Baba And Amir Character Analysis

Baba and Amir's foil is shown throughout the novel, but you can already identify many differences at the beginning of the book when they lived in Kabul. Although, they also do have a few similarities. They are similar because they are father and son and share similar characterises. Baba and Amir both grew up wealthy as they are Pashtuns. Amir and Baba both hold hard secrets and live their life filled with guilt. Baba holds the secret that Hassan is his son to protect his social status in society, Amir hides Hassans rape and keeps it to himself and pretends it did not happen. Moreover, their best friends are their servants. In addition, both Amir and Baba show an act of kindness and generosity in the novel. Baba builds an orphanage, while Amir

Baba’s favorite topics are politics, business, and soccer. On the other hand, Amir is weak, insecure, and timid. He likes to read and write stories instead of going outside and playing sports. Amir is not very close to his religion and culture like Baba is; the only piece of culture that Baba and Amir share a passion for is the kite flying tournament. Amir is hesitant and does not stand up for something even if he knows it is the right thing to do. Amir’s lack of courage is shown when Hassan is raped by Assif and Amir becomes a bystander and does not help Hassan. Baba, on the other hand, is very brave and valiant. He shows his courage when he defends the helpless woman on the refugee truck and threatens the Russian soldier. When Baba stands up for the lady, Amir tries to stop him because he thinks that Baba will get hurt by the Russian soldiers. Amir says “Baba, sit down please,” as he tugs on his sleeve. “I think he really means to shoot you.” Baba slaps Amir’s hand away and says “Haven't I taught you anything?" (Hosseini 116). This shows that Baba stands up for something if he thinks its right and just, while Amir stands down and avoids