Character analysis

Character Analysis - Assef, Wali and Kamal

Assef - The first time we see Assef in The Kite Runner is on page 33, and when Amir sees who it is, he says "my heart dropped". This shows the sense of fear when anyone is in his presence, even if he may not have said or done anything. He also tries to stand up to Assef, when he is bothering him and Hassan in chapter 3, saying "'Let us go Assef' I said, hating the way my voice trembled.". The trembling of his voice, immediately shows us that he is fearful of Assef, and hating the trembling also shows us that he wants to stand up to him. He enjoys beating up other children with his "brass knuckles", the rings he wears on his fingers. He is very racist towards towards Hassan, and never refers to him by his name, only by "Hazara". This shows that he thinks Hassan is not worthy of being called by his real name, and should be labelled because of his religion. He is also very racist towards Ali, Hassan's father, calling him a "slant eyed donkey", because of his mongolian background. He worships Hitler and he says to Amir "About Hitler. Now, there was a leader. A great leader. A man with a vision.". He has a german background from his mother, and has blonde hair and blue eyes, as well as "towering over the other kids". This imagery of his height shows how intimidating he is, and how vulnerable the other children must feel, as he "towers" over them. He enjoys exerting his power over those who are less powerful, and we find this out in chapter 7, when he sexually abuses Hassan. Hassan can not stop the attack, as he has less physical power due to his size, and is also looked down on for being a Hazara.

In chapter 7, he heavily taunts Hassan before the assault. He says that he is willing to forgive Hassan, and gets his friends to back him up, saying that although he is willing, "nothing in life comes for free". Assef compares Hassan to a dog, which shows what he thinks of him, much much lower down than him and not valued as a human being, just an animal, without the same rights. He is also very easy at getting to people with his words. He calls Hassan a "pathetic fool" for thinking that Amir is his friend, and tries to persuade him that Amir would never do the same for Hassan, by not giving up the kite.

Wali - Wali is a follower of Assif, and along with Kamal, back up what Assef says. We do not get as much detail about Wali as we do Assef, and this immediately shows us that Assef is the dominant figure, someone everyone knows about. There is not any speech from him in chapter 3, but he comes more into a speaking part in chapter 7. He is not independent though, and only backs up what Assef has to say, thinking nothing for himself, for example repeating the "nothing is free". He never speaks when he wants to, he has to wait for Assef to finish speaking, or make his point before he just backs him up. Although just before the assault, Wali does not want to partake, saying "My father says it is sinful.". This is quite ironic, that they will pick on someone for their faith, but never break their own faith, which is exactly what they are taunting Hassan for, and trying to make him do. He does not want to upset Assef, and does not stand up for his own opinion, and instead lets him go on with the rape, without stopping him.

Kamal - Kamal is another one of Assef's followers, and he helps him rape Hassan, by holding him down, even though he doesn't really want to be involved. When Kamal backs Assef up, he says "That's generous, especially after the rude manners he showed us last time". He is trying to be like Assef, and the narrator puts this in, saying "He was trying to sound like Assef, except there was a tremor in his voice". This shows that he doesn't have the confidence of Assef, and instead takes a sideline role. Then Amir goes on to say "Then I understood. He wasn't afraid of Hassan, not really. He was afraid because he had no idea what Assef had on his mind.". This shows that even though he is meant to be "friends" with Assef, there is still no trust or certainty around each other. He feels like Assef has control over him