Shanila Aziz

Lit-730
Prof. Nila Sahar
12th December 2018

The Impact Of Post Colonialism In The Kite Runner by Khaled Husseini

1. Post-colonialism is rooted in imperialism and if one wants to seek the historical aspect of imperialism, he
should refer to the last years of 19th century when a large part of Africa and Asia were directly controlled
by European powers.
2. The term ‘imperialism’ denotes the control of a weak nation by a prosperous and powerful country, in the
form of
 Military
 Economic and
 cultural exploitation
3. The more diverse a country’s religious population, the more violent its domestic conflicts tend to be. Such
conflicts occur more often in developing countries than in developed countries
4. Afghanistan is a multi ethnic country and society. Many races and ethnic groups have lived together in
this country. According to Wahab in his book A Brief History of Afghanistan, the major race and ethnic
group in Afghanistan is the Pashtuns and followed by the minority groups such as Tajiks, Hazaras, Uzbeks,
Aimaks, Turkmen, and Baluchi.
5. Due to the Hazaras’s differences in races, belief, language, and culture, they are often disrespected and
discriminated. Rais in his book Recovering the Frontier State: War, Ethnicity, and the State in Afghanistan
states:
“The Hazaras are the poorest and most marginalized of ethnic communities of Afghanistan. It is partly
their barren landscape and partly long-standing discrimination against them that has placed them in an
inferior economic and social position. Until the second decade of last century, it was common to enslave
Hazaras.”
Racialism and Ethnicity
1. Racism and ethnicity are usually considered as the same concepts while in fact ethnicity is a sub-class of
racism.
2. Ethnicity refers to a group of people who are of the same “origin, history, values, attitudes, and behaviour”
but they may differ in terms of clothing, customs or religion. Ethnicity is in fact the cultural differences
that exist among people of a nation. Thus, ethnicity could be called ‘cultural identity’ as well.
3. The novel, under study, The Kite Runner depicts the two major Afghan ethnical populations, Pashtun and
Hazara, and their social, cultural, and religious conflicts. It is the Pashtuns that run the country and have
the power in their hands and Hazaras are just common slaves of them.
4. The plot and events of the novel The Kite Runner, written by Khaled Hosseini, is set in Afghanistan and
America and is around the two groups of Pashtuns and Hazara that are respectively the majority and
minority ethnic groups in Afghanistan, who respectively include 46% and 9% of population of
Afghanistan.
5. The Kite Runner is an American bestseller novel which tells us about an unforgettable story of a friendship
between two boys who grow up in Kabul, Afghanistan. Raised in the same household and sharing the same
wet nurse, Amir and Hassan grew up in different social class, race, and ethnic.
6. Amir was the son of prominent and wealthy Sunni Pashtun man, Baba. Meanwhile, Hassan was the son
of Amir’s father’s servant, Ali(Hassan’s biological father is Baba). Hassan and Ali are a Hazara, an ethnic
minority in Afghanistan.
7. As an ethnic minority, The Hazaras were not allowed to attend school. Therefore, Hassan never learned
to read. He also lived in the mud hut at the bottom of Amir’s garden which is different from Amir who
lived in a luxurious home.
8. The Hazaras are seen as dirty and part of the lower class in Afghanistan. They are the poorest race in this
country, so that they can be easily discriminated and oppressed. In The Kite Runner, Amir finds that the
Hazaras have been brutally suppressed by the Pashtuns when he encounters information about the Hazaras
in the history book,
“The book said that my people had killed the Hazaras, driven them from their lands, burned their homes,
and sold their women.”
9. Another big reason was that the populated Pashtuns were Sunni Muslims and the minority Hazaras were
Shi'a Muslims. This subject alone made Hazaras more secluded in society and for this reason they
sometimes were offended by Sunni Muslims of Afghanistan. An example of this is when Amir is justified
by his teacher in this way:
10. “The following week, after class, I showed the book to my teacher and pointed to the chapter on the
Hazaras. He skimmed through a couple of pages, snickered, handed the book back. “That’s the one thing
Shi’a people do well,” he said, picking up his papers, “passing themselves as martyrs.” He wrinkled his
nose when he said the word Shi’a, like it was some kind of disease.”
11. Additionally, Hazaras were mocked and insulted by Pashtuns for the form of their eyes and generally their
face, the subject that severally was repeated in the novel by the author, especially in the first parts of the
novel. One instance for such behaviour is when Amir says:
"It also said some things I did know, like that the people called Hazaras mice-eating, flat-nosed, load carrying
donkeys. I had heard some of the kids in the neighbourhood yell those names to Hassan.”
