Maya's Second Reaction

          A couple pages after last week’s stopping point of page 40, the reader is given a gentle reminder as to how after years and years, human nature remains the same. Assef, the half german boy, torments poor Hassan for being different. This, unfortunately, is a habit that humans have not outgrown. Assef also even goes as far as saying that he will take Nazi Germany’s school of thought and employ it in Afghanistan by ridding the country of all Hazara. He says that it may be “too late” for Adolf Hitler but that does not mean it is too late for him. In my opinion, Assef admonishes Hassan for  no reason. Being Hazara is something Hassan has no control over. I also believe that Assef is the last person in Afghanistan who should think in this way. He, himself, is an outsider. His mother is from an entirely different part of the world. Since he is half german, he has the stereotypical arian features: blue eyes and blonde hair. The majority of the people in Afghanistan do not look this way. Hassan and Amir, even Assef’s “posse”, could easily make fun of him for having a different physical appearance then the rest of them. 

         At first, I somewhat lost sympathy for Amir for a little bit towards the end of chapter five. Amir expressed how he was slightly peeved by the fact that Hassan received a very sentimental and emotional birthday gift from Baba. He said that he only got the present because of his “stupid harelip”. Initially, I was upset by Amir’s comment. After stepping back from the situation, it made me ask, “Has Baba ignored and alienated Amir for so long that he is desperate enough to behave in this way?” While Amir should not have thought his snarky remark, he is still relatively young. Therefore, his judgement probably has not developed enough for him to realize that this is wrong. 

         As I continue reading, I realize that there is another reason why I, including many of my other classmates, enjoy this book. Hosseini, even though his characters are experiencing their childhood in an entirely different country and time period, is able to recreate through his writing all of the sensations one feels during those typical childhood moments. I think that the reader is able to relate to the happiness Amir and Hassan experience while doing things like reading exciting stories or climbing trees.