1. It is Amir's dearest wish to please his father. What fuels this wish? To what extent does he succeed in doing so and at what cost? What kind of man is Baba? How would you describe his relationship with Amir and with Hassan? How does that relationship change, and what prompts those changes?
2. After Soraya tells Amir about her past, she says, "I'm so lucky to have found you. You're so different from every Afghan guy I've met." (page 157) How do Afghan women fare in America? Are they any better off than they were in Afghanistan before the Taliban seized power? There is a noticeable absence of women in the novel. How is this significant?
3. On the drive to Kabul Farid says to Amir "You've always been a tourist here, you just didn't know it." (page 204) What is Farid implying? What do you think of his implication? What gives a person worth in a society? Does this vary between societies?
4. What is Amir's relationship with Baba in the beginning of the book? How does it change after he wins the kite fighting tournament?
5. America acts as a place for Amir to rehash his memories and as 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." (page 135) What is ironic about this statement? What is the function of irony in this novel?
6. 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 ever known." (page 226) How does this make Amir feel about his father? How is this both a negative and positive realization?
No comments:
Post a Comment