The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini
Taft Summer Reading 2006
Resource Guide for the Taft Community
I. The Summer Reading Selection:
The Summer Reading Committee, comprised of ten faculty and sixteen students, overwhelmingly chose Khaled
Hosseini's debut novel, The Kite Runner, as the 2006 summer reading. The entire community was invited to read The
Kite Runner (ISBN# 1573222453) as a way of encouraging communal discussion over a shared text. Published in
2003, this bestselling novel reveals the political turmoil of Afghanistan through the eyes of its well developed
characters. At the same time, universal themes of betrayal, loss, forgiveness, and redemption resonate with the reader.
The result is a provocative glimpse not only into the tumultuous life of a war-torn country, but also into the depths of
the human soul. The adolescent main character, Amir, struggles to articulate his identity amidst the fractured political
,religious, and economic realities of his homeland. Thrown into an impossible choice between adherence to cultural
expectations and personal friendships, he is burdened by the guilt of his decision as he strives for redemption.
The Kite Runner provides a springboard for multi-layered discussion through an inter-disciplinary consideration of the
text. This widely popular novel has been used by high schools and colleges in courses ranging from English, History,
and Political Science. At Taft, the novel will be discussed in classes, and various forums for reflection and discussion
will be offered throughout this year, including speakers and programs sponsored by the Paduano Lecture Series in
Philosophy and Ethics, faculty-student led discussions, and performance events. The community will consider the
historical, political, religious, and economic realities of the current situation in Afghanistan in particular, even as we
examine the broader cultural context of the Middle East.
This resource guide contains background information, scheduled speakers and events, and an abbreviated listing of
helpful web resources and articles on Afghanistan. This is intended as an invitation to delve further throughout the year
into topics of interest related to Khaleed Hosseini’s The Kite Runner. For additional resources and updates on
programs and events, please refer to the Taft website (www.taftschool.org). We hope you have enjoyed reading The
Kite Runner this summer, and we look forward to interesting and productive discussions throughout the year!
Rev. Michael Spencer, School Chaplain
Chair, Summer Reading Committee
Jacque Staub ‘07
Chair of the Student Summer Reading Committee
II. Lectures, Programs, and Events:
Ms. Audrey Shabbas, Executive Director of Arab World and Islamic Resources, through a joint program
with Georgetown University’s Alwaleed Center for Muslim-Christian Relations, will visit Taft in October,
meeting with teachers and students to address the truth and perception of Islam in the Modern World.
David Edwards, Taft class of 1970 is the Carl W. Vogt Professor of Anthropology at Williams College.
His interests include historical anthropology, political anthropology, violence and culture, and the Near
East and South Asia. He spent five years living in Afghanistan and working with Afghan refugees in
Pakistan. He has published articles and books on Afghanistan, including: Heroes of the Age: Moral Fault
Lines on the Afghan Frontier (1996), and Before Taliban: Genealogies of the Afghan Jihad (2002).
Professor Edwards will visit Taft in November to screen his film, Kabul Transit. He will then address the
Taft community and visit selected classes throughout the day.
Other speakers and events will be announced as dates and schedules are finalized.
III. Questions for Discussion: (http://us.penguingroup.com/static/rguides/us/kite_runner.html)
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1.
The novel begins with Amir's memory of peering down an alley, looking for Hassan who is kite
running for him. As Amir peers into the alley, he witnesses a tragedy. The novel ends with Amir
kite running for Hassan's son, Sohrab, as he begins a new life with Amir in America. Why do you
think the author chooses to frame the novel with these scenes? Refer to the following passage:
"Afghans like to say: Life goes on, unmindful of beginning, end...crisis or catharsis, moving
forward like a slow, dusty caravan of kochis [nomads]." How is this significant to the framing of
the novel?
2.
The strong underlying force of this novel is the relationship between Amir and Hassan. Discuss
their friendship. Why is Amir afraid to be Hassan's true friend? Why does Amir constantly test
Hassan's loyalty? Why does he resent Hassan? After the kite running tournament, why does Amir
no longer want to be Hassan's friend?
3.
Early in Amir and Hassan's friendship, they often visit a pomegranate tree where they spend hours
reading and playing. "One summer day, I used one of Ali's kitchen knives to carve our names on
it: 'Amir and Hassan, the sultans of Kabul.' Those words made it formal: the tree was ours." In a
letter to Amir later in the story, Hassan mentions that "the tree hasn't borne fruit in years." Discuss
the significance of this tree.
4.
We begin to understand early in the novel that Amir is constantly vying for Baba's attention and
often feels like an outsider in his father's life, as seen in the following passage: "He'd close the
door, leave me to wonder why it was always grown-ups time with him. I'd sit by the door, knees
drawn to my chest. Sometimes I sat there for an hour, sometimes two, listening to their laughter,
their chatter." Discuss Amir's relationship with Baba.
