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Amir realizes his potential as an author
One day while he and Hassan are spending time together, Amir tells Hassan a story he has fabricated, and then to his astonishment, Hassan laughs and tells Amir, "That was the best story you've read me in a long time" (30). On this day, Amir discovers a talent that he did not know he possessed before. This interest in literature later leads to Amir's successful career as an author. -
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The Kite Runner Timeline
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Hassan protects Amir from Assef
One day when he and Hassan are playing, they are greeted by the evil Assef. He means to hurt Amir, but is stopped by the loyal Hassan who, "held the slingshot pointed directly at Assef's face" (42). This event shows Amir how loyal Hassan is to him although he may not realize it quite yet. It shows the lenghts that Hassan would go in order to keep Amir safe. -
Amir wins the kite fighting tournament
In the winter of 1975, Amir wins his kite fighting contest which is a great honor in Afghanistan. He remembers how, "[t]he moment came. [He] closed [his] eyes and loosened [his] grip on the strings... [he] didn't need the crowd's roar to know" (65). After this event, Amir finally starts to gain Baba's respect and he feels like he has finally become a man. This is significant because all his life, Amir had been seeking out Baba's trust and now, after winning his tournament, his time has come. -
Hassan is raped by Assef
Shortly after Amir wins his kite fighting tournament, Hassan goes and runs the last kite and is trapped in an alley by Assef. Hassan doesn't realize this, but Amir idly watches and he tells of how, “Assef… put his hands on Hassan’s hips and lifted his bare buttocks… he positioned himself behind Hassan” (75). This event leads to a change in power from Amir to Hassan due to his guilt. It is the first sign that Amir and Hassan will slowly drift apart from each other. -
Amir's guilt affects his relationship with Hassan
After witnessing Hassan getting raped, guilt fills Amir's mind. While picking pomegranites one day, Amir decides to try to rid himself of his guilt by getting Hassan to fight him. Amir "hurled the pomegranite at [Hassan]. It struck him i the chest and exploded in a spray of red pulp" (92). This event shows how much Amir wants to rid himself of his guilt and get his normal life back. Hassan gains power over Amir after his being raped because Amir guilt makes him want to atone to Hassan. -
Ali and Hassan leave Baba and Amir
After Amir frames Hassan for stealing his possessions, Ali, Hassan, Baba, and Amir all sit down to talk. During this conversation, Ali sadly tells them, "We are leaving, Agha sahib" (106). Amir hopes that staying away from Hassan will relieve him of his guilt but now that Hassan and Ali are leaving, he only feels worse. Amir thinks that he'll never be able to atone for his sins and that he would have to live with that guilt for the rest of his life. -
First Soviet troops land in Afghanistan
In 1979 the first Soviet troops landed in Kabul. Even though the Russian Government claimed that it sent troops in response to a call for help, "Western analysts say the Sovierts engineered the coup as a pretext to replace Hefizullah Amin, the Afghan leader, who had lost their trust" (NYT 2). This day marks the beginning of a long and bloody conflict between the Soviet Union and Afghanistan. -
Baba is thrown out of the Nguyen store
While shopping at the general store owned by the Nguyen family, Baba is enraged by the fact that he cannot buy goods without an ID. There, Baba questions Mr. Nguyen saying, "'What kind of a country is this? No one trusts anybody" (125). This incident goes to show Amir just how much Baba has sacrificed for his sake. Baba has to adapt to a new culture in order to support Amir, not himself. -
Amir and Baba move to America
When they arrive in America, Amir recalls how, "Baba loved the idea of America" (125). America was a new experience for Amir and Baba. Though they have finally started to respect each other, they truly start to bond in America. -
Baba declines food stamps
One day, after being hired for a job, Baba is sent to an eligibility office where he is offered food stamps. He respectfully declines them and tells Mrs. Dobbins, "'Thank you but I don't want [them]... I work always. In Afghanistan I work, in America I work" (130). Baba's decision to decline the food stamps shows how strongly he believes in his morals. Baba sets an example for Amir by displaying his morals even when he is in a bad position. Thankfully, Amir learns to follow his morals too. -
Amir gets married to Soraya
While spending time in America, Amir meets a girl named Soraya. Amir and Soraya both fall in love, and they later get married. Amir remembers how Baba had told him that, "The general accepted [the marriage proposal]" (163). Amir and Soraya get married and this is a big moment in Amir's life. He makes Baba very proud and finally has a wife to accompany him. -
Baba dies
Shortly after Amir gets married, Baba is hospitalized and, "Baba never [wakes] up" (173). Baba's death is a crushing blow to Amir who has just recently been married. He realizes how important he truly is because he is Baba's son. And sadly it takes this long for him to realize something so simple. -
The last Soviet troops leave Afghanistan
