1

Name: Jutan Das

Course: ENG 309
Semester: Spring 2022
Instructor: Sheikh Fazle Shams

Uses of Symbolism in Khaled Hosseini’s noble The kite Runner

Symbolism is a literary device that uses symbols. Symbolism is the idea that things

represent other things. A symbol means a mark or character or object used as a representation of

an object, function, or process. Usually, symbolism is used when an author wants to create a

certain mood or emotion in a work of literature. Poet uses symbolism to represent other concepts

or ideas in order to convey a deeper meaning. When used properly symbolism can enhance the

price of writing. For example, William Shakespeare symbolizes the world as a stage. “All the

world stage And all the men and women merely players. Professor of linguistics D.Ashurova

states, “Symbol is a stylistic device functioning in the literary texts as a polyconceptual structure.

It is necessary to underline its conceptual and text-forming functions because symbolic meanings

appear in the text on the basis of frequently repeated keywords.” [Ashurova D.,2016;228]

Symbols play an important role in Khalid Hosseini’s novel The Kite Runner. They are

used as visual representations to reinforce and emphasize important stages and development of

the book. As we readers witness major events of Afghan history and socio-political events such

as the fall of the glorious days of the Afghan monarchy, the Soviet invasion, and the rise of the

Taliban, we notice through the eyes of two Afghani boys Amir and Hassan that symbolism

becomes a distinctive feature. The monster in the lake, the kite, the kite contest, the pomegranate

tree --- highlights particular key moments in the story. Gradually, as these two boys’ lives begin

to fall apart, partially because of the political upheavals in Afghanistan and partially because of
 2

their own choices, symbolism becomes a powerful tool in the hands of Hosseini who uses it to

the fullest to reveal moral weaknesses and working of the human psyche.

The monster of the lake is the most unique symbol of The kite Runner. The monster in

the lake is a way that represents the way in which Amir tries to deceive himself of the truth as he

tries to isolate himself from the past and his memory of Hasan. Amis has felt an inability to show

his true emotions for a good portion of his life. In universality, the monster in the lake represents

the fact to what lengths an individual can go to bury their emotions away regarding something

unpleasant that happened in the past, they can deceive themselves by creating another scenario

that took place or assuming another identity. It symbolizes local teenage gang leader Assef who

raped Hassan. The monster of the lake also symbolizes Amir’s jealousy. Besides, Amir might be

the monster because he cannot help Hasan while raped by Assef. The monster in the lake also

symbolizes the fear of starting anything. Khalid Hossaini uses all the symbols with several

meanings.

Kites are the most important material in The Kite story. According to David kippen “Kite

running” is “a kite runner is a sort of spotter in the ancient sport of kite fighting. In a kite fight,

competitors coat their kite strings in glue and ground glass, the better to cut their rivals’

moorings. While the fighter’s kite is swooping and feinting in an effort to rule the skies, his kite-

running partner is racing to own the streets, chasing down all their opponents’ unmoored, sinking

trophies.”[Bloom, Harold.,2009;49] Moreover, Rebecca Stuhr provides with the following

definition of the “kite fighting”: The traditional Afghan sport of kite fighting or gudiparan Bazi

was banned along with other activities and forms of celebration under the Taliban. Usually, there

is a kite flyer and someone who holds the drum with the wire and who advises the flyer on when

to let out more wire. This wire is often coated with ground glass. The fight takes place when two
 3

kites come into contact. The victor in the fight cuts the wire of the opponent. A runner will then

chase after the severed kite. The retrieved kite is kept as a trophy. [Stuhr, Rebecca.,2009;29].

Kite suggests several symbolic meanings. The kite symbolizes hope for Amir as it is the only

source that can prove him before Baba. For Baba, the kite symbolizes happiness about his son’s

bravery. In relation to Amir and Hasan, it stands for Amir’s guilt because when Hasan runs to

bring Amir the kite he is raped by Assef and Amir watches him but does nothing for him. The

kite also symbolizes the Afghan culture of kite running. The kite fighting symbolizes the

dichotomy between beauty and violence, simultaneously representing Afghanistan and the half-

brothers, Amir and Hasan.

The pomegranate tree is a food source, playhouse, and refuge for Amir and Hasan and in

this way, it symbolizes the beautiful days of their friendship. It also symbolizes the earlier

situation of Afghanistan when it was a peaceful country. It also suggests Hassan’s loyalty to

Amir when Amir throws a pomegranate at Hasan and screams “hit me back”. Hasan picks end up

a pomegranate and rubs it in his own face.

Khaled Hosseini amazed everyone with the use of symbols in The Kite Runner. The

magical use of different symbols in the kite runner makes it a fabulous fictional work. Now we

can claim that symbols are the secret recipe behind every single successful literary work. Khaled

Hosseini an Afghan-born American writer creatively uses symbolism to lead the reader to dive in

the deep sea of The Kite Runner. A great deal of the charm of the novel lies in Hosseini’s ability

to draw a parallelism between the symbols and scenes. He carefully intertwines within the text

objects, speeches, and even dreams to convey a moral message and deepen his characters.
 4

Work Cited

Bloom, Harold. “Bloom’s Guides: The Kite Runner.” Infobase Publishing, 2009.

Frye, H.N. “Anatomy of Criticism: Four Essays”, Princeton University Press, 1957.

Hosseini, Khaled. “The Kite Runner.” Riverhead Books, 2003.

Hower, Edward. “The Servant (‘The Kite Runner’).” New York Times, book review, 108,2003.

Peter Childs, Roger Fowler. “ The Routledge Dictionary of Literary Terms.” Routledge, 2006.

Stuhr, Rebecca. “Reading Khaled Hosseini.” Greenwood Press, 2009.