Both Ali and Hassan have facial deformities which affect their speech- what message

does this depict?

The facial deformities symbolise Ali and Hassan’s lower class status; due to their lack of power in society, they do not have the freedom to express
their own voice, especially after being oppressed by the Taliban. This physical trait that most Hazaras could not afford to fix suggest how their fate
of being marginalized is already predetermined before birth
 Starter: "Father says dreams always mean something." Hassan about Ali (beginning chapter 7)

1)What is a bildungsroman novel

2) What is the significance of dreams in Islam
3) The novel begins with a flashback- what does this retrospective flashback signify about the
events of the novel? -What does this flashback reveal about Amir(what do you learn about him)?

Objectives: To analyse the significance of dreams

and flashbacks as a motif in The Kite Runner
1. Bildungsroman: It is a genre of novel that follows a protagonist growth from childhood to adulthood, the challenges
faced by the character that affects their journey to maturity is often depicted
2. Dreaming in Islam is interpreted as something that is dependent on a person’s life circumstances, the personal
characteristics of the dreamer along with the actual meaning of the dream. Dreams are often divided into three
categories: the righteous dream which are believed to be from Allah, symbolises good vision; the bad dreams which
causes sadness is from Shaitan, and also dreams from the ramblings of the mind.
3. The flashback sets a reflective tone to the novel, which hints at a tragic event in Amir’s past that continues to shape his
present. This allows the readers to perceive his internal conflicts which drives him to embark on a journey for
atonement.
1. What are dreams?
2. Why do we have them?
3. How does stress affect dreams?
4. There is a duality of dreams in The Kite Runner- Amir dreams of the past and has
nightmares. What is metaphorical about his dreaming of the past (what is the
deeper meaning behind it) and why does he fade into flashbacks throughout the
novel?
5. Chapter 7 begins with Hassan telling Amir about his dream (The monster in the
lake pg 48) - what is significant about this dream.(next slide to help)
1. Dreams are images and experiences people have while they sleep. The contents of dreams are unique to the individual. They
combine fragments of a person’s experiences, worries, and waking thoughts into new scenarios.
2. Dreams have the ability to engage with and rehearse feelings in different imagined contexts may be part of the brain’s method for
managing emotions. Dream content may be a form of distorted instant replay in which recent events are reviewed and analyzed.
3. Dreams are often a manifestation of anxiety and stress often occurring in a symbolic and exaggerated way. These are typically
triggered by unprocessed emotions and also stressful or even traumatic real-life events.
4. Amir’s dreaming of the past firstly represents the lingering impacts of guilt on his psyche, particularly his betrayal of Hassan.
However, it is also a metaphorical manifestation of Amir's yearning for redemption. His subconscious mind, through these
dreams, may be prompting him to confront and reconcile with the past. The high frequency of his dreams underscores the idea
that the past is not neatly confined to a specific time frame but can also shape the present.
5. In Hassan’s dream, Amir is portrayed as a hero who defies everyone’s preconceptions that there is a monster in the lake; however
in reality, he is the complete opposite. His unassertive nature results in Hassan being ‘dragged to the murky bottom’ of the lake,
symbolising the monstrosity of Amir’s betrayal. The bottom of the lake marks Hassan’s loss of innocence. The lake is also
renamed by Hassan as ‘Lake of Amir and Hassan, Sultans of Kabul’, signifying how it like a sanctuary for their enduring
friendship, however Amir the monster, destroyed the serenity of the location and sabotaged their relationship.
On the morning of the big kite-fighting tournament, Hassan tells Amir about a dream
he had about the two of them at Lake Ghargha. In the dream there is a huge crowd
of people who are all afraid to swim because there is supposedly a monster in the
lake. Then Amir and Hassan jump into the lake and swim across, proving that there
is no monster after all, and the people cheer and rename the lake “Lake of Amir and
Hassan, Sultans of Kabul.” Amir wonders if Hassan invented the dream to cheer him
up because of his nervousness, as Hassan later tells him “There’s no monster, just a
beautiful day.” The tragedy of this is that later that same day Hassan gets raped by
Assef. There was a monster after all, but the novel allows for several interpretations
of just what the monster in the lake could be – Assef, Amir’s jealousy and desire for
Baba’s approval, or Amir himself.
When Assef has Hassan cornered Amir is watching and describing what is going on.
Then the narrative breaks, and two memories and a dream are inserted. The first
memory was Ali telling Amir that he and Hassan fed from the same breast. The second,
and longer memory, is a visit to a fortune teller who seemingly knows of Hassan's
horrific future, so instead of sharing it with him, he give Hassan his money back. In the
dream, Amir is lost in a snowstorm. A hand reaches to guide him and leads Amir to
safety.
- Page 62

What is significant about this flashback/daydream?

1. Amir narrates the rape scene in a dream-like style perhaps to emphasises how unreal it is to him. He mentions in the
dream that ‘he is lost in a snowstorm’. This is symbolic of his turmoil, and how is desperate for someone that will
guide him through his relentless guilt of not protecting Hassan. Moreover, the fortune teller returning the money to
Amir is also significant, because he could foresee Hassan being mistreated by him; this haunts Amir’s psyche because
he is terrified of someone finding out about his betrayal.
2. Amir is paralyzed after witnessing Hassan’s rape. The memories and the dream are perhaps ways to calm his nerves
from the traumatic event, or it could be a representation of how his mind has become distorted and unable to function,
which results in him seeing flashbacks.
3. Redemption - When Amir is beaten by Assef, he says that he ‘felt healed’ even though he suffering from physical
pain.
Guilt - After the rape, Amir reflects on Hassan’s dream and realised that he is the ‘monster in the lake’
Loss of innocence - Hassan is being associated to a sacrificial lamb in the rape scene and also how the narrative shifts
to describing the procedure of slaughtering a lamb.
During Hassan’s attack Amir escapes into a daydream. What is significant about this
(page 64) ?

Why does Amir think of other memories/daydream when Hassan is being raped?

List an example in the novel where these themes are elicited.

Redemption

Guilt

Loss of Innocence
Why does Amir revert into a state of dreaming/flashbacking memory- quote and
also explore language used
1. The use of the first-person perspective ‘I’ immediately establishes that the story will be a personal reflection of Amir's
life, suggesting a journey of self-discovery and growth. The mention of a "frigid overcast day" evokes a sense of
coldness and gloom. This choice of weather sets a somber mood, hinting that the events to be described may not be
positive or joyful. The vivid metaphor of the past "clawing its way out" conveys the forceful and persistent nature of
memories and past experiences. It implies that despite attempts to bury or forget, the past has a way of resurfacing,
demanding attention and acknowledgment.
2. The specific age of twelve and the winter of 1975 repeated in both the opening and closing line provide a temporal
setting, anchoring the narrative in a particular time frame. This choice suggests that the events that unfold during this
period will have a lasting impact on Amir's life. The past tense of ‘I became’ reinforces the crucial role in which Amir’s
childhood plays in his present self - he longs for a time when his relationships were simpler and untarnished by
betrayal, therefore both lines can be seen as a yearning for the innocence of childhood .
Compare the opening
and closing lines of
Chapter 1 - lines mirror
each other- dramatic
pairing, emphasises
the changing life
trajectory and the
dichotomy of how he
lives in the past