In February 1989,"the last Soviet troops le[ave] Afghanistan" (NYT2). This is a result of peace talks between the Soviet Union and Afghanistan. These talks, which were moderated by the United Nations, ended a long conflict which lasted over three decades and left Afghanistan in ruin. -
The Taliban provide safe haven for Mr. bin Laden
In May of 1996, "the taliban provided a haven for Mr. bin Laden, who arrived by chartered jet at the Jalalabad Airport" (NYT 2). This man was a founder of another islamic extremist group call Al Qaeda. Al Qaeda was the organization that bombed the World Trade Center on September 11. -
The Taliban take over Afghanistan
The Taliban are an islamic extremist group established by,"Mullah Omar [who] had nearly 12,000 followers" (NYT 2) In the beginning, the Taliban was a student movement that had the intentions of purifiying Afghanistan of corruption and brutality. Sadly, the group veered off from the original goal of purification leading to mass disapproval from governments all over the world. -
Hassan is killed
When Rahim Khan meets Amir in the new Afghanistan, he tells Amir that Hassan was forced out of their house while protesting and, "[the Taliban] shot him in the back of the head" (219). This news devistates Amir and makes him of how everyone he knew in his childhood was either dying or dead. As a result Amir finally sees that even though he was disloyal to Hassan, Hassan was loyal to Amir even in death. And Amir feels that he must do something to atone for his sins. -
Amir learns that Hassan is his illegitimate brother
While talking to Rahim Khan, Amir learns the truth about Hassan's parents. When they are discussing this, Amir thinks that Ali and Sanaubar are Hassan's actual parents but when Rahim speaks, he tells Amir, "'I think you know who" (222). This statement shows Amir that Hassan's true father was Baba and that explained all of the things Baba did in his past. It explained why Baba treated Hassan like a son and truly loved Amir and Hassan equally although they were rasied completely oppositely. -
Amir agrees to find Sohrab
After hearing from Rahim Khan that he can redeem himself by adopting Hassan's son, Amir agrees to find the child. Amir tells of how he "found Rahim Khan... and told him [he] was going to Kabul" (227). This event indicates that Amir is finally acknowledging that he had committed a sin by not standing up for Hassan in the alley. He has decided to make things right by adopting Hassan's child as atonement for his wrong-doings. -
Assef beats up Amir in a fight for Sohrab
Amir is confronted by Assef in a fist fight, and he recalls how Assef’s, “brass knuckles flash[ed] in the afternoon light; how cold they felt with the first few blows and how quickly they warmed with my blood” (288). Assef decides to beat up Amir in order to keep Sohrab but ultimately to assert his dominance over Amir, who is much less able to fight. Even though Amir is almost killed in this incident, he finally feels as though he has atoned for his sins that were committed against Hassan. -
The United States becomes militarily invovled in Afghanistan
In 2001, "[t]he United States [became] invovled in Afghanistan... when it led an invasion after the Sept. 11 attacks by Al Qaeda" (NYT 1). Al Qaeda is an islamic extremist group that was given sanctuary by Afghanistan. The United States tried to respond to the Al Qaeda attacks by controlling Afghanistan's military activity. -
Al Qaeda attacks the World Trade Center
On September 11, 2001, Al Qaeda executed an, "attack on the World Trade Center in New York" (NYT 3). This tragic event devestated the United States. It led to the war between Afghanistan and the United States. -
The Taliban regain strength as American military focus is diverted to the occupation of Iraq
After their defeat in 2001, the Taliban were forced to flee to the,"mountainous and largely lawless tribal area on the Pakistan-Afghanistan border" (NYT 3). As the focus of the American troops in Afghanistan was shifted to the capture and control of Iraq, the Taliban were able to regroup in the countryside of Afghanistan. Every year after this regroup in the countryside, the Taliban have seemingly come back stronger than the previous year. -
Hamid Karzai is elected as president
Hamid Karzai is a former president of Afghanistan whose people, "blamed him for the manifest lack of economic progress and the corrupt officials who seem to stand at every doorway of his government" (NYT 3). In constrast to the Afghan population, President Karzai was a favorite of the Bush administration. -
President Obama puts Gen. Davide H. Petraeus in command of American forces in Afghanistan
In 2007, Presiden Obama, "put[s] Gen. David H. Petraeus... in command of American forces in Afghanistan. This decision led to an enormous increase in American productivity in Afghanistan. The operations executed by American troops to neutralize the Taliban strongholds in the south were more efficient than ever before with Gen. David H. Petraeus in command. -
President Obama delivers his Afghanistan speak at West Point
In December of 2009, President Obama,"announced his plan to deploy 30,000 additional troops. He vowed to start bringing American forces home from Afghanistan in the middle of 2011" (NYT 4). President Obama's speech gave citizen hope that the conflict between Afghanistan would end soon, but as his July deadline passed, the Obama administration claimed that forces would not be recalled into 2014.