5.
After Amir wins the kite running tournament, his relationship with Baba undergoes significant
change. However, while they form a bond of friendship, Amir is still unhappy. What causes this
unhappiness and how has Baba contributed to Amir's state of mind? Eventually, the relationship
between the two returns to the way it was before the tournament, and Amir laments "we actually
deceived ourselves into thinking that a toy made of tissue paper, glue, and bamboo could
somehow close the chasm between us." Discuss the significance of this passage.
6.
As Amir remembers an Afghan celebration in which a sheep must be sacrificed, he talks about
seeing the sheep's eyes moments before its death. "I don't know why I watch this yearly ritual in
our backyard; my nightmares persist long after the bloodstains on the grass have faded. But I
always watch, I watch because of that look of acceptance in the animal's eyes. Absurdly, I imagine
the animal understands. I imagine the animal sees that its imminent demise is for a higher
purpose." Why do you think Amir recalls this memory when he witnesses Hassan's tragedy in the
alleyway? Amir recollects the memory again toward the end of the novel when he sees Sohrab in
the home of the Taliban. Discuss the image in the context of the novel.
7.
America acts as a place for Amir to bury his memories and a place for Baba to mourn his. In
America, there are "homes that made Baba's house in Wazir Akbar Khan look like a servant's hut."
What is ironic about this statement? What is the function of irony in this novel?
8.
What is the significance of the irony in the first story that Amir writes? After hearing Amir's story,
Hassan asks, "Why did the man kill his wife? In fact, why did he ever have to feel sad to shed
tears? Couldn't he have just smelled an onion?" How is his reaction to the story a metaphor for
Amir's life? How does this story epitomize the difference in character between Hassan and Amir?
9.
Why is Baba disappointed by Amir's decision to become a writer? During their argument about his
career path, Amir thinks to himself: "I would stand my ground, I decided. I didn't want to sacrifice
for Baba anymore. The last time I had done that, I had damned myself." What has Amir sacrificed
for Baba? How has Amir "damned himself"?
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10. Compare and contrast the relationships of Soraya and Amir and their fathers. How have their
upbringings contributed to these relationships?
11. Discuss how the ever-changing politics of Afghanistan affect each of the characters in the novel.
12. On Amir's trip back to Afghanistan, he stays at the home of his driver, Farid. Upon leaving he
remarks: "Earlier that morning, when I was certain no one was looking, I did something I had done
twenty-six years earlier: I planted a fistful of crumpled money under the mattress." Why is this
moment so important in Amir's journey?
13. Throughout the story, Baba worries because Amir never stands up for himself. When does this
change?
14. Amir's confrontation with Assef in Wazir Akar Khan marks an important turning point in the
novel. Why does the author have Amir, Assef, and Sohrab all come together in this way? What is
this the significance of the scar that Amir develops as a result of the confrontation? Why is it
important in Amir's journey toward forgiveness and acceptance?
15. While in the hospital in Peshawar, Amir has a dream in which he sees his father wrestling a bear:
"They role over a patch of grass, man and beast...they fall to the ground with a loud thud and Baba
is sitting on the bear's chest, his fingers digging in its snout. He looks up at me, and I see. He's me.
I am wrestling the bear." Why is this dream so important at this point in the story? What does this
dream finally help Amir realize?
16. Amir and Hassan have a favorite story. Does the story have the same meaning for both men? Why
does Hassan name his son after one of the characters in the story?
17. Baba and Amir know that they are very different people. Often it disappoints both of them that
Amir is not the son that Baba has hoped for. When Amir finds out that Baba has lied to him about
Hassan, he realizes that "as it turned out, Baba and I were more alike than I'd never known." How
does this make Amir feel about his father? How is this both a negative and positive realization?
18. When Amir and Baba move to the States their relationship changes, and Amir begins to view his
father as a more complex man. Discuss the changes in their relationship. Do you see the changes
in Baba as tragic or positive?
19. Discuss the difference between Baba and Ali and between Amir and Hassan. Are Baba's and
Amir's betrayals and similarities in their relationships of their servants (if you consider Baba's act
a betrayal) similar or different? Do you think that such betrayals are inevitable in the
master/servant relationship, or do you feel that they are due to flaws in Baba's and Amir's
characters, or are they the outcome of circumstances and characters?
IV. Afghanistan Resources: [The following selections are from Syracuse University Library’s
Afghanistan Research Project (http://library.syr.edu/instruction/class/sharreadKite/afghhis.html). Visit this
website for an incredible array of resources relating to the novel.]