12. The Hazaras also have always been insulted by Pashtuns wherever they meet. It can be seen when Hassan
met some soldiers in his neighbourhood, he was called “flat-nosed Babalu” which means a monster with
flat nose.
13. Being physically, socially, and religiously different makes Pashtuns consider themselves better than any
other race and ethnic. They always consider themselves to be on top of everything. They also think that
they are prettier or more handsome, smarter, wealthier, and well behave than the Hazaras.
14. In the novel, Amir and Hassan are represented as the two opposite pillars of the same society; the wealthy
and the poor, Sunni and Shi’a, Pashtun and Hazara, powerful and the feeble.
15. The discrimination can also be seen in education sectors. the only children that are allowed to go to school
and continue their education are the wealthy Pashtuns (Amir). Hazaras (Hassan) are denied the right to go
to school so they do not have a chance to continue their education. The only option for them is to work as
servants.
16. It can be seen that Amir uses his knowledge to make Hassan feel dumb and inferior. Many Hazaras, like
Hassan and Ali, are illiterate and do not have a chance to learn how to read and write. Hassan never gets
a proper education. Therefore, Amir has to read a book or poem to Hassan.
My favourite part of reading to Hassan was when we came across a big word that he didn't know. I'd tease
him, expose his ignorance. One time, I was reading him a Mullah Nasiruddin story and he stopped me. “What
does that word mean?”
“Which one?”
“Imbecile.”
“You don’t know what it means?” I said, grinning.
“Nay, Amir agha.”
“But it’s such a common word!”
“Still, I don’t know it.” If he felt the sting of my tease, his smiling face didn’t show it.
“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.’”
“Aaah,” he said, nodding" (Hosseini, 2003: 31).
17. Becoming the major race and ethnic makes Pashtuns feel more superior than Hazaras. Pashtuns feel that
they are better than the Hazaras. Therefore, they never consider the Hazaras as equal to the Pashtuns. They
also expect certain attitudes from the Hazaras, such as when Amir always makes Hassan serve him. Amir
even forces Hassan to do whatever he wants. Once his asking him to eat dirt is an example.
18. Hassan is forced to be loyal and protect Amir whatever and whenever the situation is. As a master, Amir
also wants to be called “Agha” to strengthen his social status. In this case, Amir, as a Pashtun, believes
that Hazaras exists only to serve them, no matter what.
19. Sexual abuse also becomes the common act to discriminate Hazaras. Sexual abuse is about dominance and
control of other people through humiliation and destruction. This act can be seen when Assef and his two
buddies rape Hassan. Assef hates Hassan so much just because he is a Hazara.
20. Although Amir and Hassan were grown together and no one was so much close to them, Amir never
displayed his feelings toward Hassan since his unconscious mind was filled with the words that were based
on the human differences and superiority of Pashtuns over Hazaras:
“... The curious thing was, I never thought of Hassan and me as friends either. Not in the usual sense, anyhow.
Never mind that we taught each other to ride a bicycle with no hands ……. Because history isn’t easy to
overcome. Neither is religion. In the end, I was a Pashtun and he was a Hazara, I was Sunni and he was Shi’a,
and nothing was ever going to change that. Nothing.”
21. "Afghanistan is like a beautiful big house that was filled with garbage (Hazaras)" [16]
And he feels it is his duty to remove the garbage. All these lead him to kill many Hazaras in Hazarajat, the
hometown of Hazara ethnic group, in a massacre that was arranged against the Hazaras. For Assef this
massacre is an honor and to him Amir is a traitor, who escaped from his country and left it for Hazaras.
22. Life of Hazaras is shown valueless just as the death of Ali’s parents is another example of brutality, and
the culprits are given the punishment to serve army for one year only.
23. Meanwhile, the external conflict happens between Sunni Pashtuns and Hazaras, Sunni Pashtuns and
Taliban Pashtuns, and also between Taliban Pashtuns and Hazaras.
24. The conflict between Sunni Pashtuns and Taliban Pashtuns happens because of their differences in
religious beliefs. Pashtuns are Sunni, while Pashtuns Taliban are Shi’a. Sunni Pashtuns also believe that
Taliban’s ideology deviated from Islamic law. Since Taliban were strongly supported by Pakistan, they
took control of the country in their own interests, which has resulted in the brutal massacres of many
Afghans. Therefore, the title The Kite Runner means the social political conflict that occurs between Sunni
Pashtuns and Taliban Pashtuns. Sunni Pashtuns wanted Afghanistan to regain a healthy political rule again,
but the Taliban were not easily let go of the government.
