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Setting
Definition of Simile
A simile is a figure of speech that directly compares two unlike things. To make the comparison, similes most often use the connecting words "like" or "as," but can also... read full definition
A simile is a figure of speech that directly compares two unlike things. To make the comparison, similes most often use the connecting words "like... read full definition
A simile is a figure of speech that directly compares two unlike things. To make the comparison, similes most often... read full definition
Chapter 1
Explanation and Analysis—San Francisco:
In the novel’s first chapter, Hosseini uses visual imagery of bright daytime beauty and a simile comparing kites to eyes looking over the city to connect Amir’s present life in San Francisco to his childhood memories of Kabul:
[…] I went for a walk along Spreckels Lake on the northern edge of Golden Gate Park. The early-afternoon sun sparkled on the water where dozens of miniature boats sailed, propelled by a crisp breeze. Then I glanced up and saw a pair of kites, red with long blue tails, soaring in the sky. They danced high above the trees on the west end of the park, over the windmills, floating side by side like a pair of eyes looking down on San Francisco, the city I now call home.
The bright daytime imagery of the sparkling water and crisp breeze blowing through San Francisco gives the reader a feeling that the city is a clean and peaceful place. Although they have heard very little about the Kabul of Amir’s childhood at this point, the author makes sure to depict San Francisco as an idyllic place to have ended up. These vivid details later show how different Amir’s current American setting is compared to the Kabul of his childhood memories.
The simile comparing the kites Amir sees flying to a pair of eyes connects his American surroundings back to his memories. The “eyes” of the kites suggest watchfulness. It’s as if his past in Afghanistan still observes and overlooks him no matter where he is. This link between the kites and a sense of being watched hints at Amir’s tendency to brood on the past and to be introspective. Even in a place as far from Kabul as San Francisco, reminders of his past still populate his everyday moments.
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Chapter 3
Explanation and Analysis—The Lake :
As Amir flashes back to an idyllic childhood picnic with Baba, Hosseini uses visual imagery and a simile to show how fondly Amir remembers the moment:
We sat at a picnic table on the banks of the lake, just Baba and me, eating boiled eggs with kofta sandwiches—meatballs and pickles wrapped in naan. The water was a deep blue and sunlight glittered on its looking glass–clear surface. On Fridays, the lake was bustling with families out for a day in the sun.
The visual imagery describing the “deep blue” lake water and the “glittering” sunlight paints a very sensory scene for Hosseini’s reader. It’s one of the few memories Amir has where he feels like he and Baba were a family like all the others “out for a day in the sun.” The memory feels full of life and warmth because Amir’s mind clings to every detail to keep it alive. The way he describes the sunlight “glittering” on the water adds a dreamlike quality to the flashback.
The other simile—comparing the lake’s surface to a looking glass— adds to this fairy-tale, dreamy vision. In Amir’s memory the water is perfectly still and calm, like a mirror reflecting his perfect day. In contrast to the insecurity and anxiety that shapes much of his relationship with Baba, this moment is a rare instance of peace and happiness.
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Explanation and Analysis—Thundering Baba:
When he is first describing his father, Amir uses hyperbole and a simile comparing people to sunflowers to show Baba’s overwhelming strength and authority:
My father was a force of nature, a towering Pashtun specimen with a thick beard, a wayward crop of curly brown hair as unruly as the man himself, hands that looked capable of uprooting a willow tree, and a black glare that would “drop the devil to his knees begging for mercy,” as Rahim Khan used to say. At parties, when all six-foot-five of him thundered into the room, attention shifted to him like sunflowers turning to the sun.
Baba is a “force of nature,” a huge person with a huge personality who absolutely dominates everything around him. The simile comparing people’s reactions to “sunflowers turning to the sun” highlights Baba’s natural ability to command a room. Just as sunflowers instinctively turn their faces toward sunlight, people instinctively focus their attention on Baba. This comparison shows the pull of Baba’s energy. His presence demands attention wherever he goes.
Amir expands on this with hyperbolic descriptions of Baba’s looks. Although it’s clearly an exaggeration, he describes Baba’s hands as strong enough to “uproot a willow tree” and his glare as being powerful enough to “drop the devil to his knees.” These images make the "six-foot-five" Baba seem even larger and stronger than he really is.
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Chapter 4
Explanation and Analysis—Buried Treasure:
After he “reads” to his friend, Amir feels thrilled that Hassan prefers his made-up story over the ones from his favorite book. Hosseini uses two similes to show Amir’s intense excitement and sense of his future unfolding after this happens:
Fascinating, I repeated, a little breathless, feeling like a man who discovers a buried treasure in his own backyard. Walking down the hill, thoughts were exploding in my head like the fireworks at Chaman. Best story you’ve read me in a long time, he’d said. I had read him a lot of stories.
