The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini, although fiction, engages and allows the reader to have an inside view on the Afghani religion and culture. In this novel, I find that culture and religion greatly influence a person’s life, actions, and personal emotions. This idea explains the main injustice that Hosseini presents the reader, conflicts between the religion of the Hazaras and Pashtuns.
In the novel, Amir is the story teller and a Pashtun, while his best friend Hassan is the son of a servant and a Hazara. Hassan also grows up in Amir’s backyard and they spend most of their time playing together, however their difference in religion sets them apart. Hassan’s looks and and social standing are solely because he is a Hazara, and it something that all Hazaras can not stray from. Hasan also is not educated like Amir, and neither Amir nor Hassan question that. Amir however, tries to learn more about the Hazaras by bringing his mother’s book to school. The history of the Hazaras is not taught in school solely because of their beliefs. When Amir showed the history book on the Hazaras to his teacher, he reacted with disgust, “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 one thing Shi’a people do well,’ he said, picking up the papers, ‘passing themselves as martyrs.’ He wrinkled his nose when he said the word Shi’a, like it was some kind of disease” (Hosseini 9-10). This shows the hatred and disgust that the Sunni Muslims have for the Shia, and that the Sunni see the Shia as intruders that don’t belong in Afghanistan.
The Pashtuns are of the Sunni religion whereas the Hazaras are the Shia, however both groups are considered Muslims; this is similar to Protestants and Catholics within Christianity. The Pashtuns have been dominant in Afghanistan and believe that they should be the only ones to reside in Afghanistan, which creates an influx of hatred between the two religions. The Sunni and Shia use the same religious text, the Qur’an, however they have different beliefs about the teachings of Mohammed and later philosophers outside of the Qu’ran. Their major divide is over how leadership of Islam should be determined. They’re very similar in most ways, but just like Catholics and Protestants, they consider their comparatively small differences to be very important.
As a Muslim, I think The Kite Runner accurately describes the divide among the religion of Islam. Many people don’t know that a divide even exists or are very ignorant when it comes to the religion and culture itself. Growing up, I experienced this with my best friend Zainab. Many people grouped us into the same category because we are both Muslim, sometimes even mixing up our names. However, we both practice the religion very differently and have very different perspectives. The Kite Runner emphasizes the divide among the Muslim community that many people might not have seen before reading this book. Sadly, Afghanistan is a place people are familiar with for the wrong reasons, however The Kite Runner shows a different side of the country that you will regret not reading.
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