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"Children Aren't Coloring Books"
It was day where the yearly Buzkashi tournament took place. Amir acknowledging Baba's disgusted face, knowing that he couldn't make Baba happy. Later that day Rahim Khan told Baba that "children aren't coloring books. You don't get to fill them with your favorite colors" (Hosseini 21). This reveals how much Rahim values Amir for whom he really is, not for someone who is trying to act differently to make another person happy. The significance is shown through how Baba can't possibly change Amir. -
Hassan holding a slingshot towards Assef
The representation of a true friend was when "Hassan held the slingshot [pointing] directly at Assef's face. His hand [trembling] with the strain of the pulled elastic band and beads of sweat [erupting] on his brow"(Hosseini 41). The courage it took Hassan to stand up for both Amir and himself shows his unlimited support for Amir. Essentially meaning that Hassan knowing that Assef could have hurt him, his loyalty for Amir will always overcome his fear. Since Hassan believes in true friendship. -
The Day Hassan was Raped
Amir knowing that "[he] had one last chance to make a decision. One final opportunity to decide who [he] was going to be. [He] could step into that alley, stand up for Hassan- the way he'd stood up for [him] all those times in the past and accept what would happen to [him]. Or [he] could run. In the end [he] ran" (Hosseini 77). This quote is significant because you see Amir debating his values with his morals. Turning Amir into a coward and later regretting his decision in the future. -
Hassan's Last Sacrifice for Amir.
Amir's plan of getting rid of Hassan led to Hassan having to take the blame for Amir's actions in order to save Amir from the disappointment his father would feel. Amir then "understood: This was Hassan's final sacrifice for [him]. If he'd said no . . . [Amir] would have [had] to explain and [he] would be revealed for what [he] really was" (Hosseini 105). This shows the sacrifice that Hassan is willing to go through to prove his loyalty towards Amir. Leaving Baba in great disbelief and sadness. -
The Splattering Pomegranates
When Amir had pelted Hassan with pomegranates, hoping that in return he would get punished for his actions. Thats when "'Hassan did pick up a pomegranate. He walked toward [Amir]. He opened it crushed it against his own forehead. 'There', he croaked, red dripping down his face like blood. 'Are you satisfied? Do you feel better?''' (Hosseini 92). This reveals the true pain Amir is going through which is expressed by his anger and guilt that he has accumulated. Which leads Amir to break down. -
The Soviet Invasion
Through out the 20th century, in Kabul December 27, 1979 the first soviet troops provided protection to serve Babrak Karmal. Moscow demanded the troops to come to a decision to a plea for help from a legal constituted Karmal Government which lead the "soviet troops [staying] in the country for more than nine years, fighting a conflict that cost them roughly 15,000 lives . . . while undermining the cherished image of an invincible Soviet army" (The New York Times 1). -
A New Life in America
After immigrating from Afghanistan to America it made an impact on both Baba and Amir. The hardships that both of them had put them selves through and living in a new country meant to rebuild everything from scratch. Amir said "For me, America was a place to bury my memories. For Baba, a place to mourn his" (Hosseini 129). Amir realizes that In America it had created a place to forget and to feel grief. Due to how Baba changed in his emotions towards starting a new life. -
Being "Baba's Son"
Amir had spent countless years trying to prove Baba that he was a worthy son. After Baba's death Amir realizes that he had been defined due to Baba's honor he had left in others. Amir then Acknowledges that "Baba couldn't show [him] the way anymore; [he'd] have to find it on his own" (Hosseini 174). This quote shows the maturity amir has developed. It also shows Amir mourning for his father because his clarity of Baba's death can finally allow Amir to atone and live his life in peace. -
The Taliban Takeover
Besides The Taliban's goal to return the order of Abdur Rahman their main dedication was to purify Afghanistan and restoring the importance of Islamic religion back into everyone's daily life. When the Taliban started to expand with more members in 1996 they "had taken control of Afghanistan, imposing strict enforcement of fundamentalist Islamic law, banning movies and music and forcing women out of schools and into all-enveloping burqa clothing"
(The New York Times 2-3) -
"A Way to be Good Again" ...
It was the day when Rahim Khan had called Amir on the phone asking Amir to return back to Afghanistan. Before the call came to an end Rahim Khan has said,"Come. There is a way to be good again" (Hosseini 192). The significance of this quote shows how Amir's fear about Rahim knowing about the Aseff, the kite and the money had come to an end. On the other hand it opened another fear for Amir. It was confronting his past life in Afghanistan that he had with Hassan and reuniting with his culture. -
Amir's Clarity to Atone
When Amir found out that Hassan was his half brother he started to question his whole life. And after receiving the call from Rahim Khan Amir then sees how Baba and him "had both betrayed the people who would have given their lives for us. And with that came this realization: that Rahim Khan had summoned me here to atone not just for my sins but for Baba's too" (Hosseini 226). Returning to Afghanistan would answer Amirs confusion. Making Amir acknowledge that he has more than one purpose. -
Amir's and Assef downfall
Assef had kidnapped Amir since Amir was looking for Sohrab. Amir started laughing while Assef was beating him to death. Amir then says to himself “what was so funny was that, for the first time since the winter of 1975, I felt at peace. I laughed because I saw that, in some hidden nook in a corner of my mind, I’d even been looking forward to this” (Hosseini 289). Amir’s true emotions are revealed. Through a punishment that he never received portraying the relief of guilt Amir felt. -
The Kinship
When Sohrab talks with Amir about being dirty and full of sins, Amir sees how much the boy had suffered. During the the conversation Amir notices that "a kinship exists between people who've fed from the same breast. Now, as [Soharb's] pain soaked through my shirt, I saw that a kinship had taken root between us too" (Hosseini 320). Amir is not only saving Sohrab from a poor life but also with physiological circumstances. This quote shows how close the bond between them allows Amir to atone. -
"Last Chance at redemption"
Amir was scared that when he received the call from Rahim Khan he would do the same thing he'd done before, nothing. Everything was telling Amir to stay in America. He "was afraid that [he'd] let the waters carry [him] away from what [he] had to do. From Hassan. From the past that had come calling. And from this one last chance at redemption" (Hosseini 231). The way that Amir names his worries points out that he has changed from before. He know sees that he has to do something for Hassan. -
Amir giving money to Wahid's boys
During Amir's stay at Wahid's house, he sees how much Wahid's and his wife suffered because they could not provide enough for their children due to the lack of money. It was early in the morning when Amir "was certain no one was looking, [he] did something [he] had done twenty-six years earlier: [he] planted a fistful of crumpled money under a mattress" (Hosseini 242). This shows how Amir is now taking action to help families in need, almost like Baba. Amir now is atoning because of Hassan. -
Amir giving Hassan his last words.
