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British and Afghan War, Afghanistan becomes an independent nation.
"The British, beleaguered in the wake of World War I, are defeated in the Third British-Afghan War (1919-21), and Afghanistan becomes an independent nation. Concerned that Afghanistan has fallen behind the rest of the world, Amir Amanullah Khan begins a rigorous campaign of socioeconomic reform." This quote means that in the Third British-Afghan war, Afghanistan wins and becomes an independent nation and begins to try to modernize the country. -
Ali and Baba become Family
Baba and Ali grew up together, and had a relationship just like Hassan and Amir did. When Amir looks back on his father's stories, he realizes, "But in none of his stories did Baba ever refer to Ali as his friend.(25)" Throuought the story, Amir has trouble reffering to Hassan as a friend, because he feels obligated not to think that way because Hassan is a Hazara and he doesn't want anyone, let alone Baba, thinking anything less of him. -
Zahir Shah becomes King
"Zahir Shah becomes king. The new king brings a semblance of stability to the country and he rules for the next 40 years." When Zahir Shah becomes king, and he brings stability to the country as he rules for 40 years. -
Britain withdraws from India
When Britain withdraws from India, it creates a dominantly Hindu state of India, "The nation of Pakistan includes a long, largely uncontrollable, border with Afghanistan." The nation of Pakistan now has a large border with Afghanistan. -
Afghanistan Gains an Ally
"Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev agrees to help Afghanistan, and the two countries become close allies." Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev agrees to help Afghanistan and they become allies. -
Afghanistan gets a new President
Khan overthrows the last king in a military coup, and "Khan abolishes the monarchy and names himself president." The Republic of Afghanistan becomes established with the USSR. -
Hassan's Lip Surgery
When Hassan's birthday rolled around, Baba decided to pay for a surgery for Hassan's harelip. Amir silently protested, "I wished I too had some kid of scar that would beget Baba's sympathy. It wasn't fair. Hassan hadn't done anything to earn Baba's affections; he'd just been born with that stupid harelip. The quote shows the jealousy Amir has for Hassan, even though he is a Hazara. Amir yearns for Baba's respect and affection, but feels that Hassan receives it and yet is not worthy. -
Women's Rights
"[Khan] also cracks down on opponents, forcing many suspected of not supporting Khan out of the government." Khan improves the security and assurance of the Afghan government, and proposes a constitution for the country to gain women's rights. He also works to modernize the communist state. -
Assef Rapes Hassan
In the dark alley while Amir was watching Hassan, he "Opened [his] mouth, almost said something. Almost. The rest of [his] life might have turned out differently if [he] had. But [he] didn't. [He] just watched. Paralyzed.(73)" This quote shows how Amir reacts in urgent situations, he freezes. And that is what Baba is so furious about, because he wants Amir to be just like him- courageous, confident, and respected. -
Amir and Hassan lose friendship
After Assef rapes Hassan and Amir watches, Hassan and Ali move out and they never talk again. "I actually aspired to cowardice, because the alternative, the real reason I was running, was that Assef was right: Nothing was free in this world. Maybe Hassan was the price I had to pay, the lamb I had to slay, to win Baba"(77). The quote shows the way Amir deals with his wrongdoings, he tries to prove to himself that what he did was not wrong. It foreshadows the way he deals later in life, too. -
Annual Kite Flying Competition
Every winter in Kabul, every district would have a kite-flying tournament and Amir and Hassan participated. Amir said, "And if you were a boy living in Kabul, the day of the tournament was undeniably the highlight of the cold season. I never slept the night before the tournament...(50)" This quote shows how much the kite flying tournament meant to Amir, and how badly he wanted to win it. Amir wants so much to get acceptance from his father and he thinks this is the way her can earn it. -
Afghanistan Gains a new President
Khan is killed in a communist coup. "Nur Mohammad Taraki, one of the founding members of the Afghan Communist Party, takes control of the country as president," One of the members from the Afghan communist Party is selected to become president and helps Afghan proclaim independence from Soviet influence and declare their policies to be based on Islamic principles -
Amir and Baba move to the U.S.
