Kite Runner & the History of Afghanistan

By spalacio

  • Zahir Shah Begins Reign of Afghanistan

    In 1933, it was "the year Baba was born and the year Zahir Shah began his forty-year reign of Afghanistan"(Hosseini, page 25). Baba grew up with Zahir Shah as the leader of Afghanistan, so he has a certain perspective on politics and government.

  • End of Shah's Reign

    Family has shown no relation to kindness and Shah's cousin "ended the king's forty-year reign with a bloodless coup"(Hosseini, page 36). In the novel, Amir shows no kindness to Hassan, whom is his half brother. This historical event relates to the relationship of Amir and Hassan.

  • Germans Build Hydro Plant in Afghanistan

    One of the things that Amir remembers in the story is "the hydro plant the Germans had built for Afghanistan back in 1976". All around Amir, there are things to help him remember that his country is in war.

  • Communist Coup

    For Amir, the time period was "the end, [and] the official end, would come first in April 1978 with the communist coup d'etat," Many bad things are happening in Amir's life, including politically. This makes the story plot seem like Amir's life and experiences are reflected by the historical events around him.

  • Russian Tanks

    War always was a part of Amir's life. Even when "Russian tanks would roll into the very same streets where Hassan and I played"(Hosseini, page 36).

  • Soviet Union Invades Afghanistan

    Th invasion in Afghanistan has had a negative effect, and "officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan... has known little peace since" (NYT 1).

  • Soviet Air Force Rendered Useless

    They became useless because of "advanced Stinger aircraft missiles supplied by the United States to the rebels"(NYT 2).

  • Soviet troops Leave Afghanistan

    The action that ultimately led to the Soviets withdrawing is that there were "peace talks moderated by the United Nations [...] in what was in effect a unilateral withdrawal" (NYT2).

  • Northern Alliance

    Because Kabul is such an important place in the story, it must have been a large and impactful event when "the Northern alliance took over Kabul between 1992 and 1996, different factions claimed different parts of Kabul" (Hosseini 199). All of the coups and government control problems effect Baba, but also must effect Amir. If Baba is under stress or too busy to deal with Amir, then Amir tries to get Baba's attention.

  • Power Divided Between Warlords in Afghanistan

    The power was split because "After Soviet forces departed, Afghanistan descended into vicious strife"(NYT 2)

  • Shorawi Defeated

    One very impactful event in the story is when "the Shorawi were defeated and long gone and Kabul belonged to Massoud, Rabbani, and the Mujahedin"(Hosseini, page 312). Baba has very high political status, so this event must have had a large effect on him. Having the power go to this guerilla group could either hurt or help Baba.

  • Taliban Takeover

    Rahim Khan was very happy "when the Taliban rolled in and kicked the Alliance out of Kabul, I actually danced on that street… And, believe me, I wasn't alone. People were celebrating…greeting the Taliban in the streets, climbing their tanks and posing for pictures with them"(Hosseini, page).

  • Taliban Seizes Control Of Afghanistan

    Because the Taliban seized control, "the group [Al Qaeda] had been given safe haven in the country"(NYT 1).

  • Taliban Massacre

    Amir loved flying kites, but "a few weeks later, the Taliban banned kite fighting. And two years later, in 1998, they massacred the Hazaras in Mazar-i-Sharif"(Hosseini, page 213). Kite flying is such a large symbol in the novel, and it plays a large part in Amir's life. Having that taken away does not mean anything good for the Afghan people and for Amir.

  • World Trade Center Attacked

    The U.S. involvement in Afghanistan started when in "2001, [Afghanistan] led an invasion after the Sept. 11 attacks by Al Qaeda" (NYT 1).

  • Hamid Karzaui Becomes Leader of Afghanistan

    After the Taliban were defeated, "[Karzai] took office as interim president in June 2002, saying he hoped to secure peace for Afghanistan and win the country much-needed international aid" (NYT 3).

  • General Petraeus Takes Charge of U.S. Central Command

    General Petraeus's background was that he was "the Iraq commander who received much credit for the success of the surge there" (NYT 4).

  • Obama Deploys More Troops in Afghanistan

    To announce the deployment, "in a speech delivered[...] Mr. Obama announced his plan to deploy 30,000 additional troops" (NYT 4).

  • Obama Vows to Bring Troops Home from Afghanistan

    President Obama made an announcement that "he vowed to start bringing American forces home from Afghanistan in the middle of 2011, saying the United States could not afford and should not have to shoulder an open-ended commitment" (NYT 4)

  • Russia Fails To Take Over

    Some things can't be conquered, and " The Hindi kid would soon learn what the British learned earlier in the century, and what the Russians would eventually learn by the late 1980s"(Hosseini, page) Some things can't be conquered, just like atonement.

  • Boycott

    "U.S. announced it would be boycotting the Olympic games in Moscow"(Hosseini, page)

  • No More Peace

    "...last summer of peace and anonymity" (Hosseini, page 93).

  • UN Watches Afghans in Bonn

    "That December, Pashtuns, Tajiks, Uzbeks, and Hazaras gathered in Bonn and, under the watchful eye of the UN, began the process that might someday end over twenty years of unhappiness in their watan"(Hosseini, page)

  • Daoud Khan is Assasinated

    The assassination of Daoud Khan happened "with the communist group d'état" (Hosseini, page 36). The coup happened when Amir was young, which must have mad him scared. Having guns fire in streets and so much chaos would be overwhelming.