, it is as if he himself is doing it; through Amir, his final act is one of redemption. Rahim's long-held guilt has led to good.

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Does Amir atone for his past wrongs in The Kite Runner, and how?

Yes. At the beginning of the novel, Amir sits idly by and witnesses Hassan get raped, then plants money and a watch underneath Hassan's bed to make it look like Hassan stole from him. Amir's actions force Ali and Hassan to leave their home which ends Baba's long friendship with Ali. Throughout his life, Amir is plagued with guilt for his actions until he gets a call from Rahim Khan telling him that there is a way to be good again. When Amir travels to Pakistan to speak with Rahim Khan, Rahim tells him about Hassan's son, Sohrab. Amir accepts the challenge to find Sohrab in Afghanistan and give him a new home with two Christian missionaries living in Pakistan. Amir atones for his past wrongs by facing off against Assef one on one in order to leave Afganistan with Sohrab. Amir almost dies during the fight, but is fortunately saved by Sohrab, who uses his slingshot to knock out Assef's eye. After Amir recovers from his severe injuries, he attempts to adopt Sohrab only to find out how difficult the immigration adoption policy is. After Amir tells Sohrab that he will have to put him in an orphanage for a little while, Sohrab attempts to kill himself. Amir saves Sohrab's life and eventually takes him to America where Sohrab is safe. Amir atones for his wrongs by risking his life and saving Sohrab's life several times in the process of bringing him to America. Amir's sacrifice gives Sohrab a chance to experience a happy life in America. 

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How does Hosseini develop the theme of redemption in The Kite Runner?

While Khaled Hosseini presents several strong themes in The Kite Runner, the idea of redemption dominates the novel.  Almost all of the main characters, with the exception of pure Hassan, need redemption.  Baba tries to redeem himself from his affair with Sanuabar and the betrayal of his friend and servant Ali by building an orphanage and by treating Hassan, his illegitimate son, better than Amir.

Rahim Khan has lied to Amir for years about his blood relation to Hassan and attempts to redeem himself by telling Amir the truth and by getting Amir to focus on his own path to redemption.

Of course, Amir, the novel's protagonist and narrator, struggles with the concept of redemption throughout the entire novel.  His horrific betrayal of Hassan haunts him and dominates his actions and thinking.  Until he is able to rescue the innocent (Sohrab) and defeat evil (Assef), he cannot live in peace.  Even after he brings Sohrab to the United States, Amir struggles with this past actions and is just beginning to see himself as redeemed.

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How does Baba confront his past sins and redeem himself in The Kite Runner?

Baba tries to compensate for sleeping with his servant's wife in several ways, but he never dares to confess what he has done - not to his servant Ali, not to Amir, and not even to Hassan. Instead, he gives gifts to Hassan while he is growing up and when he is of age to have the operation, he pays to have his harelip fixed. Amir feels some jealousy towards Hassan without understanding the true "tie that binds," without knowing that Hassan his his half-brother.

Later when they resettle in California, Baba softens up towards Amir in a way which he has never done before. When Amir meets Soraya at the flea market, Baba goes about doing his fatherly role according to Afghan custom so that the two can "court" and then marry. Baba must hurry, for his health is declining fast and the doctors have told him he hasn't much time yet to live.

Baba and Amir's relationship finishes on a bittersweet note, for soon after Baba's death, Amir learns about the family secret. Although Baba falls off his pedestal, so to speak, at this point, in Amir's eyes he is more human than ever. The bear he has wrestled with in his dream is finally brought down.

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In The Kite Runner, how is "redemption" portrayed as a theme?

Redemption is absolutely one of the central themes of The Kite Runner. The novel explores the subject in several ways, some less obvious than Amir's guilt towards Hassan—it runs through almost everything the characters do.

For example, with the exception of Soraya, you could say that most of the people the novel shows us start off fairly passive in regards to their own life. In addition to redemption, one of the main themes of the book could very well be cowardice, or peer pressure. It makes Amir and Baba and Rahim Khan, to note just a few, stand aside and continually make bad decisions even if they know in their hearts that they are making a mistake. Instead of acting according to their own will and conscience, they choose to hide, trying to fit into an unjust society.

