An Analysis Of The Kite Runner From The Perspective Of Initiation Story

Khaled Hosseini (1965-), an Afghan-born American, is an outstandingcontemporary writer. As a novelist, he published his first novel The Kite Runner in June2003, which makes him raise to fame overnight. Since its publication, the novel hasdrawn a great attention from the readers and critics. Having been translated into55different languages and published in70countries, the novel has received many rewards.It has been on the New York Times bestseller for over5years and has climbed up theAmazon bestseller for more than131weeks. Meanwhile, the novel has become therecommended book of American Library Association and the best choice of French BookClub. In2007, the novel has been adapted into a film of the same name. His second novelA Thousand Splendid Suns has been published. In2008, Khaled Hosseini was awardedthe world’s bestselling writer.The Kite Runner tells a story of a young man’s initiation journey from innocence tomaturity in the first person point of view, in which the protagonist Amir and Hassan arethe two main characters. Up till now，many scholars have studied the novel from thefollowing perspectives: religious disputes, racial discrimination, the images of kite,portrait of Hassan, betrayal and redemption and narrative strategies, etc. Even if there area variety of topics in the novel, the initiation theme which runs throughout the novelshould be paid special attention to. The initiation theme of the novel is embodied in theprotagonist Amir’s growing process and his transformation from an innocent boy to agrown-up man after overcoming the darkness of human nature.As a specific literary genre, initiation story first roots in Germany and then gets welldeveloped in the field of literature all over the world. Generally speaking, an initiationstory often tells about a young man’s growing process from immaturity to maturity bothmentally and physically. Since initiation into adulthood is a crucial part in one’s life, thiskind of novels are often educational and may arouse a young man’s desire to be a betterperson. Initiation is a general cultural phenomenon and an important life stage of aperson. Therefore, it deserves researchers’ great attention.Taking the English edition of The Kite Runner as its subject of analysis, this thesisintends to analyze it from the perspective of initiation story and explore how the growing process of the protagonist in the novel correspond to the features of this specific literarygenre. The Kite Runner is a typical initiation story since the novel inherits the archetypalcharacteristics of an initiation story in terms of contents, characters as well as structure.Through exploring the growing experiences and redemption journey of the protagonist,this thesis also describes how the protagonist comprehends his old mistakes, overcomeshis flaws and fulfills his initiation both mentally and physically. In addition, thesymbolism is an important factor in the novel which will be further discussed in thethesis.This thesis can be divided into three parts: the introduction part, the main body andthe conclusion part. Its main contents are as follows:The first part is the introduction part. Firstly, it introduces the life experiences ofKhaled Hosseini and the story of The Kite Runner in brief. Secondly, it makes a briefintroduction to the background of the novel-Afghanistan. Thirdly, it summarizes theliterary reviews on the novel both domestically and overseas. Fourthly, it puts forwardthe writing purpose and practical significance of this thesis.The second part is the main body, which consists of four chapters:Chapter I is the theoretical principle of this thesis. Firstly, it presents the origin anddevelopment of initiation story, including its origin in Germany, popularity in Britain andsuccession in America. Secondly, it introduces various kinds of definitions and generalfeatures of an initiation story in terms of contents, characteristics as well as structure.Thirdly, it gives the judgment of The Kite Runner as an initiation story.Chapter II discusses how The Kite Runner embodies the important characteristics ofan initiation story from the perspective of content, which will be further discussed fromthe autobiographical components, the initiation process and the conflicts of theprotagonist. The autobiographical components in this novel include two aspects: one isthat the novel’s background is Afghanistan which is also the writer’s hometown; the otheris the protagonist Amir shares the same family background, living environment and lifeexperience with the writer. Then the thesis analyzes the four growing stages of theprotagonist: happy childhood–kite fighting contest–exile into America–new life inAmerica. Finally, in this chapter the thesis shows the conflicts that every protagonist willcome across in an initiation story. Chapter III illustrates how The Kite Runner embodies the important characteristicsof an initiation story from the perspective of characters and explores how they exertinfluence on the protagonist’s growth. The characters in the initiation story can bedivided into three types: positive guides, negative guides and initiation companions. Asthe positive initiation guides, Rahim Khan and Baba set good examples and guide theprotagonist into a right way. As the negative initiation guides, Assef and the racialdiscrimination existed in the public let Amir make the clear comparison between “good”and “bad”. Hassan, Soraya and Farid serve as the initiation companions who accompanyAmir in the different stages of initiation journey.Chapter IV discusses the novel from the perspective of structure, includingopen-ending, first person point of view and symbolism. The Kite Runner ends with anopen-ending, which leaves much space for the readers to imagine. Then the novel adoptsthe first person point of view which makes the novel more authentic. Finally this novelbegins with the kite and ends with it. The image kite in the novel has enormous symbolicmeanings. The kite is an essential key to the development of the protagonist’s initiation.Besides, it also stands for his frustration and new beginning in his growing process.The last part is the conclusion. It summarizes the previous chapters and points out therealistic meanings and the limitations of this thesis. As a traditional American initiationstory, The Kite Runner has already exceeded European initiation stories and is a furtherdevelopment of conventional American initiation story. Meanwhile, as an adolescent, theinitiation process of the protagonist Amir is significant to all the youths who are stuck inperplexities and confusions. The innovation of the thesis rests with its intention toanalyze The Kite Runner from the perspective of the initiation theme. The studies of theinitiation story will enrich the study of The Kite Runner, enlarge the research scope ofinitiation story as well as benefit the growth of the youths and the development of theliterary research...