25. Meanwhile, the conflict between Taliban Pashtuns and Hazaras happens because of their differences in
opinion. Even though both Taliban Pashtuns and Hazaras are Shi’a, the Taliban still hated and accused the
Hazaras for collaborating with one of their enemies, the Iranian army. They think that the Hazaras are not
loyal Afghans. Therefore, the Taliban massacred and killed the Hazaras in order to make Afghanistan “the
land of Pashtuns”. As portrayed in The Kite Runner, the Taliban killed Hassan and his wife, Farzana. The
Taliban thought that all Hazaras are not worthy living in a big house.
Impacts of Racial Discrimination
 Racial discrimination affects Hassan’s mental health. Hassan is indeed helpless when being raped. He has
to endure all the indignity by himself. Ali paused with a log in his hand. A worried look crossed.
 racial discrimination causes mass genocide, slavery and oppression. There is no genocide act in The Kite
Runner, but racial discrimination causes a plan to commit the genocide act towards the Hazaras for ‘ethnic
cleansing’.
 Another impact of racial discrimination is slavery and oppression. Every wealthy Pashtun family has their
own Hazara servant. Hazara servants are not paid and do the work only for food to eat and a place to stay.
This condition is depicted in Hassan and Ali’s life as a servant.
Who is the ‘Other’ in The Kite Runner?
the state of being “other” is based on being different in terms of race, politics, culture, language, or religion.
Stephan Morton (2003) affirmed:
“Throughout the history of western culture and thought, there are certain people, concepts, and ideas that are
defined as ‘Other’: as monsters, aliens or savages who threaten the values of civilised society, or the stability
of the rational human self. Such ‘Others’ have included death, the unconscious and madness, as well as the
Oriental, non-western ‘Other’, the foreigner,…In the structure of western thought, the ‘Other’ is relegated to
a place outside of or exterior to the normal, civilised values of western culture.” (p. 37)
  Both the Pashtun and the Hazara are basically different in all the previously listed aspects, both
represent the “Other” for each other.
 The superior dominant social group fixes the inferior one with descriptions that identify them;
unfortunately they robbed their voice so they can’t identify themselves, they found themselves robbed
of their identity as well.
 The Other in The Kite Runner depends on who regards, and who is the regarded.
 for Baba the “Bearded men” represents the other.
 for the Sunni, Shi’a are the other.
 For Assaf not only the hazara are the Other, but also all the Pashtuns who do not apply the Sharia were
segregated as well.
 whenever people asked Amir about Hassan they used the phrase “your Hazara”, they have been
referred to as a property which is a dehumanization of this particular tribe, a thingification.
 The love story between Rahim Khan and Homaira was torn apart by those ethnic differences. She
represented the despised socially, ethnically and racially inferior Other.
Diaspora in The Kite Runner
 In the era of colonialism, the colonized are transferred to the colonial country as slaves. In post-
colonialism, the subaltern still moves to the colonial country to seek social mobility and better life.
 Safran defines diaspora as expatriate minority communities that are dispersed from an original “center”
to at least two “peripheral” places (Safran, 1991:83).
 It means this group of people moved out from their original place to a new foreign place. The movement
is either by force or voluntarily.
 Diasporic communities keep their memory, vision, or myth about their original place. They believe that
they are not and perhaps can not be fully accepted by their host country. They see the ancestral home as a
place of eventual return when the time is right. They are also committed to the maintenance or restoration
of this home land and have high solidarity within the group.
 Not only life style and habits, Amir also learnt literature and western perspectives when he was a child.
He reads Victor Hugo, Jules Verne, Mark Twain, Ian Fleming as well as the authors from Afghanistan.
Amir’s reading materials also play a part in influencing him to be more American.
 Amir’s inherent values and ideologies are also westernized. For example, he accepts Soraya as his wife,
even though in the past Soraya has run away and slept with another man.
 He knows that when it comes to an affair outside marriage, Aghan society only applies social repercussion
to women, but the man never gets the blame. So, his thoughts on gender equality are distinctively western
thoughts compared to the patriarchal values of Afghan society.
 Amir is always fond of America, even when he grows up, the idea of America liberates him.
“America was different, America was a river, roaring along, unmindful of the past. I could wade into this
river, let my sins drown to the bottom, let the waters carry me someplace far...If nothing else, for that I
embraced America”. (2007:148)
Just like Safran says diaspora communities still have a strong connection with their home country (Safran,
1991:48).
 Amir and Baba also have a deep attachment to the Afghanistan as their original country.
 As a part of diasporic community, Hassan, Amir and Baba move from one place to another. This movement
also causes a change of cultural background and more diverse spheres of life.
Hybridity
 According to Homi Bhabha, a new cultural identity is gained by changing and absorbing the influences of
other culture. It means an individual needs to absorb the new culture in order to adapt and form a new
identity. Bhabha also emphasizes on the importance of mimicry when the colonized imitating the identity
of the dominant culture. Mimicry happens when the Other imitates the culture, language, habit, attributes
of the colonizer (Bhabha, 1994: 86).