This idea of trying to follow someone else's code of ethics and behavior goes quite deep. You could say it highlights the true essence of redemption: through the course of the novel, influenced by the events that shape his life, Amir comes closer to the realization that redemption is—and can only be—an internal freedom. It is not something that can be bestowed by others onto him. Forgiveness is a powerful tool, but I think that Rahim Khan is quite wise when he invites Amir back to Afghanistan. He does not offer Amir an easy answer, nor does he offer to pardon him of his sins against Hassan. What Rahim Khan says is that there's a way to "be good again," a way for Amir to redeem himself before the only judge that can truly liberate him—his own conscience.

With that, Hosseini shows that like loyalty, redemption has a worth of its own. It is nobody else's business and not theirs to bestow. Amir, finally gathering the courage to do the right thing, gets a chance to come full circle with his life. The novel sets up a very poetic salvation for him: saving Hassan's son from Hassan's fate, from the same bully who tormented Hassan.

It is significant that although The Kite Runner is full of powerful external events and misfortune, the one who hurts Amir most is Amir himself. The guilt he carries with him is not kept burning by anyone but him, and it takes him a long time to see that he needs to become proactive in order to achieve redemption. Only when he's done that, does he feel the weight lifted from his shoulders:

I ran. A grown man running with a swarm of screaming children. But I didn't care. I ran with the wind blowing in my face, and a smile as wide as the Valley of Panjshir on my lip. I ran.

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How does Rahim Khan redeem Baba and Amir in The Kite Runner?

I'm not so sure that Rahim Khan is able to help his old friend Baba find redemption, but he certainly supplies the secret that helps Amir redeem himself in The Kite Runner. Amir's guilt over the betrayal of his servant/friend Hassan continues to haunt him even after Baba's death. But when Rahim Khan summons Amir to Pakistan for a visit, he provides Amir with the information that can ease his conscience. Rahim reveals Baba's greatest secret: Hassan is not Ali's son, but Baba's; Hassan is Amir's half-brother. Additionally, Hassan's son, Sohrab, is still alive and living somewhere in Afghanistan. Although Hassan is now dead, Amir knows that finding Sohrab and providing him with a safe passage through war-torn Afghanistan will make things right again. Amir accomplishes his mission, returning with the troubled Sohrab back to America where he welcomes him as part of his family: Sohrab, Amir's nephew, becomes the son that he and wife Soraya were unable to produce themselves.

Rahim had long tried to help Baba see the positive side of Amir's nature, but the stubborn Baba was not easy to convince. Rahim continued to live in Baba's house in the hope that he could one day return it to his friend, but Baba's death prevented this from happening. So, with Rahim's own death looming, he made the conscious decision to reveal Baba's secrets to the young friend he had always encouraged. Though Baba took his secret to the grave, Rahim knew that revealing Hassan's true heritage--and the knowledge about Sohrab--would create a motive to free Amir from his personal demons.

During his phone call to Amir in California, Rahim tells him to

Come. There is a way to be good again.

Another important quote occurs while Amir is taking a beating from Assef as Sohrab looks on (Chapter 22). Amir cannot stop laughing.

"WHAT'S SO FUNNY?" Assef bellowed... What was so funny was for the first time since the winter of 1975, I felt at peace... My body was broken... but I felt healed. Healed at last.

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How does Amir seek redemption in The Kite Runner?

I think that the act of going back to Afghanistan reflects a step towards redemption.  In being able to confront his life from what it was to what it is represents a homecoming of sorts, and a redemption in the process.  At the same time, I think that the understanding of his true relationship with Hassan the compulsion to adopt Sohrab represents another part of this redemption.  Amir understands that he is responsible for establishing a moral order in a setting where none exists.  In the condition that the Taliban created in Afghanistan, and understanding the fate that Sohrab would probably face, Amir comprehends his responsibility.  In this, there is redemption.  The mistakes he made with Hassan in not taking action and being silent are not what he will make with Sohrab.  In this, there is redemption that demonstrates both an evolution of character as well as the potential hope for the future.

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How does Amir seek redemption in The Kite Runner?

Amir begins his long quest for redemption when he returns to Pakistan, and then Afghanistan, in June 2001. Meeting with Baba's old friend, Rahim Khan in Pakistan, Amir learns that Hassan is dead; Hassan has a son somewhere in Afghanistan; and that Hassan is actually his half-brother, fathered by Baba and Sanaubar. Amir's step toward atonement comes when he rescues Sohrab from the Taliban while nearly being beaten to death in the process. It is during the beating that Amir first feels the freedom of his sins.

