The Kite Runner and the English Patient - Book Report/Review Example

College: DISCUSSING HOW PAST EVENTS SHAPE THE LIVES OF THESE CHARACTERS: AMIR IN "THE KITE RUNNER" BY KHALED HOSSEINI, AND COUNTY ALMACY IN "THE ENGLISH PATIENT" BY ONDAATJE. Introduction The Kite runner explores on a story which is based on two boys who are in a strong relationship, just after the end of the Afghanistan monarchy. The main character here is Amir, who befriends another age mate of his. On the other hand, the English patient is a novel which was written during the era of the world war two in Africa. The film explores on the events of the Sahara desert, and how mysterious it was. The protagonist here is County Almacy who still lives in the desert full of many explorers, as well as natives who are trying to bring life to the classics and who are stereotypes. The essay is focusing on the lives of the two characters, laying the arguments on the acts, scenes, as well as the sins which are committed by the characters in the works, and how they reflect any past events or behaviors which help in shaping them. "The English patient "is a key film which helped in the influence of the imperial system, and cinema, with an exception of Almacy, who is the patient in the film. Almacy proves to be an anti-imperial at closer look of him, but on the surface he appears to be just like those around him -imperialists-. On the other hand, "the kite runner" tells a beautiful story of two young men who are growing up in Kabul. They appear to share the same nurse, and raised in the same household. Hassan and Amir grow up in separate and different worlds, because Hassan is the son of a poor man who is employed by Amir's father, while Amir is the son of a wealthy man. Their relationship foreshadows a tragedy which is about to happen in the world around them, because they are inseparable, despite the fact that, one belongs to a minority class, and the other to a superior group. By virtue of fleeing the country to California with his father, Amir is haunted by his past life with Hassan, and cannot do away with the memory. This kind of a thing exhibits what the novel is all about. That is; friendship, betrayal, and the cost of loyalty to it. Hosseini depicts the relationship there exists between children and their fathers, as well as the powers the fathers dictate over their sons in form of; love, their lies and sacrifices. These reflect the beauty of the land and how it was destroyed finally, but the author gives the readers a lot of hope through the reading of the novel. The book dwells on personal experiences through betrayal, salvation and redemption. (Hosseini 33) Hosseini explores on the guilty experienced bu Amir for his act of leaving his childhood friend and moving away with his father. Though this was not Amir's decision rather a decision by his father which he had to obey, it is something which haunts him constantly, and wishes that he could get back to Hassan, because he feels that he has betrayed the son of the servant. The two boys play together in the compound and Hassan appears to be too good to Hassan, for he even reads Persian epics for him, because he was illiterate, and Amir wants him to be enlightened like him, on top of their day to day plays of flying kites. Amir is portrayed as being sympathetic to Hassan, because his father did not love him, more than he did to the friend, Hassan. Amir's mother's death haunts Amir very much, and this makes him think that, given that the mother died during childbirth, the father would forever hate him, and he has to look for other friends who can comfort him in life. However, his father's friend understands the whole issue, and offers to help Amir in his writing hobby, because his father did not bother about it. The past events seem to have given a direction of behavior to Amir. (Hosseini 21) Hassan was a kite runner for Amir as the author depicts in the novel. He always ran after the kites that Amir had cut their strings and collects them for him. But one day as Hassan was running after the kite, he was raped and assaulted, and though Amir saw the incident, he had nothing to offer as help for he was scared, and it is from then, that Amir decides to shun their friendship because he does not know how to approach Hassan and be apologetic for the incidence, given that they were loyal friends for all the time. Many changes take place, after the boys part. Amir and his father settle down in Afghanistan, and later move to Peshawar after the invasion in Afghanistan. Amir manages to join some classes to advance his skills in writing, and he manages to get his future wife there. a daughter to the Afghanistan general. Amir became a successful novelist, and he encounters Rahim again, who informs him about the fates of Hassan and his father. It is tragic for Amir who learns that Ali died in the mines, while and his long lost friend, Hassan was killed by a Taliban by