Kite Runner Quotes

"I became what I am today at the age of twelve, on a frigid overcast day in winter 1975"

-it is clear what happened to him as a child has deeply affected him and has followed him for the rest of his life
-the fact that the day was overcast suggests that something bad was always going to happen- pathetic fallacy

"Looking back now, I realise I have been peeking into that deserted alley for the last twenty-six years”

• he peeks showing that he was unable to stand up for himself and feels as though he shouldnt be there

"It's wrong what they say about the past I've learned, about how you can bury it. Because the past claws its way out."

-very violent imagery- the past claws its way out rather than him just being reminded of it- cant bury it almost like a dead body- he feels the guilt as if he has killed someone- something dead rising from the grave
-the guilt is monsterous

"There is a way to be good again."

running theme throughout the nevel- clearly blame and guilt- amir sees himself as bad because of what she did

"Hassan was standing at the blind end of the alley in a defiant stance”

• hassan is clearly very different to Amir who ‘in the end, i ran’ showing how one is able to stand up to his attackers

“on a pile of scrap and rubble, was the blue kite. My key to Baba's heart."

• the fact that the kite is on the floor shows how unimportant it is but how much he values it over his friendship- his priorities arent right

  • the fact that the only way amir can be loved by baba shows that his relationship isnt real and is very material- also shows how selfish amir is

"Maybe Hassan was the price I had to pay, the lamb I had to slay, to win Baba… he was just a Hazara wasn't he?"

• the fact that hassan is a lamb shows his innocnce and the fact that his rape was him being taken advantage of

• he is willing to kill hassan to get his farthers attention- shows how desparate he is

• the emphasis on their differences in class shows the views of the society and how they have impacted amir

"Hassan and I fed from the same breasts. We took our first steps on the same lawn in the same yard. And under the same roof, we spoke our first words. Mine was Baba. His was Amir. My name."

• the fact that they were raised by the same woman shows how strong their connection is and that they are almost like brothers- heightens the tragedy of amirs betrayal

  • the fact that Hassans first words are amir shows how much he looked up to amir and saw him as a parent figure- the same way that Amir looks up to baba

"Then I understood. This was Hassan's final sacrifice for me”

• Hassan is always selfless and willing to sacrifice himself for amir

"Kabul had become a city of ghosts for me. A city of harelipped ghosts. America was different..."

• the fact that his home town has been changed fpr him may link to the change in Afghanistan for everyone because of the taliban

  • the reprition of ghosts shows how haunted he is about what happened to hassan and the fact that he didnt help

"Afghanistan is the land of Pashtuns. It always will be. We are the true Afghans, the pure Afghans, not this Flat-Nose here."

• represents the clear ethnic divide and how derogatory assef is towards the hazaras compared to how much respect he clearly has for pashtuns

"There is only one sin. And that is theft... When you tell a lie, you steal someone's right to the truth... I was learning that Baba had been a thief.

• shows the shift in the relationship amir has with baba as he is now able to see him as a hipocrite

• he realisis that he has to atone for his own sins as well as the sins of his father

  • also is a change for the reader who has also only seen baba as a good person

"I looked down at Sohrab... A smile. Lopsided. Hardly there. But there... A smile."

• the word smile is repeated showing how important it is as it shows a sense of closure for Hassan’s suffering

  • Hassan’s smile is representative of his and Amir’s friendship- but that changed so now it is a symbol of Sohrab and Amir’s love and friendship for each other

"For you a thousand times over" I heard myself say. Then I turned and ran. It was only a smile, nothing more... I ran... I ran."

• symbolises Amir paying back the dept. he owes to Hassan by becoming what Hassan was to Amir for Sohrab

• the ending is also very joyous which contrasts with the rest of the novel which is filled with suffering

• contrasts to earlier on in the novel where he ran away from saving Hassan and now he is running to be his sons friend