III. Amir’s Redemption in Middle Age
Before mainly reflected some dark side including the crime of Amir, the sin of his father’s sins and the whole nation appear. It’s just a real sense of the value of the beginning of the novel, the novel does not mean sin Minge Kashmir, but to show readers how a person overcome their cowardice, to achieve spiritual salvation. In this section, I will introduce superego functions enable us to overcome our past misdeeds.
A. Amir’s Redemption
In the novel, the protagonist Amir experienced one of the superego performance, self-salvation. Redemption begins from Rahim Kahn’s phone call.
Jealousy and Betrayal framed over the years become entangled Amir’s nightmare. He burdened with sin, suffering excruciating pain. However, the spiritual disaster delayed his growth. Coincides with the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, Amir and his father immigrated to the United States. Amir did for his country and family show too much sorrow. On the one hand, the United States is a place to bury his memories. Amir lives in the United States to make atonement for the future ready. American life at the time, Amir began his own understanding of life. In Kabul, he was a son of a wealthy family, he has everything he needs. In the United States, Amir and his father had run a stall flea market on Sunday morning. Amir must do his own labor to get what he wants such as Food or clothing. In addition, Amir selects English as a professional, and decided to make a living through writing after graduation, although his father was questioned. In his father’s wing, Amir gradually become independent, capable people. Though no longer young, and like most people, he was married, but buried deep in the soul of sin, so he found it difficult to breathe. He still can not get rid of remorse. When Soraya admitted her past shortcomings,
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Amir said he envied Soraya honesty. The past 20 years, Amir put his secret hidden in the dark, worried about its exposure. Soraya can not have children, he thought it was his punishment-deprived him of his right to a father.
38 years old, Amir Khan received a phone call from Rahim. He asked Amir to Pakistan as soon as possible to see him one last time. Rahim Khan told Amir, Hassan and his wife to protect his father’s residence when the Taliban killed, leaving only a children named sohrab in Kabul. In addition, Rahim Khan revealed a shocking lie — Hassan is actually Amir’s half brother. Knowing the facts, Amir was shocked, he lost the way, he wants to re-evaluate things around, re-adjust them. He realized that his father has been cheating on him and Hassan. Amirs also remember my father saying about the theft. Until then, he learned that his father had been a thief, even in the worst kind of thief. Because he stole something very sacred: He stole Amir’s right to know he has a brother; stole Hassan’s right to know his identity; stole Ali’s honor. He could not be the father of this new image and has been printed so long in his mind the image together. Father upright image came crashing down. The results proved that Amir and his father are similar to the original beyond imagination. Both of them are willing to betray the people who gave their lives for them. Racine to see Amir Khan’s words, his entire life, have been traced back to his birth is a cycle of lies and betrayal.
Fortunately, Racine Khan refers to a self-help road — go to Afghanistan, which suffering the war, to rescue Hassan’s son sohrab.
1. Efforts to Rescue Sohrab
Finally, Amir decided to go to Kabul to rescue the boy, even though he had just married. He risked his life to save Hassan’s son, Soharb. Amir beat Assef for Sohrab, and laughed for his washing of his sins: “I laughed because I saw that, in some hidden nook in the corner of my mind, I’d been looking
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forward to this.”12 Although Amir was almost killed Assef, he felt calm. This is because he always thought he deserved, doing everything for him to Hassan. Most importantly, through this trip Amir forgive himself and his father. His pardon shows his thorough maturity.
After they escape, Amir wants to take Sohrab adoption. However, in Islamabab U.S. Embassy officials told Amir Adoption is almost impossible. When Amir told Sohrab Sohrab he would be placed in an orphanage temporarily Sohrab tried to commit suicide. While Sohrab survived, he told Amir that he hoped he was dead. Since then, Sohrab did not reveal any conversation about the interest of anyone. Amir and Soraya incentive Sohrab has a desire for a better life, but in vain. Later, Amir Sohrab buys a kite. Together, just as he did a long time ago, and Hassan together, they flew kites.
