As I read the end of the novel, I was a little saddened by the fact that I had already read the novel once before because the element of surprise (or what would happen at the end of the story) wasn't there this time. Because I knew the ending, I wasn't surprised by the fact that Amir decided to take Sohrab back to the USA and keep him as his "son." One thing that did still strike and upset me this read through was that Sohrab tried to kill himself in the bathtub. This scene at the end of chapter 24 upset me and made me extremely sad. I hated reading this part of the novel because it was just so powerful despite the scene being described action by action.
Amir's love for Sohrab really shines through though when he takes care of Sohrab (emotionally) after his attempted suicide. The fact that he wants to "break though" the hospital doors to get to Sohrab, right after the incident, really shows that he has already sort of accepted Sohrab as his son. I love that he does this because this gives another side to Amir and shows just how much of a caring, loving, and concerned person he is/can be.
Sohrab's silence is something I really don't understand, to be perfectly honest. At times, although I feel very badly for him because of all he has been through in his short life, in these ending chapters, I got annoyed with Sohrab. I wanted him to talk and be "normal" and just develop a good relationship with Amir and Soraya (especially Soraya because she wanted to treat Sohrab like a son and raise him as her own).
I really enjoyed the ending of the book and how it closes with the scene of Amir running the kite. The book, with this scene, is really brought full circle and ends on a high note. I thought of Hassan when I read the last line of the novel, "I ran." because HE was the "original" kite runner and now I feel that Amir has matured and taken over Hassan's role of kite runner and father of Sohrab. I liked Amir by this point in the novel, and I was really pleased with the ending. After the entire story, it was made apparent that Amir did come of age and this makes him a likable character by the end of the novel.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
1 comment:
Hi Mary - since every time I publish a comment the system forces me to enter one of those "word verifications," I decided to insert one comment here on all of your posts on The Kite Runner. I know it is hard when you've read a book before and the element of surprise--as you say--is gone, but the advantage is that you are able to see so many little things on a second read that you may not have noticed on the first (as you observed). It's interesting what you said about the eye/sight imagery throughout the novel--especially in the early part--that would be an interesting topic to followup on if you're writing your essay on this novel. I also thought your question about Amir's actions was interesting when you wondered whether he would have reacted differently to the rape if his relationship with his father had been different. Clearly his relationship with his father has shaped Amir's character in so many ways, both good and bad (another interesting topic for an essay). Overall, great work on your posts on this novel.
Post a Comment