The Kite Runner by LeTourneau

Children are constantly under watch by their parents and kids often look for their approval.  But, sometimes the pressure becomes too much for the child and they make wrong decisions while seeking for their parents praise.  Not only do parents put this pressure but society as a whole has norms that genders or ethnic groups are expected to be like that are just impractical.  Amir in The Kite Runner struggled with this as well as many teens and kids do today.

There’s a book called The Price of Privilege by Madeline Levine that goes into detail about the pressures privileged children endure.  In the book Levine talks about how these kids often feel that they must be perfect and compare themselves with other kids.  Even though Amir’s father never directly compares Amir to Hassan, he often feels that he is fighting for his father’s attention, this trait is especially common amongst siblings.  In today’s society it has become common for people to jokingly say that their is always the smart, obedient child; and then the more disobedient child who rather hang out with friends than study.  This is prominent in the book as it drives the decisions Amir makes in his life.

Throughout The Kite Runner Amir’s relationship with his father haunts him and even in adulthood drives his decisions the same way they did in his early years.  In today’s society the bond between a father and son are treasured and have shaped what society views as what a boy should act like.  Boys are supposed to be strong and have to be able to stand up for themselves, where many boys like Amir just don’t have that personality.  There’s also this expectations that boys don’t cry.  Even from personal experience there have been boys at the store who started to cry and were scolded by their fathers and whenever Amir felt like crying he always did it behind closed doors.  This results in someone being very insecure and closed off about their feelings and their past Levine says, this is also seen in Amir’s story as it became very difficult for him to talk about things in his past with his wife and father.

Another expectation that influences the kids in The Kite Runner into adulthood, is how their parents view other ethnic groups or how other kids view ethnic groups.  One character in the story, Assef, often bullies Hassan and Amir because Hassan is a Hazara.  This also influences how Amir treats Hassan, Amir doesn’t play with Hassan when other boys are around without even thinking about it.  Where Assef was more influenced than Amir was by the people around him who viewed Hazaras as lower on the totem pole and resulted in him not treating them like humans.  This even influences how Hassan is killed and the overtake of Afghanistan by the Taliban.  Kids often only hang out with certain people based on their surroundings, like Amir had.  Even in the early ages of preschool, this is best explained with gender norms.  Where girls on the playground wouldn’t play sports with the boys during recess because girls are supposed to be delicate.  Boys also are more violent with each other than they normally are because boys are supposed to be more violent and stronger.  One example of how parents influence their child’s opinions today, especially in America, is racism.  This sort of mindset is taught and even though the worst of racism is in the past influences are still seen today.  Racial issues have become normal on today’s news stations, why?  Given the way someone was raised these racial issues are still here today because of how parents influence their children.  There are some who rebel against their parents and form their own opinions but there are always kids who latch onto what their parents believe because kids are always told to listen to their parents.  Their influence also becomes greater as the child seeks for approval.  If a child has a different opinion than their parent arguments often arise and at times draw lines between the parent and child.

There are many political issues touched on throughout The Kite Runner but something that greatly affects the main character is the constant pressure he felt to gain his father’s approval.  Children all over the world deal with the pressures put on by parents and their opinions.  Children in life struggle to figure out for themselves what they believe is right and wrong.  Sometimes the child is able to form their own opinions of what they truly think is right rather than what they think will get the approval of their parents, other times it results in an insecure child who doesn’t always make the best decision like Amir.