 Amir is a open-minded boy with the influence of American culture since he was young. The activities,
clothes, even books that he reads in his childhood are mostly American ones. It helps to establish his
 fondness to the US culture. His identity changes from a privileged unloved boy into the poor loved son
and a superior member of ethnic group into a marginalized member of society. Those things seem to be
unpleasant changes of identity. However, it is not the case for Amir.
 Amir loves America because he can start a new life without utterly being burdened by his identity of an
Afghan which makes him unhappy.
 He wants to let go of his past as a Pashtun privileged boy who hurts Hassan.
 He likes to live in a more individualistic manner compared to his Baba. Amir does not feel tortured when
he can not meet the people from his past, unlike Baba who longs to come back to Afghanistan.
 Losing the financial privileges does not make Amir suffer because in America Amir gets what he always
wants: Baba’s love and a chance to pursue his dream as a writer. He changes from an unloved son to a
loved one. Therefore, Amir is better in adapting the new cultural identity because Amir sees life in America
is better than in Afghanistan.
 Amir is able to absorb and mimic the US culture and internalizes it. He embraces the US and let go of his
past in Afghanistan.
 Amir is able to adapt to his new identity. Digging deeper, Amir assimilates his previous identity to the
new identity. He internalizes his American identity. However, he does not forget his past as well.
 Amir is a hybrid character who stands in between two cultures—his identity is the mix of both. Hybridity
is the state of in between-ness, between two cultures.
 Bhabha also explicates that a hybrid is not only double voiced but also double languaged, two individual
consciousness (Bhabha, 1994:58). (Amir’s use two languages i.e Afghani and American, marring with
Soraya, and his concept of gender equality)
 Baba fails to absorb and accept the new identity of the US culture. Baba lives most part of his life as an
Afghan society. He has spent years internalizing his identity as an Afghan.
 He strongly identifies himself as an Afghan because all of his achievements, pride, and acknowledgements
are derived from being an Afghan.
 He is happy when he is surrounded by his people. Baba loses things that are precious to his identity.
Hence, Baba is not happy living in America. Even though when Baba lives in Afghanistan, he is influenced
by American culture. However, Baba does not want to have changes of identity to be an American.
 Amir says that Baba loves the idea of America, but not America itself (2007: 136).
When an individual is old, it is harder to adapt to a completely different place, the reason being that the
individual has already habituated strongly within the previous cultural identity. Thus, it is hard to suddenly
changes one’s values to the new ones.
 Baba thinks that America makes him suffer. The environment does not suit him, the taste of the food is
not to his liking (2007: 138).
 The new identity seen as degradation of Baba’s worth. It is shown from Amir’s statements. “For me,
America was a place to bury my memories. For Baba, a place to mourn his” (2007: 140).
 Baba’s resistance of American social system such as showing an ID as a proof of accountability and getting
social welfare from the government. His resistance toward the American culture is also seen from Baba’s
refusal to learn English language by taking EFL classes.
Conclusion: The story of The Kite Runner takes place mostly in Afghanistan before and after the war
happened in 19th century and also in America. In this novel we have find almost all the possible emotional
and psychological damages caused by Racial Discrimination, Cultural identity, loss of Individual Identity,
Conflict, Diaspora and Hybridity.
References:
A.T.S. Mohamed, Once upon a Kite: Glimpses into Afghanistan’s Race Relations, Kaleidoscope. 5(2) (2013) 119-131.
Bhabha, Homi. The Location of Culture. London: Routledge, 1994.
Hosseini, Khaled. 2003. The Kite Runner. New York: Riverhead.
Joko, Sentot Mulyono. 2010. Amir’s personality Development In Khaled Hosseini’s “The Kite Runner” A psychosocial Approach University of Muhamadiyah Surakarta
J. Arthur, Race, Equality, and the Burdens of History, Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, 2007.
K. Allan, The Meaning of Culture: Moving the Postmodern Critique Forward, Greenwood Publishing Group, 1998.
Rais, RasulBakhsh. (2009). Recovering the Frontier State: War, Ethnicity, and the State in Afghanistan. United Kingdom: Lexington Books.
Safran, William. Diasporas in Modern Societies: Myths of Homeland and Return.Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1991.
Said, Edward W. Orientalism. New York: Pantheon, 1978. Surakhmad. 1998. Metode Penelitian Sosial. Bandung: PT.
Wahab, Shaista and Barry Youngerman.(2007). A Brief History of Afghanistan. New York: Infobase Publishing.