Chapter 15

Amir arrives in Peshawar in Pakistan. He gets in a taxi, and the driver, called Gholam, tells him about the brutality of the Taliban. He begins to describe the area, and we see the contrast between the two cultures, this and the American culture. He also has another the analepsis to the time that him and Baba left Kabul, the last time he saw Rahim Khan. He says that Baba cried softly, which really juxtaposes against the imagery of him being a bear, as he seems a lot weaker here.

When he arrives to the area that Rahim is living in now, it is described as "creaky" and "dim". This could be seen as foreshadowing the meeting of Rahim Khan, and how is now presented. When they first meet, Amir describes it as "Then, a thing made of skin and bones pretending to be Rahim Khan opened the door.". This shows how ill Rahim is, and how much has changed in the past years that they haven't seen each other. It makes him appear weaker, even though Amir always thought of him as being strong as he was older and a close friend of Baba's. They start talking, and Rahim tells Amir how the Taliban is "much worse" than it has been told to be. They continue talking and Amir tells him about life in America, how he has a wife, how he is writing, and how they can unfortunately not have children, to which Rahim Khan does not pester for more details.

There is a lot of political details in this chapter, about how the Northern Alliance took over Kabul between 1992 and 1996, and how you could risk walking from place to place for the risk of getting shot or blown up was high. Amir questions Rahim to why he did not leave. "Kabul is my home. It still is" he replies. Rahim goes onto describe the street from Amir's old house to the Qishla, and Amir remembers the time that him and Hassan had crossed it, and Hassan had got teased about his mother. Amir had comforted him, saying he put his arm around him. This shows the brotherly love, and could be foreshadowing what Amir finds out in a few chapters time.

The Taliban came into Kabul in 1996 and "kicked out the Alliance". Rahim says how people celebrated, and how they thought the constant fighting would be over and done with. Amir also finds out that the Alliance had destroyed the Orphanage that Baba had built, which shows the power of them, as Baba seems to be the most powerful force so far in the novel.

Rahim is dyeing, and it is very obvious, as Amir picks up on the coughing and blood on his handkerchief, with the colour imagery of the red coming in again, and this time possibly foreshadowing the danger. Amir tries to persuade Rahim to come home to America with him, to find new treatments, but Rahim declines, saying he doesn't have long left to live anyway, and it cannot be cured.

Rahim then comes onto the subject of why he brought Amir here, he wants him to do something for him, but first must tell him about Hassan. Amir agrees to listen, and Rahim gets ready to start the story.