Kite Runner Essay free essay sample

ClubIn the Novel Kite Runner by Khaled Hossani and the film Atonement directed by Joe wright, the themes of betrayal, guilt and redemption are portrayed throughout the entire texts. Both protagonists have guilt and are constantly reminded of the consequences of their betrayal. This guilt leads them to redeem themselves and rid themselves of sin through the telling of their story and to give the people they betrayed a voice, since ‘that is what true redemption is, when guilt leads to good’. In the novel The Kite Runner the betrayal of self, guilt and redemption is already laid out to the reader through the first paragraph. Khaled Hossani begins with the foreshadowing of a catastrophic betrayal by the use of first person narration though Amir to hint this event has changed and affected Amir’s life in a major way, ‘I became what I am today, at the age of 12 on a frigid overcast day, in the winter of1975’. As the novel goes on we learn of Amir’s motivation for his betrayal to Hassan. In the alley when Amir decides to turn away from Hassan being raped he is then committing the absolute betrayal. He justifies to himself that Hassan is ‘just an Hazara boy’ and uses this motivation as well as his longing for his father’s love and approval to warrant his reason for betrayal. As Amir engages in the last betrayal of accusing Hassan of stealing, he watches Hassan and Ali leave through the window representing a distorted view and separation of Hassan and Amir. Amir is faced with consequences of his actions through out his life and the opportunities for redemption. Amir attempts to store away the guilt and wrongdoing but ‘it claws it way back in’ until he his overwhelmed by the guilt and seeks redemption. In the film Atonement it begins with the non-diegetic sound of a typewriter and the image of the camera looking up towards bryony that is typing a story, this highlights the power of story telling and that bryony seems godlike and in control of peoples lives. Wright uses this non-diegetic sound of the typewriter all throughout the film, to suggest a story is being retold. When we see the scene ‘two figures by a fountain’ we see bryony’s first initial motivation of where she starts to think badly of Robbie, through a window shot, representing a distorted view from a young, sexually naive girl. Wright uses the technique of ‘flashback’ to give the audience two perspectives on the event, bryony’s perspective or the real, truthful perspective. This positions the audience to judge how bryony has distorted her view of reality and the truth. When bryony is asked by the detector did you know it was Robbie or did you see him, bryony commits the ultimate betrayal to Robbie and Cecilia by saying ‘yes. I saw him’. Bryony is constantly aware of the consequences of her actions. In the writing of her novel she creates an imaginary scene where she is confronted by Robbie and Cecilia. This is a reminder to her of what she has stolen from them. The focus on the bed and the close up of bryony looking at it awkwardly highlights her guilt of the destruction she has caused. In both texts, both protagonists have guilt for their betrayal and this guilt leads them both to their telling of the true truth. The betrayal both characters have committed has destroyed and separated their relationships between the people they loved, and they are forever reminded of the consequences they have caused and the happiness they have stolen. In bryony’s case she has stolen away Robbie and Cecilia’s life together and their happiness, and in a way she has caused Robbie’s death. In the novel Amir lives with the fear and guilt of what he has done to Hassan as he finds out that Hassan his is half brother. Amir returns to Afghanistan after receiving a phone call from his fathers long time friend informing him about Hassan’s death and that Hassan son has been put into an orphanage. As a part of Amir’s redemption he saves Hassan son and brings him back to America. In both texts the protagonists tell their story for their redemption and atonement. By telling the whole truth of their betrayal, they provide them with a voice, and the ending they caused them to lose. In the last scene of Atonement, bryony is being interviewed about her novel, she tells the audience about the imaginary scene in the book when Robbie confronts her, and states, that by giving Robbie and Cecilia this ending, she is giving them the ending they both so longed for and missed out on. She says ‘she would like to think this isn’t a sign of weakness, but a final act of kindness, in giving them their happiness back’. Although both texts have different motives for their betrayal, they both have a similar way in seeking atonement for their guilt, by retelling their story, and giving back the happiness they stole, and isn’t ‘that what true redemption is†¦. when guilt leads to good’. In the film directed by Joe Wright and the novel the Kite Runner by Khaled Hossani, betrayal, guilt and redemption is set into place throughout the entire texts. While both protagonists have guilt from their betrayal, and are constantly reminded of the consequences their betrayal has caused, this leads to their effort to seek atonement. By their retelling of the truth, they attempt to free themselves from their guilt and provide the people they betrayed with a voice, as well as to grant them with the happiness they took away, and reflect what true redemption is.