shooting them with his wife, even though they had returned to work as a caretaker in his father's house. The film explores on the friendship between the two boys, which was lopsided, and shows how lives were shaped by the past political events of the 20th century. Amir though he did not show the signs of being sympathetic, could do anything to save the live of his father's friend son. This gave way for Amir to grow up to be a pathetic writer. The story's central idea is depicted as being, "atoning for past sins," which is hence justified by the invasions in the U.S and occupations in Afghanistan. (Hosseini 45) Looking at Almasy, he was an English patient in an imperial time, where by people lived by the imperial rules and stereotypes. The patient is a delight to the readers, and is depicted as a patient who is being nursed by Hanna. The story reflects on some individuals and how their lives were transformed by the war. The author revolves on Almasy, who is the protagonist and his fate of love over war. According to the family traditions during this time, the parents used to dictate to their children over what they ought to become in life as their careers. For instance, the first born was supposed to join the army, the second born become a doctor, and the third become a business man. "He was the second son. The oldest son would go into the army; the next brother would be a doctor, a brother after that would become a businessman. An old tradition in his family." (Ondaatje 201) The traditions changed after the oldest brother resisted the British rule, something which led to his imprisonment. The gap had to be filled by Kirpal, who offered to join the army. Kip worked hard in saving the lives of the civilians, after joining the bob-squad, a role which became similar to his foreseen career of being a doctor. He was rejuvenating the land which was afflicted, as well as saving the innocent lives, hence fulfilling the demands and traditions in the family of becoming a doctor, though indirectly. There were a lot of bombing activities, "one bomb. Then another. Hiroshima. Nagasaki." (Ondaatje 284), but the Germans acknowledged that it was a sign of racial cleansing, and at the same time trying to save the innocent lives. (Ondaatje 290) This kind of manslaughter which appeared to be premeditated, aided Kip to reconsider his actions, because the whole thing conflicted with what he was personally doing by saving lives. This gave him the notion of killing the English patient as a way of satisfying his pain. Kip retreated and became a doctor. "He is a doctor, has two children and a laughing wife. He is permanently busy in the city" (Ondaatje 299). Hanna muses all about Kip, and yearns for his company, and though Kip knows his destiny, Hanna wants to belong to somebody. Almasy is an unlimited character in the film, and a man who was burnt all over, hence an English patient. Hana offers to take care of the patient, despite the fact that the other nurses had run away for their safety. She is not aware of the identity of the patient and rather calls him an English patient, because of his accent. The author focuses on the story of the patient from his past to the stage when he is being nursed by Hanna, and that is why he is recognized all through in the novel. The novel focuses on the regular flashbacks of the terrible past of Almasy, when he was struggling for his love that he believed was true, and his present status. Almasy is believed to have been a man who had been burnt in an air crash, but he narrates the story of the tribe which found him and took good care of him. He compels their sympathy, pity as well as the admiration, and he is revealed to have been a Nazi spy. The character narrates his story and was he derived the desire pf loving. His act of loving Katharine and not feeling for Geoffrey. Geoffrey plans to kill Almasy, but instead he is killed himself. The author portrays many episodes in the desert where by Almasy wants to rescue Katharine but a fight crops up, and he is burnt in the process. "A man with no faces.....all identification consumed in fire." (Ondaatje 48) In conclusion I can say that, the character has been burnt psychologically, because of his desire for love in vain, and Ondaatje says that, it is all about love and forgiveness. This gives him the characteristics of being caring and loving, as well as wanting to help others because of what happened to him in the past. Hosseini's film still depicts the acts, sins and past events of Amir, which dictate what he lives to become later. The two therefore give a good depiction of what dictated the two protagonists to be and behave the way they are doing in the novels. It is evident that, our past experiences dictate what we become in future. Works cited Hosseini, Khaled. The kite runner. Penguin Group, 2004. ISBN 9781594480003 Ondaatje Michael. The English patient. Vintage books, 1996. ISBN 0676970087 Read More