1. Provide a description of the persona of the following characters. Identify their role in the text and locate three quotes you could use to highlight who they are.

Amir – Amir is the son of Baba a rich Afghanistan. this caused Amir to grow up privileged when compared to the majority of children in Kabul. However, even with growing up with anything he wanted, he didn’t get the one thing he always wanted, to have an emotional connection with Baba. throughout the story, Amir showed us that he was always jealous of other kids because baba would show more affection towards people that wort his own kids. so when it came to Amir he would say that he wanted the orphaned children dead so his father would pay more attention to him. QUOTE. During Amir’s childhood, the only thing that really mattered to him was his father and how he wanted to make his father proud of him. Amir’s character is about personal growth and how he needs to grow out of his selfishness. and instead, start caring about the others around him. the main person he had to prove himself to was himself and Sohrab. To do this he started to put his own selfish needs below what Sorhrab really needed. this showed a lot of personal growth in Amir. QUOTE

Hassan – In the book the characters each had their role to play Amir was personal growth and since Hassan was the better brother he had all the qualities that you would want to see. Hassan was loyal, kind, caring, forgiving and had an overall good nature. from the beginning of his life to the end Hassan kept all those qualities even when he grew up and went through the horrors of being raped aa well as losing his father Ali. Hasan is the opposite of Amir they are two sides to a coin one being good and the other being the so-called bad, however, in a way Hassan brought Amir into the light. QUOTE

Baba – Baba is a rich Afghanistan, Baba set the key morals that every man was supposed to follow and above all he needed to do what was right no matter the cost QUOTE. Baba always wished that Amir could be more of a man, stand up for himself, play soccer he just wanted Amir to show that he is indeed Baba’s son. at the beginning of the story, the impression was given that he was an outstanding Afganistan man. However, that was not the case around the middle to the end of the book it was discovered that Baba had lied about Hassan because the reality was that Hassan was Baba’s son and not Ali’s. Baba had committed the worst crime the one to lie QUOTE. Baba had deceived his sons and one of his oldest friends.

Assef – Assef is the representation of the evil in Afganistan. From the beginning of the story, Assef was the bully who believed that the Hassara race should be killed like the Jews were in Germany QUOTE. Assef was apart of the reason that Amir has been wanting to forget his past. Assef raped Hassan in the allay way when Hassan wouldn’t give up the kite that he promised to give to Amir, causing himself to be raped. the reason Assef did this to Hassan was that Hassan threatened him at the beginning of the book saying he would slingshot a rock in his eye and people would start. calling him one-eyed Assef QUOTE. Assef is a recurring evil that Amir has to continue facing through all his troubles in life.

Sohrab – The son of Hassan with breathtaking similarities between the two of them QUOTE. Sohrab is an extension of Hassan, the part of Hassan that will remain with Amir even when Hassan died, a constant reminder of what Amir needs to prove not only to himself but to Hassan and his son. Sohrab is the full circle in the novel. the person that finishes off the past. Sohrab slingshotted a metal ball into Assefs eye as Hassan had once promised to do to Assef if he threatened or hurt Amir again. QUOTE. Sohrab finishes the circle that needed to be completed by his father and Amir but instead, he completes it for his father, completing the circle bringing it to an end.

2. Identify three key relationships that are developed in the text. For each, explore what is ‘key’ about them for the characters involved and what kind of impact the relationship has on both character’s development.

Hassan and Amir – The reason this relationship is key to the novel is that it shows us the two sides that a person can be and what those sides are. the good kind and pure, and the jealous, selfish, confused side. The two sides to a coin. As well as the important for shadowing of their future. their favorite story growing up as kids being the tale of “Rostam and Sohrab.” in this tale the warrior Rostam kills his enemy Sohrab in battle, then learns that Sohrab is his long-lost son. Relating back to Amir and Hassan they are blood-related, brothers however it is too late, by the time he knew Hassan was already dead. this then causing Amir to seek redemption for the actions that he committed against his brother, trying to grow as a person. Become better for him.

Amir and Baba – Amir and Baba’s relationship is the main set up to everything that Amir did in his life. However, it was the lack of a relationship that caused Amir to take the actions he did. throughout Amir’s childhood, all he wanted to do was please his father and gain an emotional connection with him as he had always hoped. However, this caused Amir to only think of himself and how to please his father. The worst crime that a man can do is QUOTE. Amir committed this sin when he didn’t intervene to save Hassan from the bully Assef that raped Hassan because Amir cared more for the kite that would make his father proud instead of his most loyal friend Hassan. this relationship then set up the rest of the story. in order to redeem himself from this action, he committed he must grow as a person.

Amir and Sohrab – Amir and Sohrab’s relationship has a very important role to play when it comes to the novel. it shows that it is possible for personal growth and through all the crimes you have committed you can redeem your self maybe to others but to yourself and that is the main, thing that anyone will ask for, is a way to be redeemed. Sohrab is the path to redemption for Amir. Amir starts to help Sohrab with his life, helping him start fresh and forget about the past as Amir had done with his. Amir and Sohrab’s relationship is the reason that everything starts to come full circle in the novel.

3. Consider the narrator of the novel, Amir. Explain how he fulfills the expected characteristics of the antihero. Discuss the ways that he changes throughout the novel and how given he is is the one that is telling the story, the audience is positioned to view him. 

Amir is the antihero because he shows the main characteristics that they hold. Amir lacks the qualification to be a hero the good nature that is needed, compassion for others, always putting themselves above others. However, since Amir hasn’t got these qualifications would be considered the antihero or villain but because we know he isn’t a villain, he doesn’t want to hurt anyone and shows remorse for the things he has done, we put him under the antihero. the Reason he is the antihero is aggressiveness, clumsiness, dishonesty, or other terrible habits that make him more flawed and distasteful. however with these qualities, we have the urge and hope to make him a better person, this is what makes us want to keep reading the story. With Amir being the one that is telling us the story we have a better understanding of his life and how he is feeling towards everything. we see that throughout the novel he begins to change his view on life around the end of the story. this is when the truth is revealed to Amir, the truths that Baba had hidden about his life. Amir then starts to try and not only get redemption for himself but for Baba’s life as well. the way the readers will view Amir will be based on the understanding that they can have for Amir and the beliefs they have.

4. Reflect on the purpose of telling this story, a story of redemption and reconciling your past, from the antihero perspective. Why have our narrator as a character whom we grow to respect rather than establishing them as ‘honorable’ right from the beginning?

– Instead of having the character being all honorable and heroic at the begining we would gain a better understanding of the character with them making mistakes and choices that are seen as bad or wrong. the reason behind this is because humans aren’t perfect no matter how hard we may try. everyone will have their faults just some more than others, and in this case, Amir could be considered a relatable character. Mistakes are what us human when thinking about heroes the majority of them will have some kind of power or are alien. This is because being human we know that we aren’t perfect, we have lived through it. Amir goes through a lot as both a child and a grown man. During his journey, he made plenty of mistakes and depending on the type of reader and what they believe, they look at the story and think one of two things. Either Amir is a bad person which will strengthen the reader’s beliefs knowing that they won’t do anything like that relating themself to him, or another reader will think that as a kid a lot happened to him and he made mistakes but the main thing is that he could get through it growing as a person, someone that starts thinking about other things for a change. It could give people hope knowing that if he found redemption than someone reading it can to if they did something that was not the best decision.