Wednesday 26 September 2012

Character descriptions chapters

Amir
Straight away we find out Amir has a troubled past, the first chapter makes this quite clear. Throughout chapters 2 and 3 we see that his relationship with his father is not a particularly affectionate one. His mother died whilst giving birth to him and so he feels responsible. He is very close to a Hazara boy named Hassan, they seem to be very close friends. Amir is a Pashtun.
There are some parts in chapters 4-7 where we see the meaner side of Amir. He and Hassan enjoy throwing rocks and other items at animals and torturing insects. Amir is cruelest though, he enjoys teasing Hassana about his inability to read and understand words, playing mind games with him.

Baba
Baba comes across as a very cold man. He is said to see things in black and white, showing he is not very tolerant of things which he doesn't like. He is not a particularly religious man, he smokes and drinks. Very imposing, tall and dark. He likes to prove people wrong, both in his work and personal life. He sees his son as a bit of a disappointment as he has not turned out as he had hoped. Baba shares an interest with Amir in kite fighting, it seems to be the only thing the two have in common.

Hassan
There is a lot of description of Hassan at the beginning of chapter two, but what particularly stands out is his cleft lip, an imperfection. He was a very loyal friend to Amir and they were very close when they were young. He is a Hazara. Hassan is very truthful and quite naive in some ways. He always tells the truth, and thinks others always do too.

Ali
Ali is Hassan's father. He is a very gentle man, also a Hazara. He has a flawed appearance and is teased by locals for this. His wife ran away when Hassan was born. Ali is also very truthful, like Hassan. He is said to be 'incapable of lying'.

Sanaubar
Hassan's mother who ran away with travelers just after Hassan was born. Comes across as promiscuous and  not a particularly nice person. She was very beautiful and many men were attracted to her.

Rahim Kahn
There is not much information on Rahim Kahn in the first few chapters, but it seems as though he likes Amir and is kind to him. Throughout the first few chapters it seems as though Rahim Kahn is closer to Amir than Baba is.

Assef
Assef is the bully of the neighbourhood. He carries round brass knuckles to beat people up with. He is one of the people who bullies Ali because he is Hazara and has a bad leg. He does not like Amir because he is friends with Hassan, who is also a Hazara like his father. He has very extremist views on the Hazara being in Afghanistan, similar to Hitler's about the Jews in Germany.

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