2. Efforts to Cure Sohrab’s Trauma
Together with Sohrab for some time, American can not control his heart to protect the boy. He was determined to help heal Sohrab’s psychological wounds.
His salvation is not passive, but spontaneous. In the first stage of his salvation, all he did for Hassan was just because of his commitment to Racine Khan. Racine Khan asked him to go and bring Sohrab back. The other part of the reason is that for him. But now, along with Sohrab for some time, Amir wants to cure him like a father. He wants to do everything for Sohrab are spontaneous. He regards Sohrab as his own child.
At the end of the novel, Amir is the kite runner for Sohrab, which caused him sweet and painful memories. When he won the kite contest 26 years ago, he was so proud, because he finally proves to his father that he can do his father had hoped. But he also felt very guilty, did not protect Hassan, his Kite Runner. 26 years later, in the U.S. Amirruns kite for Hassan’s son, feeling he make up
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for Hassan.
B. Cause of Amir’s Redemption
Immigrated to the United States, facing with a situation of poverty, Amir with his perseverance has opened up a new world. In the ordinary view, Amir has come out of the shadows of the past. But he combined with Soraya, indicating his own still in deep regret being. Faced with a painful past Soraya, he decided to marry her, because he also has a painful past. Amir looks calm at this time actually experiencing a painful inner struggle. Facing Hassan’s loyalty, cowardice and contrast their own narrow-minded, so that they will never forgive myself for past behavior. Facing his father’s crony’s calls, he decided to act to achieve his own soul salvation. It’s not a plosive decision, but a long-time ready result.
1. Reflection over Racial Issues
In Afghanistan, the Amir was not quiteunderstanding the feeling of discrimination because she had not been discriminated against anyone. There, he was the son of the richest man, he has everything he wants.
But things changed completely after they went to the United States. In the United States, Amir had to work to get what he wants. He and his father had set up a stall at the Sunday morning; Amir becomes realistic.
Amir’s father is angry about other’s distrust and criticism to him. He thinks people in America are strange to him at all. And he refused to accept the free money which is from welfare institution in America. Amir was influenced by his father. It evokes memories of him in Afghanistan; it was his father who is to give people money. But now, they should take money from others. When the father of the money back to the orphanage, he felt inferior.
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From his father’s behavior, he began to fully understand the feelings of Hassan. In Afghanistan, Amir worshiped his father, but now his father’s behavior and then let him know their position in the U.S. underground. In his concept, maybe dad and he is Ali and Hassan’s shadow. He began to understand that he treats Hassan’s approach is completely wrong. He began to see the error of their prejudice to Hazara. When he and his father are in such a situation, he felt guiltier.
2. Realization of “Forgiveness”
Amir’s realization of the importance of “Forgiveness” is another root cause of Amir’s redemption. Both Amir and Hassan are influenced by the belief of submission. They keep to it faithfully. However, Amir ignores another point which is also the Islamic belief. This belief is partly the as same as Christian belief, which is forgiveness.
When Amir was a child, he ignored the importance of forgiveness. That’s the reason why he can not forgive himself for twenty-six years. “Forgiveness” is important in both Islamic and Christian believes. Islamic people are taught: “If you love Allah, follow me; Allah will love and forgive you your sins”.13 Forgiveness of sins is also an important element of Christianity. People are expected to forgive each other. Christ dies for forgiveness, and sets a good example for all the Christians.
Changing living environment promotes Amir faith understanding. While partly influenced by the Islamic belief of “forgiveness”, he also unconsciously affected by the Christian belief of “forgiveness and resurrection” in the United States. In America, Amir experiences a lot; in his inner heart he thinks the life in America means the resurrection for him, and the life in America is absolutely a new life for him. His betrayal in the past seems to have flown away with the wind in America. But only when he is faced with the truth and the innocent boy
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