Hall 1

Jaleise Hall
Smit
12 AP
27 March 2015
Part I: The Pomegranate Tree
WE HARDLY BROKE A SWEAT, Hassan and I, when we hiked up the hill just north of Babas
house. We scampered about the hilltop chasing each other or sat on a sloped ridge where there
was a good view of the airport in the distance. Wed watch airplanes take off and land. Go
running again.
Now, by the time I reached the top of the craggy hill, each ragged breath felt like inhaling
fire. Sweat trickled down my face. I stood wheezing for a while, a stitch in my side. Then I went
looking for the abandoned cemetery. It didnt take me long to find it. It was still there, and so
was the old pomegranate tree.
I leaned against the gray stone gateway to the cemetery where Hassan had buried his
mother. The old metal gates hanging off the hinges were gone, and the headstones were barely
visible through the thick tangles of weeds that had claimed the plot. A pair of crows sat on the
low wall that enclosed the cemetery.
Hassan had said in his letter that the pomegranate tree hadnt borne fruit in years.
Looking at the wilted, leaf-less tree, I doubted it ever would again. I stood under it, remembered
all the times wed climbed it, straddled its branches, our legs swinging, dappled sunlight
flickering through the leaves and casting on our faces a mosaic of light and shadow. The tangy
taste of pomegranate crept into my mouth.

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I hunkered down on my knees and brushed my hands against the trunk. I found what I
was looking for. The caring had dulled, almost faded altogether, but it was still there: Amir and
Hassan. The Sultans of Kabul. I traced the curve of each letter with my fingers. Picked small
bits of bark from the tiny crevasses.
~ Khaled Hosseini, The Kite Runner
In this passage from The Kite Runner, Khaled Hosseini is able to use symbolism and
flashbacks to demonstrate Amirs love for his old friend Hassan.
The pomegranate tree symbolizes many forms of death. Death of friendship was
exhibited with the tree because it was there that Hassan and Amir had their last real conversation
as friends. Amir was angry with himself for failing to save Hassan from being raped by Assef
and also failing to tell anyone what had happened. On that last day of their friendship, Amir
repeatedly threw at Hassan in hopes that Hassan will pelt him with the blood-red fruit as well so
he could get what he deserved for his indecency as a friend. Hassan had said in his letter that
the pomegranate tree hadnt borne fruit in years. Looking at the wilted, leaf-less tree, I doubted
it ever would again (Hosseini 284). On that day, it seems as if the tree began to die along with
Amir and Hassans close friendship as well as with Baba and Alis friendship (Hassan and Amirs
father).
Another form in which the pomegranate tree embodies death is death of Amir. Not only
did his friendship with his illegitimate half-brother, Hassan, die, but a part of him died at the
pomegranate tree as well. The trunk read as carved: Amir and Hassan. The Sultans of Kabul
(Hosseini 284). Everything of Amirs childhood was tainted with the loss of his closeness with

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Hassan and his ongoing failure to tell of what Assef did and to avenge his friend in the way
Hassan had always done for him.
Hosseini opens the passage with a flashback of the times when Hassan Amir hiked up
the hill just north of Babas house and would go to their pomegranate tree (Hosseini 283).
Readers are now able to see Amir lost in moments of nostalgia. This shows how Amir truly
cherished his times with Hassan. Although Hassan was a Hazara and was Amirs servant, it had
not changed the fact that he loved Hassan. In fact, Amirs constant flashbacks throughout the
novel and his feelings of share and regret are proof that Hassan wasnt just a servant to him. As a
child, Amir wasnt able to be a good friend to Hassan but, regardless, he loved Hassan.
Part II: The Literary Canon
The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini is a clear representation of a novel that should be
considered part of the literary canon. This novel exposes readers to a taste of what the Taliban
did in Afghanistan. I feel as if novels based on war, whether they are fiction or non-fiction, are
important to read because people need to know history in order to learn from mistakes.
The Kite Runner should be classifies as worthwhile literature because it not only teaches
a lesson on war but also one on human decency.
Amir agha and I are friends, Hassan said. He looked flushed.
Friends? Assef said, laughing. You pathetic fool! Someday youll
wake up from your little fantasy and learn just how good of a friend he is.
Now, bas! Enough of this. Give us that kite (Hosseini 83).

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Although Amir and Hassan had a definite strong relationship, he was still a Hazara and Amir did
not know how to be a good friend to a Hazara. Through the course of the novel Amir is on a
mission to relieve himself from his guilt of failing to save Hassan the way Hassan would for him.
The novel introduces readers to the brutalities of Afghanistan. Personally, I never really
knew what exactly happened in Afghanistan, but this book was able to give me an idea. Taliban
murdered, stole, raped, and thats just the beginning. I feel that this novel must be considered as
part of the literary cannon because it makes you understand Afghanistan, whether you would like
to or not.
Part III: AP Prompt
People often say that history has a funny way of repeating itself. If actions are not resolved
initially it is found to be difficult to prevent them from reoccurring. Write about a novel in which
history repeats itself and analyze the ways in which the author utilizes this to develop a theme.

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Work Cited
Hosseini, Khaled. The Kite Runner. New York: Riverhead, 2003. Print.