Afghanistan History
Nyrop, Richard F., Donald M. Seekins, and American University. Foreign Area Studies. Afghanistan: A
Country Study. 5th ed. Vol. 550-65. Washington, D.C.: For sale by the Supt. of Docs., U.S. G.P.O., 1986.
Call number: D101.22:550-65/2/986 Accessed 28 July 2006 http://purl.access.gpo.gov/GPO/LPS18505
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"Afghanistan: a Country Study." Ed. Peter R. Blood. Federal Research Division, Library of Congress. May
2006. Library of Congress. Country Studies, May 2006. Accessed 15 June 2006
http://lcweb2.loc.gov/frd/cs/aftoc.html
“CIA-The World Factbook-Afghanistan.” World Factbook. 13 June 2006. U.S. Central Intelligence
Agency. Accessed 28 June 2006 https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/af.html
U.S. Department of State. Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs. "Background Note: Afghanistan."
U.S. Department of State. May 2006. U.S. Department of State. Accessed 27 June 2006
http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/5380.htm
Periodical Articles:
Chivers, C. J. "Millions of Afghan Children, and no Ideas about their Future." New York Times Dec 4 2001:
B.1.
Dahlburg, John-Thor. "Afghan Orphans Face a Pitiless Future; Survivors: Only Childhood Resilience
Sustains those without Loved Ones in a War-Torn Land Where Family Ties are Vital." Los Angeles Times
(pre-1997 Fulltext) Nov 3 1996: 1.
Eckholm, Erik. "Taliban Justice: Stadium was Scene of Gory Punishment." New York Times Dec 26 2001:
B.1.
Meier, Andrew. "Stoners." The New Republic 215.15 (1996): 14.
New York Times News Service. "In the Name of Islam, Couple Stoned to Death Afghanistan's Taliban
Bringing Back Ancient Method of Discipline." Chicago Tribune (pre-1997 Fulltext) Nov 3 1996: 6.
Waldman, Amy. "No TV, no Chess, no Kites: Taliban's Code, from A to Z." New York Times Nov 22 2001:
A.1.
Kites, Kite Runners, and Kite Fighting in Afghanistan:
Afghan Fighters
http://www.csun.edu/~hfoao033/fighters3.html
Flying High: Kite Flying from the Silk Road to Roosevelt Avenue, Voices: The Journal of New York
Folkdore, Spring-Summer 2005, v. 31:1-2 p.22
http://www.nyfolklore.org/pubs/voic31-1-2/kites.html
Kite Culture: How Kites are Helping rebuild Afghanistan
http://www.kitelife.com/archives/issue29/afghankites2003
Afghanistan: Artistry in the Air - Kite Flying is Taken to New Heights by Grant Podelco
http://www.rfert.org/features/2002/11/1511200219251.asp
Kiteflying: Afghanistan
Kite CultureProject
httP:subvision.net/sky//planrtkite/middle.essle-east/agtghanistam
miffhttp://subvision.net/sky/planetkite/middle-east/afghanistan/index.htm
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Images of Afghanistan on the Internet:
12 year old Afghanistan Girl, Then and Now
http://www.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/100best/multi1_interview.html
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2002/03/0311_020312_sharbat.html
Photographs of Afghanistan
http://www.lukepowell.com/
City of Kabul
http://www.virtualafghans.com/pictures/va_pictures/
Kabul Unveiled
http://www.time.com/time/photoessays/afghanwomen/index.html
Afghan Politics and Government:
"Afghanistan on the Eve of Parliamentary and Provincial Elections.” Aug. 2005. Human Rights Watch.
Accessed 30 June 2006 http://hrw.org/backgrounder/asia/afghanistan0905/
Benard, Cheryl and Nina Hachigian, eds. Democracy and Islam in the New Constitution of Afghanistan.
Proc. of RAND Conference, Center for Asia Pacific Policy, Jan. 28, 2003. Santa Monica, CA.: RAND,
2003. RAND Corporation. RAND. Accessed 30 June 2006
http://www.rand.org/publications/CF/CF186/CF186.pdf
Zarifi, Sam. "Afghan Election Diary." Blog Postings. 12-19 September 2005. Human Rights Watch.
Accessed 15 June 2006 http://www.hrw.org/doc?t=asia&c=afghan
Related Internet Sites:
Afghanistan Online
http://www.afghan-web.com/
Infoplease: Afghanistan
http://www.infoplease.com/ce6/world/A0856490.htm
Human Rights News
http://www.hrw.org/backgrounder/asia/afghan-bck1023.htm
Afghanistan: A Land in Crisis http://www.nationalgeographic.com/landincrisis/
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