After Rahim Khan had told Amir that Hassan had died, Amir wished he could have done or said something before his bother's death. Amir looks at the Polaroid admiring "[his] brother's face. Hassan had loved me once, loved me in a way that no one ever had or ever would again. He was gone now, but a little part of him lived on. It was in Kabul" (Hosseini 227). Accepting Hassan's death made him at peace with Hassan. It also shows amir now realizing that he can only move forward and live his life. -
Post 9/11 Invasion
After the terrorist attack by the Taliban in the center of New York on September 9, 2001 president George W. Bush gave a final demand towards the Taliban to return Mr. bin Laden. Which lead "the United States [joining] forces with rebel groups that had never accepted Taliban rule, notably the Northern Alliance, which represented minority tribes" ( The New York Times 3). -
The Karzai Government
Hamid Karzai an exiled former king of Afghanistan, was the new leader of an interim government that took over after the Taliban's downfall. On June 2002, he was interim president wanting to reinforce peace and aid to Afghanistan. Becoming president in 2004 through out the Bush administration, "Mr. Karzai faced an Afghan population that blamed him for the manifest lack of economic progress and the corrupt officials who seem to stand at every doorway of his government" ( The New York times 3). -
Sohrab's Little Smile
It was a cool rainy day Amir took Soroya and Sohrab to Lake Elizabeth Park in Fremont. Then they eventually did the very same thing on 1975, a kite race. It was then Amir saw Sohrab smile in the end “it was only a smile, nothing more. It didn’t make everything all right. It didn’t make anything all right. Only a smile. A tiny thing" (Hosseini 371). This represented an uplifting future between Sohrab and Amir. This was the end for Amir having to atone for his past sins, now that Sohrab is fine. -
The Taliban Resurgence
After the downfall that the Taliban had in 2001, they regrouped expanding and dominating the southern part of Afghanistan. Since the American-led coalition had limited manpower they had to surrender large parts of the country side to the Taliban. Due to classified documents released it "amounted to a daily diary of an American-led force often starved for sources and attention as it struggled against insurgency that grew larger, better coordinated and more deadly each year"(The New York Times 4). -
Obama's war
Through a speech given by Obama announcing that he would move troops back to America from Afghanistan since the U.S couldn't afford unlimited amount of damage and responsibility. This then turned "Obama's administration [to] change it's tone to increasingly emphasize the idea that the United States will have forces in the country until at least the end of 2014" (The New York Times 4). The Administration officials saw that the 2014 date was just an assumption being made. -
Iraq Takes Center Stage
The United States was constantly being seen and represented as one of the largest countries to have foreign force in Afghanistan. In the spring of 2010 around 10,000 plus american troops had been killed in Afghanistan. As well on the other hand both Canadian and British troops suffered hundreds of deaths. Many countries lost troops and "the war lost popularity in many Western countries, creating domestic political pressure to keep troops out of harm’s way or to pull them out altogether" (Witte). -
The Obama Surge
In early 2012 tension between the United States and Afghanistan generated public outrage. There were reports being made of U.S militaries peeing on dead Afghans as a sign of disrespect and disgust. Through out in 2012, "Afghan negotiators reached agreements regarding two issues that had been sources of friction between the Obama and Karzai administrations" (Witte). The first agreement was then made and signed in March for the Afghan detainees that were being held under the U.S military custody. -
The Combat Between the United States and NOTA
Since Afghanistan remained deeply unpopular due to the presence of foreign troops a lot of Afghan feared that the country would go into civil war leading to chaos. Near the end of September,"Ashraf Ghani was finally inaugurated as president and immediately signed the Bilateral Security Agreement, which authorized an international force of approximately 13,000 to remain in the country" (Witte). After many complications, the U.S and NATO ended their combat mission in Afghanistan on December 28. -
Afghan Leader Tells US Audience That Taliban Not Winning War
On November 6 president Ashraf Ghani, "the president of Afghanistan told a U.S. audience Monday that his country is not losing the war to the Taliban and is not at risk of collapse amid escalating attacks by the militant group and an expansion of the territory it controls" (Pennington). According to two Taliban officials, Abdul Samad Sani a U.S-designated terrorist who has served the Afghan Central Bank during the late 1990s was freed showing that if more like him get out the country isn't safe.