The Complicated Relationship Between Amir and Hassan Kite Runner

Cody Patrick

Amir and Hassan seem to have a “best friend” type relationship. The two boys, Hassan and Amir, are main characters in the book titled, The Kite Runner. The two boys have a relationship that is significantly different compared to most. There are many different facets that distinguish the relationship the boys possess. The boys do write their names in a pomegranate tree as the “sultans of Kabul” (Kite Runner 27) but, their friendship is not strong and it is one sided. Hassan has love for Amir. He loves him like a brother. Hassan is exceedingly loyal to Amir. The relationship between the two boys is emotionally wearing and rather gloomy for the most part. The main reason for their complicated relationship is the fact that Amir is Pashtun, and Hassan is Hazara. The Afghan society places Hassan lower than Amir. Hassan is Amir’s servant. The placement of Hassan in the Afghan society disenables Amir from becoming Hassan’s true friend. Amir sees Hassan as lower than human. Amir ruins the chance for friendship between himself and Hassan because he is jealous of Hassan, he thinks of Hassan as a lower human, and because Amir possesses such extreme guilt for what he has done to Hassan. Amir is an unstable person overall.

Amir is clearly an emotionally unstable person, but his resentment towards Hassan is increased because of his own haunting guilt. This guilt that seems to be terrorizing Amir is caused by his experience of watching the rape of Hassan in the alley. Amir is so guilty that he can no longer be close to Hassan. Amir says, “I’d hear Hassan shuffling around the kitchen in the morning, hear the clinking of silverware, the whistle of the teapot. I’d wait to hear the door shut and only then I would walk down to eat” (Kite Runner 87). Amir has trouble facing his guilt. Amir’s guilt shows that he knows what he did was wrong. Amir refuses to renew his friendship with Hassan. Amir knows that he has done wrong because he says, “There was a monster in the lake. It had grabbed Hassan by the ankles, dragged him to the murky bottom. I was that monster” (Kite Runner 86). Amir eventually proceeds to the point where he can no longer deal with his everlasting guilt. Hassan is a clear representation of his guilt. Amir attempts to free himself from the guilt by getting the main representation out of his house. This is why he frames Hassan of thievery; although this plan ultimately backfires and causes Amir even more personal anguish, it proves that he is an unstable and resentful person.

Amir is jealous of Hassan. This is a primary cause of the problems Amir has with his friendship pertaining to Hassan. Amir takes advantage of Hassan. Hassan is completely loyal to Amir. Amir is constantly trying to prove that Hassan is a lower human being than he is. An example of Amir scorning Hassan is displayed when Amir says, “Well, everyone in my school knows what it means,’ I said. “Let’s see. ‘Imbecile.’ it means smart, intelligent. I’ll use it in a sentence for you. ‘When it comes to words, Hassan is an imbecile” (Kite Runner 29). Amir is mocking the fact that Hassan cannot read. Amir is establishing his position of power. Amir also proves that he is superior when he tells Hassan to eat dirt. Amir continues to try to enlarge his ego. Teasing Hassan makes him feel better about himself. Amir does not feel like he is getting the one thing he wants in his life. He wants acceptance from Baba. Baba seems to favor Hassan, so Amir must establish that he is better than Hassan constantly. Baba says that he feels like he connects with Hassan better when he was talking to Rahim Khan. This is where most of Amir’s jealousy is derived from. Baba expresses his disapproval for Amir when he says, “If I hadn’t seen the doctor pull him out of my wife with my own eyes, I’d never believe he’s my son” (Kite Runner 23). Baba also says, “There is something missing in that boy” (Kite Runner 22).

The friendship that Amir and Hassan have is extremely weak and pathetic. The friendship exemplified in The Kite Runner is very weak because Amir thinks of Hassan as his servant, which explains why he is constantly testing him and does not stand up for him as