The Kite Runner - Deep Thoughts Essay Example for Free

The Kite Runner Deep Thoughts Essay Guilt is an emotional experience when a person believes or realizes that they have done an unethical action. Many people regard guilt as an unnecessary, even harmful, emotion. Contrary to popular opinion, guilt can be a good emotion. Without guilt, individuals might lack the motivation to act morally. Guilt plays a major role in The Kite Runner, Amir attempts to redeem himself by his feelings of guilt. One of the positive attributes of guilt is that guilt teaches us not to make the same mistake twice. Making mistakes is part of being human, but it is the guilt we feel which prevents us from repeating our mistakes. If a student plagiarizes, then they would feel guilty. Guilt tells the student that this behavior is wrong because we have broken the trust of the teacher. Regardless of whether or not the student gets caught, the guilt prevents him or her from plagiarizing again. In The Kite Runner, Amir often treats Hassan as if he was only a servant rather than a friend. Despite this mistreatment, Hassan remains loyal to Amir and his family throughout the novel. Eventually, this combination makes Amir feel awfully guilty. Amir does not want to repeat his mistake with how he treats Hassan’s son, Sohrab. He said to Soharb,â€Å"Assef hurt your father in a really bad way, and I couldn’t save your father the way your father saved me†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. I won’t hurt you, I promise (pg. 344).† Amir has implies to Sohrab that he had done an action sinful to Hassan. Guilt has changed the characteristics of Amir from a selfish person to a more caring human being. Another honorable characteristic of guilt is that it motivates us human beings to complete a task. Guilt is a motivator because we are motivated to act in order to make ourselves feel better about our transgression. If a student does not complete their homework, they would feel guilty because it is our duty and obligation to complete what we are intended to accomplish. With a low guilt score, we would not be driven to do anything because nothing is actually necessary or our responsiblity to be done. Amir, in The Kite Runner, is motivated by guilt to save Sohrab, who is an orphan in the war-zone Kabul. Without the motivation of guilt, Amir would not act on the rescue because it is not his duty plus it is possible for others to complete the burden for him. â€Å"There is a way to be good again. A way to end the cycle. With a boy. An orphan. Hassan’s son. Somewhere in Kabul.(pg. 245)† Clearly, Amir feels guilt of the action he has done to Hassan. Because of the guilt, Amir would want to redeem himself after doing a sinful deed. Rescuing Sohrab was â€Å"the way to be good again.† Although the feeling of guilt is a virtuous nature, too much of guilt would be paralyzing to an individual. Just like every other emotion, too much reaction leads to a psychological malady. Too much of guilt creates distorted thinking, the inability to perform tasks and other physical diseases. General Taheri, from The Kite Runner, meets this description perfectly. General Taheri was a high-ranked general back in Afghanistan. After the Soviet War of Afghanistan started, he fled from home to America. This action has build up the guilt within him because he had turned down on his country when the country needed him the most. â€Å"The general believes that Afghanistan would be freed. So every day, he donned his gray suit, wound his pocket watch, and waited (pg.191)† The believed excess guilt causes the general to escape reality. General Taheri goes to the flee market every day just so it seems like home, he does not have a job so he only receives welfare from the government, and he has headaches monthly and locks himself in his room. These all mostly symptoms of excess guilt. Guilt is rather a good characteristic than a harmful one, even though, there is a limit to positive guilt. The novel, The Kite Runner, has demonstrated to us various ways on how guilt could be a righteous nature. â€Å"A way to be good again†, the most well known quote from the novel is create by the guilt that has brought to all of us. The novel lacks its significance without the essence of guilt. Reference: Hosseini, Khaled. Chapter 13. The Kite Runner. Riverhead Mass-market International Edition ed. New York: Riverhead, 2007. 191. Print. Hosseini, Khaled. Chapter 18. The Kite Runner. Riverhead Mass-market International Edition ed. New York: Riverhead, 2007. 245. Print. Hosseini, Khaled. Chapter 24. The Kite Runner. Riverhead Mass-market International Edition ed. New York: Riverhead, 2007. 344. Print.