When the Russains invade Pakistan, Baba feels that it is best for him and Amir to leave. So, they pack their bags for America. "This had to be a dream. Had to be. Tomorrow morning, I'd wake up, peek out the window: No grim-faced Russain soldiers patrolling the sidewalks, no tanks rolling up and down the streets of my city. (113)" Amir fears that if he leaves, he may never be able to come back and he wants to. He doesn't want to leave his home, so he can't accept it. -
Afghans Fled from War
Approximately 2.8 million Afghans fled from war to Pakistan and about 1.5 million fled to Iran. "Afghan guerrillas gain control of rural areas, and Soviet troops hold urban areas," the Soviet union has taken over most of Afghanistan and basically takes over the whole country, causing many to flee. -
Amir Graduates from High School
In the summer of 1983 when Amir graduated high school, his father told him something for the first time-"'I am moftakhir, Amir.' Proud. His eyes gleamed when he said that and I liked being on the receiving end of that look.(131)" Amir felt like he had crossed a huge milestone, and not just because he graduated high school. Baba was proud of him. The quote shows that as time passed with them in America, Baba had grown soft - and more proud of his child for fitting in with society. -
Baba Dies
A month after the wedding, Soraya and Amir go to Baba to say goodnight and give him pain medicine. "'I'll come back with your morphine and a glass of water, Kaka jan, Soraya said. 'Not tonight,' he said. 'There is no pain tonight.' 'Okay,' she said. She pulled up his blanket. We closed the door. Baba never woke up. (173)" Amir and Soraya deeply cared for Baba, and Amir obviously didn't want him to die. But he did, and Amir was never really the same again. -
Amir and Soraya get Married
At Amir and Soraya's wedding party, Amir's thoughts drifted to Hassan. He thought, "Whose face had he seen in the mirror under the veil? Whose henna-painted hands had he held?" Even many years later, Amir still thought and took interest in Hassan. The quote portrays the fact that Amir is still holding onto his past and he isn't planning on letting go anytime soon. It foreshadows himself going back to Kabul and trying to atone for his sins. -
Rahim Khan helps Hassan's Family
When Rahim Khan finds Hassan, he invites them to live with him. They accept, and all live in Baba's house. -
Peace is Renewed
As time passes, "The U.S., Pakistan, Afghanistan, and the Soviet Union sign peace accords in Geneva guaranteeing Afghan independence and the withdrawal of 100,000 Soviet troops," Afghanistan, Pakistan, the Soviet Union, and the U.S. sign peace accords guaranteeing Afghan independence.The withdrawal of the Soviet troops helps the country come back to life, and the peace to be renewed. -
Hassan and Farzana get Shot by the Taliban
When Amir reads Hassan's letter, Rahim Khan tells him that him and Farzana were shot by the Taliban, and he thinks back to the day in 1974- "Just after Hassan's surgery."..."Now everyone in that room was either dead or dying. Except for me."(219) Amir feels trapped in his own mind, and so alone. Like no one understands him. His whole family was gone. He misses and longs to get back the days when he had no problems. -
Amir Finds Sohrab
Amir finds Sohrab. When he describes him to the guards there, one of them says, "'He's great with the slingshot.' [Amir] smiled."(253) This quote foreshadows the importance of the slingshot throughout the story. Later in the chapter, Sohrab uses the slingshot on Assef and carries out his own father's dream of causing one-eyed Assef. Amir smiles because he sees the resemblance between Sohrab and Hassan, the last bit of Hassan he can get. He feels that he can finally redeem himself. -
Amir is Reunited with Assef
Amir steps upon Assef-the person who bought Sohrab from the orphanage-"His name rose from the deep and I didn't want to say it, as if uttering it might conjure him. But he was already here, in the flesh, sitting less than ten feet from me, after all these years." Amir thought it was "absurd" to find Assef after all these years, still the same as he was before-cold and heartless. It foreshadows the struggles Amir has to go through to get to Sohrab, because he knew Assef would not make it easy. -
Amir decides to go to Afghanistan
After Rahim Khan calls Amir and tells him he is terminally ill, Amir is left feeling unsettled. He tells Soraya, "'Rahim Khan is very sick.' A fist clenched inside me with those words.(191)" Amir still feels that he has left all of his problems behind, and they are still in the back of his mind. That makes Amir feel incomplete, so he is urged to go to Kabul and fix what he can. Soraya doesn't quite understand, but he knows that if he wants to feel content he has to go back to Kabul. -
9/11
On September 11, 2001, "Hijackers commandeer four commercial airplanes and crash them into the World Trade Center Towers in New York, the Pentagon outside Washington, D.C., and a Pennsylvania field, killing thousands." When hijackers crash airplanes into important governmental buildings in the U.S, bin Laden is believed to be the suspect of the crime and is hiding in Afghanistan. -
Amir takes Sohrab to America
After Amir and Soraya have trouble adopting Sohrab, Sohrab attempts to commit suicide. But, they soon find a way to bring Sohrab to America and Soraya is able to meet him. Amir thinks, "Looking at her smiling at Sohrab, her eyes tearing over a little, I had a glimpse of the mother she might have been, had her own womb not betrayed her.(358)" Amir finally feels hope, for redeeming himself for what he did to Hassan and giving Soraya the chance to raise a child like she had always wanted.