My body was broken--just how badly I wouldn't find out until later--but I felt healed. Healed at last.

Safely arriving with Sohrab in Pakistan, Amir heals his wounds before beginning the search for the Caldwells, who were to take Sohrab into their home. But Amir discovers that the Caldwells are fictitious, contrived by Rahim Khan in order to guarantee that Amir would locate Sohrab. So, Amir decides to return home to California with Sohrab, and make him a member of his family--something that he had never been able to accept with Hassan. But Sohrab's suicide attempt lengthens Amir's stay.

When they finally arrive in California, Sohrab is unable to adapt to his new surroundings, rarely speaking and withdrawing into a world of his own. But in the final chapter, when Amir takes Sohrab kite-flying, Amir finds himself acting out one final form of redemption: He volunteers to run Sohrab's kite, just as Hassan had done so many times for him.

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What is the theme of redemption in The Kite Runner?

This would be a good topic for a three-point essay--a paragraph of introduction, a paragraph of conclusion, and a main body with three paragraphs.

The redemption theme in the novel is developed through Amir's character and his history with his childhood friend, Hassan. A good structure for the main body paragraphs of your essay would be this one:

Main body paragraph one: Explain what happened between Amir and Hassan when they were children, the terrible incident when Amir saw Hassan being attacked by the neighborhood bullies and did nothing to even try to save him.

Main body paragraph two: Explain how Amir felt about his cowardice and his betrayal of Hassan, the guilt it caused him. Explain how Amir lied and forced Hassan to leave because Amir felt so guilty he could not stand to be around him.

Main body paragraph three: Explain how as an adult living in America, Amir returned to Afghanistan to save Hassan's son, despite the fact that doing so was very dangerous. Explain the terrible beating Amir took in saving Hassan's son.

In your conclusion, you can tie it all together by talking about Amir's redemption, how he found forgiveness for his sin of betraying Hassan by saving Hassan's son. Explain how Amir felt about himself at the end of the story, contrasted with how he felt about himself as a boy when he was too afraid to help his friend.

There are many good passages in the novel that you can quote in your various paragraphs to support your discussion. Also, the eNotes links below will take you to some excellent study guides that you will find very helpful. Good luck!

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In The Kite Runner, what does the novel say about forgiveness and redemption?

Forgiveness and redemption are major themes that are explored in The Kite Runner.  Amir and Hassan maintain a close friendship throughout their younger years; however, Amir never loses the notion that he is more priviledged and therefore "better" than Hassan.  Amir continually tries to live up to his Baba's high expectations, and as a result, his self-esteem is low.  When Hassan needs Amir's help in the alley, Amir turns his back on him.  Amir soon realizes that he has made the wrong decision, and he is overwhelmed by the guilt caused by betraying Hassan.  Thus, Amir embarks on a journey to seek forgiveness from others and himself for being a coward.  He makes decisions to help find redemption in his life--this guides his decision to raise Sohrab as his own son. 

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How does The Kite Runner emphasize the importance of redemption through characters' actions?

Redemption is a major theme of The Kite Runner. The novel begins with Rahim Khan telling Amir that redemption is a possibility: "there is a way to be good again." At this point, Amir is haunted by his own failure to be good, his cowardice in the face of oppression and, in particular, his betrayal of his friend Hassan.

Even before he failed to save Hassan, Amir had a nebulous feeling that he had failed his father, Baba, simply by being born, since his mother died in childbirth. He tells the reader that he always had the feeling his father hated him:

And why not? After all, I had killed his beloved wife, his beautiful princess, hadn’t I? The least I could have done was to have had the decency to have turned out a little more like him. But I hadn’t turned out like him.

There is nothing Amir can do about the circumstances of his birth, and he cannot change the way he failed Hassan either, but he can have a profound influence on the future and, by doing so, try to make up for the past. His fight with Assef to save Sohrab offers an unusually close opportunity to correct his failure to save Hassan from the same antagonist. Assef represents the most brutal and depraved elements in Afghan society, and, although he is not finally defeated, Amir does finally stand up against him. Amir's personal redemption in this struggle may be taken as a symbol of the possible redemption of Afghanistan itself.

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