Kite Runner

“The Kite Runner demonstrates that relationship can be greatly affected when inequalities in ethnicity, gender, class or power are apparent. Discuss”

Khaled Hosseini’s The Kite Runner narrates the life of an Afghan, Amir, who lives a privileged life of Kabul with is businessman father, Baba, and their two servants Ali and Hassan. The young Amir is greatly affected by the ethnic and class differences between Pashtun and Hazara’s. Through Amir’s life and the society he lives in, Hosseini explores the influence on relationships when inequalities in ethnicity, gender, class or power are apparent. Hosseini does this by exploring Amir and the lives of those, who spends a large proportion of their lives and develops a relationship with him.

The ethnic difference of the Pashtuns and Hazaras is central to the ethnic divide and conflict within Afghanistan. In Afghanstan, during the 18th century when Amir lived in Afghanistan was the dark period for Hazara’s as they were persecuted and oppressed by the Pashtun’s. Abdur Rahman’s subjugation of the Hazaras gave birth to a strong hatred between the Pashtuns and Hazaras. Pashtun’s killed the Hazaras, drove them from their lands, burnt their homes, sold their women and made them slaves as Pashtuns empowered them due to their belief that Hazaras were different to them because of the difference in religion, ethics and culture. Although the Pashtun’s may have been more considerate of the Hazaras when they were working in their household, they were seen as nothing more but slaves; lowest class in society. :…in one of his stories did Baba [Pashtun] ever refer to Ali [Hazara] as his friend.”

The relationship between Ali and Baba and Hassan and Amir respectively, demonstrates the superiority of the Pashtuns, however the extent of the discrimination experiences by Hazaras becomes more apparent in the social context. In the social context explored by Hosseini, Abdur Rahman, who created a feeling of solidarity amongst the Afghan...