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Ali is adopted
When two drunk young men run over Ali's parents, "[Amir's] grandfather adopted [Ali] into his own household and told the other servants to tutor him, but to be kind to him" (25). Since Ali and Baba were raised together, Baba is more open-minded about Hazaras. However, this does not mean that Baba views Ali as an equal. Ali is still his servant, not his friend nor his brother. -
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The Kite Runner and Afghanistan
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Baba builds an orphanage
When Amir was five or six, "Baba decided to build an orphanage" (13) over the span of three years. He clearly feels the need to seek redemption for sleeping with Ali's wife. Baba knows that what he did was terrible and that he completely betrayed Ali's trust. He also attempts to atone for his sin by treating Hassan extremely well and participating in various other charities. -
Hassan is born
Baba had an affair with Sonauber, and together they had Hassan, "just one year after [Amir] was born" (6). Baba betrayed Ali- who is essentially his brother- and dishonors him in the most terrible way. By staying to serve Baba, and raising Hassan as his own son, Ali's loyalty is proven. -
Hassan's lip is fixed
For Hassan's birthday, he recieves an unusual present from Baba: plastic surgery for his cleft lip. After the surgery, his lip was almost completely fixed "with just a pink jagged line running from his lip" (47). This is a very unusual present to give to a servant, let alone an Hazara. Clearly, Baba loves Hassan as much as a son, which often results in Amir being jealous or mean to Hassan. -
Hassan stands up to Assef
In order to protect Amir from Assef, Hassan challenges the bully by holding "the slingshot pointed directly at Assef's face" (42). Although Hassan must be scared to death of Assef, his loyalty overcomes his fear. He risks the fury of the bullies to protect Amir. -
Amir wins the kite tournement
When Amir wins the kite fighting tournement, he notes that it "was the single greatest moment of my twelve years of life, seeing Baba on that roof, proud of me at last" (66). All his life, all Amir wanted was for Baba to be proud of him. Amir's need for Baba's approval causes him to stand back while Hassan got raped. He justified his actions by saying that Hassan was the price he had to pay to win Baba's praise. -
Hassan is raped
After Hassan emerges from the alley, Amir notices the "dark stain in the seat of his pants... [and] tiny drops that fell from between his legs and staine the snow black" (78). Rape is the worst thing that Assef could do to Hassan, and he knows that this act of violation removes any power Hassan had. Assef feels that need to assert his power and control over Hassan since he is "just" an Hazara. -
Amir's birthday celebration
As Amir looked "over the invitation list a week before [his] birthday party and [he] did not reconize at least three-quarters of the four hundred" (93). Clearly, this party is not actualy for Amir; it is for Baba. Baba's status in society is very important to him, and his lavish parties help to maintain his importance. -
Ali and Hassan leave
After the rape and Amir's attempts to drive them away, Ali announced, '"We are leaving... [w]e can't live here anymore"' (106). Ali obviously knows what happened in the alleyway, and that Amir did not do anything to help Hassan. This betrayal is too great for them to stay and continue serving Amir and Baba, so they are left with no choice other than leaving. However, Hassan stay loyal to Amir until the end, and he never gave Amir away. -
First Soviet Troop In Afghanistan
Soviet troops first "parachuted into Kabul on Dec. 27, 1979, to assist Babrak Karmal, who had become president in a coup within the Afghan Communist leadership" (NYT). -
Soviet Union Invades
Afghanistan has had little peace since the Soviet Union invaded in 1979, and "turmoil and extremism that have dominated its history since then" (NYT). -
Amir and Baba flee Afghanistan
When the Russians invade Afghanistan, Amir and Baba are forced to "leave the house where [he'd] lived [his] entire life" (112). Baba realizes that it is not safe in Afghanistan anymore, and he gives up everything (his riches, his status, etc.) to moved to a foreign country. In a way, this is Amir's chance to start over in America, and try to forget his past. -
Soviet Troops Withdraw
After more than 9 years of fighting, and "after peace talks moderated by the United Nations, the last Soviet troops left Afghanistan in February 1989, in what was in effect a unilateral withdrawal" (NYT). They left behind a country which as well as being devastated by the war, also became "a beacon to Islamic extremists from across teh globe who had come to assist in the fighting" (NYT). -
Start of the Taliban
Mullah Omar was a Pashtun that promised to restore the "centrality of Islam to daily life" (NYT), and "[b]y the end of 1994 [he] had nearly 12,000 followers" (NYT). -
Pakistan Support
Pakistan backed the Taliban, and "[a]s early as 1994, Pakistani intelligence officers began funneling arms, money and supplies to Mullah Omar's men, as well as military advisors to help guide them in battle" (NYT). -
Taliban Takeover
After years of civil war in Afghanistan, "the Taliban....seized control in 1996" (NYT). They immediatley began "imposing strict enforcement of fundamentalist Islamic law, banning movies and music and forcing women out of schools and into all-enveloping burqa clothing" (NYT). -
Amir goes back to Afghanistan
Rahim Kahn calls to tell Amir to come back to Afghanistan because "[t]here is a way to be good again" (192). His sins from his childhood had haunted Amir all his life and prevented him from being completely happy. He knows that he needs to somehow atone for the way he treated Hassan, and he has excepted that it is his duty to go back to Afghanistan. -
Amir's fight with Assef
During the brutal fight with Assef, Amir realized that his "body was broken... but [he] felt healed" (289). Amir feels that by letting Assef beat him up, he is getting redemption. He did not stand up for Hassan, and now he is sacrficing himself for Hassan's son. Finally, he can stop feeling so guilty for standing back while Assef violated Hassan. -
Sohrab tries to kill himself
After Amir breaks his promise and tells him that he will have to stay in another orphanage, Sohrab "cut himself deeply and lost a great deal of blood" (348). The boy has had to endure so many horrific things that no one should have to live through. The thought of having to return to another orphange is simply too much for Sohrab. Clearly, Assef has traumatized him for life. -
Post 9/11 Attack
After the Taliban refused the ultimatum offered by President George W. Bush, "the United Nations joined forces with rebel groups that had never accepted Taliban rule" (NYT), and by the end of 2001, the Taliban had been driven out of the major Afghan cities. -
Attack on the World Trade Center
The U.S. was forced to respond "after the Sept. 11 attacks by Al Qaeda" (NYT). -
Amir and Sohrab fly a kite
Amir says to Sohrab before running the kite, "'For you a thousand times over"' (371). This is symbolic because Hassan used to say this to Amir. Amir is attempting to atone for his past and finally lessen all the anger he feels for himsef. The kite runner is generally the less important role in the tournement, and Amir is able to get redemption by serving Hassan's son. -
Sohrab smiles
After they flew a kite together, Amir looks over at Sohrab and notices that "[o]ne corner of his mouth had curled up just so" (370). This is his way of showing that he will be okay, even after all the horrors that he has had to endure. His small smile represents hope and gives the novel a happy ending. -
President Karzai
In 2004, Hamid Karzai was elected to a five year term as president, and he "hoped to secure peace for Afghanistan and win the country much-needed international aid" (NYT). -
Obama's Contribution
Since they got defeated in 2001, the Taliban continued slowly began taking over parts of Afghanistan (especially the countryside), using guerilla warfare. Obama deployed American troops to Afghanistan in 2009, and he is trying to convince "Afghans that the United States is not walking away and to warn the Taliban that aggressive operations against them would continue" (NYT).