A Quest for Redemption

The quest for redemption is a prominent theme within the novel, and is what trully drives the characters (esp. Amir) to follow through with certain actions, and ailed him with the many poor decisions that he made along the way. Amir lives his life in strife as he constantly tries to please his father and redeem himself in his Baba’s eyes. Because his mom died during child birth, Amir feels ultimately responsible for the  death of this mother, and feels that he has commited the single worst sin of “theft” by robbing his father of his wife. Because of this, Amir feels that the only way in which he can successfully redeem himself is by winning the kite tournament which further ensues upon the riveting incidents in which the story was built upon. Amir has a complex relationship with his father that is solely based upon his quest for redemption because although he loves his father, he does not experiences his father’s love and affections in return, and as a result, seeks ways in which he can make it up to his father so that one day, he would accept him and proudly redeem him as his son. The ongoing theme and quest for redemption is also seen in his father, who has difficulty connecting with Amir because he does not want Hassan to think that he does not love them equally, even though Hassan is unaware that Baba is his actual father rather than master. In order to make it up to Hassan, or to redeem himself, Baba invites Hassan to come along with he and Amir when they would go out. This theme is evident in the novel when Amir states, “I was going to win, and I was going to run that last kite. Then I’d bring it home and show it to Baba. Show him once and for all that his son was worthy. Then maybe my life as a ghost in this house would finally be over…this was my one chance to  become someone who was looked at, not seen, listened to, not heard. If there was a God, He’d guide the winds, let htem blow for me so that, with a tug of my string, Id cut loose my pain, my longing.”