Baba and Amir had some kind of barer between them. Their characteristics were totally different. Baba sure was an admirable person but he wasn’t a great father to Amir. All Amir wanted was Baba’s attention and caring but Baba was too cold to Amir. You can tell Amir wanted Baba’s attention from following examples. When Baba’s friend came over to his house Amir asked Baba if he can sit with them but Baba said. “This is grown-ups time. Why don’t you go read one of those books of yours?” (2.5) as you can see from this line that Amir wants to join the conversation with Baba but Baba think he is too immature. There is another example, when Amir was having a kite fight. He heard the crowd yelling “Cut him! Cut him!” (7.69) and he wondered if Baba was cheering him with them. This shows how much he wants to make Baba proud on anything. After when he sees Baba smiling at him proudly when he won the kite fight.
Most different thing about these two is Baba is brave and he has to stand up for the people who are in trouble. On the other hand Amir can’t even stand up for his own friend, Hassan. This is the difference between Amir and Baba, Amir is very selfish and Baba is very generous. When Baba was trying to stop Russian soldier from raping the woman in the truck, Baba risked his life to stop that. But Amir tried to stop Baba from helping her because he thought he might actually die. Amir said. “Baba, sit down please, I think he really means to shoot you.” (10.122) But Baba refused to stop and said. “Haven’t I taught you anything?” (10.122) and he went on.
These examples show the differences between the two. Baba was wise, generous, and brave but Amir was selfish, not brave, and he was still in the process of learning. But I think that is how much Amir cared about Baba because he almost died trying to save the woman. So I think Baba should’ve been careful and thought about Amir as well.
That is true that Amir and Baba had their differences. However in the end it shows that they have their similarities. I believe that in the end, Amir is braver than Baba. Baba could not even build enough courage to tell Amir that he had a brother, even on his death bed. Baba was living a life of lies and tried to make up for it through his brave acts.
ReplyDeleteI believe that Baba and Amir are more similar than you give them credit for. Yes, at the beginning of the novel they were portrayed as being completely different people, but towards the end we realize how similar they really are. They had both sinned and attempted at redemption. And in my opinion, I think that both of them were successful at redeeming themselves. They were both forgiven for their wrong-doings and their guilt led to good. In these ways, I feel that Amir and Baba are very alike.
ReplyDeleteIt seems as though Amir uses his poor relationship with Baba to get rid of the burden when he is feeling guilty. For example, when he witnesses Hassan's rape, he tries to forget about it by remembering that he had just won the kite race, and that Baba would be waiting for him proudly.
ReplyDeleteAlso, in the end of the novel, Amir proves himself to be a strong and brave person when he goes back to Afghanistan to rescue Sohrab. And if Baba was truly brave, he would have probably told Amir that he too was Hassan's father.
Yes, Baba and Amir had a poor father son relationship but I believe that this is because Baba sees so much of himself in Amir. Therefore their poor relatiionship is actually because of there similarities. This creates the cycle of betrayal and guilt in Amir's life becuase Amir desires Baba's love so much that he was willing to sacrice a friend to get it.
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