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The Kite Runner

Question Chapters 1-6

1. The purpose of the flashback in the beginning of the novel is to show readers the

narrator life before compared to now. What we learn about the narrator is that he isfrom Kabul and that something happened in 1975 that changed him.

2. Hassan is Amirs best friend whom he grew up with since they were babies.

Physically he has a face like a chinese doll, a flat broad nose, and slanting narrow

eyes that changes colour (according to Amir) depending on the light. He is from the

hazara group and has a cleft lip. A cleft lip is caused by abnormal facial development

(not enough tissues in the lip area) and it is an opening or gap on the upper lip that

often extend beyond the base of the nose.

He is close with his dad who works as servant in Amirs place. He does not have

a mom because she ran away with a clan. He grew up with Amir and both shared

the same women who nursed them when they were babies. His first word were

Amir, this is important because they have been living with each other and are now

best friends, they are basically brothers.

The difference between these two boys is:

Amir is Pashtun while Hassan is Hazara Amir is more wealthy than Hassan (Amir lives in a mansion while Hassan

lives in a mud shack)

Amirs dad is a wealthy business man while Hassan father is a servant forAmirs place

Amirs mother had died from child birth while Hassans mother had run awaywith a different clan leaving her husband and son behind.

3. What it means to be Hazaras, Shia Muslim and Afghanistans minority group is

You look a lot like chinese people Are persecuted and oppressed by the Pashtun (had killed, driven off their

homeland, burned their homes, and sold their women)

That you ate mice, have a flat nose and have a donkey to load things in You were a martyr Treated like slaves No respect from the local community, constantly taunted

Hassan and his parents, are the only Hazaras people so far in the story.

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4. What it means to be Pashtun, Sunni Muslim, and Afghanistans Majority group is

You are wealthy Persecuted and oppressed the minority group Have more respect from the local communityAmir, Amirs Baba, and Rahim Khan are all considered Pashtun.

5. Amir describe his house as if it the best beautiful house on his street and how

wealthy he is. He considers it as one of his father best work. The photo shows his

family elegant bloodline.

6. Sanaubar is a beautiful notoriously unscrupulous Hazara women. She was not

the most loving respectful women and had very little in common with her husband,

Ali. She is Hassans mother who left him after 5 days of giving birth to him. She

married Ali in order to restore honour to her fathers name. After seeing Hassan

with a cleft lip, she refused to hold him. She is depicted as a woman who is not

thankful for what she has.

She is different from Amirs mother because Sofia Akrami is loving and very

respectful. She is highly educated and a virtuous lady.

7. Ali is the father of Hassan who lives with him in a little mud hut. He works as a

servant for Amirs place and is also a Hazaras. Because he has polio and congenital

paralysis, he is left with a twisted atrophied right leg and an expressionless face

(cant smile). Many children call him Babalu meaning boogeyman.

8. Amir feels like he is a disappointment to his father because he doesnt like

playing sports nor does he like to watch it (especially soccer) and he doesnt seem to

understand a lot of things when his father tries to explain something to him. He

thinks his father hates him because of the death of his mother during childbirth.

Amir despise his father for showing more affection towards Hassan than him

however he loves his father because he is a great man in society.

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9. The kings cousin is

10. Baba is Amirs father. He is described as a Pashtun man with a thick beard and

curly hair. He is also generous man (built an orphanage using his own money) and avery wealthy successful merchant. His values are determination, family, and

forgiveness. He relates to religious leaders because he is very generous, doesnt like

to talk about violence and fighting.

11. Baba gives Hassan a chance to fix his cleft lip through surgery. It shows that

Baba sees Hassan like he is his own child and cares/loves for him a lot. Amir

reaction is jealousy because he thinks its not fair that Hassan has earned Baba

affection by doing nothing. This present turns out to be ironic because that winter is

when Hassan stopped smiling.

12. Assef is the son of Babas friend. He is a mix of German (mom side) and Afghan

(dad side) and is very wealthy like Amir. He is depicted as a bully and a very violent

person. He is famous for his stainless steel brass knuckles that he uses to beat up

kids. He believes that Afghanistan is made only for the Pashtun people and that they

should get rid of any other ethnics because they dirty the country.

13. Wali and Kamal are Assef friends who follow him around all day.

14. What happens between them is a fight had started. Before Assef can throw a

punch at Amir, Hassan pulls his slingshot at Assef who then decided to leave them

alone. However, he says that he will face both of them one on one somedays.

15. Amir thinks it is ironice because that winter (the winter Hassan got the surgery)was when Hassa stopped smiling.

16. Amir wanted to say that Hassan is not a friend but his servant.