The first simile in this passage compares Amir to a man who finds treasure in his own backyard. Just like someone who stumbles across unexpected riches on their own property, Amir realizes that his ability to tell stories is a valuable talent. The fact that Hassan liked the story better than the ones from his favorite book plants the first seeds of confidence about his talent. It gives him a rare, private sense of accomplishment. This accomplishment feels even more special because it comes from Hassan’s innocent praise. He knows Hassan means what he says because the other boy has no idea the story was Amir’s.
The second simile compares his thoughts to exploding fireworks, which shows how quickly and overwhelmingly Amir’s excitement grows after Hassan’s praise. The image of fireworks suggests a riot of bright lights and chaotic noises, which reflects the cacophony happening in his brain. This compliment means more to him than any other he has ever received.
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Chapter 5
Explanation and Analysis—Assef Khan:
As Amir describes his schoolmate Assef, he uses a simile and an allusion comparing the other boy to a Khan to highlight his dominance and sense of self-importance:
Born to a German mother and Afghan father, the blond, blue-eyed Assef towered over the other kids. His well-earned reputation for savagery preceded him on the streets. Flanked by his obeying friends, he walked the neighborhood like a Khan strolling through his land with his eager-to-please entourage.
An Afghan Khan was a tribal or military leader who held absolute power and authority in the area they ruled. Khans, who ruled from ancient times in Afghanistan to the beginnings of the 20th century, were the final arbiters of the law. They acted as both judges and rulers within their territories. By comparing Assef to a Khan surrounded by “obeying friends,” Amir shows the way Assef dominates his peers. The boys who Assef spends time with are more like an “eager-to-please” entourage than a group of friends. The allusion to Afghanistan’s history of rule by Khans shows Assef’s unchecked power over Amir, Hassan, and his other classmates. Amir presents this boy, with his “well-earned reputation for savagery,” not as an ordinary bully but as a tyrant within their small world. This comparison makes Assef's childish dominance feel larger and more dangerous than it truly is. It also foreshadows Assef’s extreme cruelty as an adult, which Amir encounters again when he returns to Afghanistan to rescue Sohrab from him.
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Chapter 24
Explanation and Analysis—Sour Apples:
When Amir describes to Sohrab the unpleasant aftereffects of eating too many sour apples, he creates an allegory that illustrates the importance of patience:
One time, when I was really little, I climbed a tree and ate these green, sour apples. My stomach swelled and became hard like a drum, it hurt a lot. Mother said that if I’d just waited for the apples to ripen, I wouldn’t have become sick. So now, whenever I really want something, I try to remember what she said about the apples.
Eating sour, unripe apples can cause a nasty stomachache because they contain more acid (and harder-to-digest starches) than ripe ones. Amir’s stomach is so swollen after he eats the apples that it becomes tight and hard, like a drum. It’s a sharp, physical image of regret, which his mother drives home by reminding him he could have avoided it had he waited for the apples to ripen. Amir remembers how painful the consequences of eating the sour apples were, and he uses that childhood memory to remind him to exercise patience when necessary. Thinking of his mother’s admonition about the apples helps him step back and consider the potential consequences of a choice when he’s feeling impatient.
This memory ties impatience to direct negative outcomes. Amir realizes that rushing into something can be harmful, while waiting can sometimes avert suffering. The story of the apples becomes a simple but lasting allegory for larger decisions Amir faces later in life. Waiting for the “apples” to ripen can help him avoid all sorts of “stomachaches” later on.
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Explanation and Analysis—Swiss Chocolate:
When Amir describes seeing Dr. Nawaz for the first time, he uses a simile comparing Nawab’s smooth, dark skin to Swiss chocolate:
His skin is dark like the imported Swiss chocolate Hassan and I used to buy from the bazaar in Shar-e-Nau; he has thinning hair and hazel eyes topped with curved eyelashes.
Swiss chocolate has a reputation for being very pure and of very high quality. Comparing Nawab’s skin to Swiss chocolate suggests that Amir sees it as rich and smooth with a deep, even color. By linking Nawab’s complexion to a beloved childhood treat, Amir creates an immediate sense of familiarity and comfort with the doctor. The chocolate, which Amir remembers sharing happily with Hassan, is associated with some of his most pleasant childhood memories. This shapes Amir’s first impression of Nawaz as welcoming, even though he's afraid of the news about Sohrab the doctor may be there to deliver. The comparison also shows the way Amir's memories of childhood still color his view of new experiences as an adult. Even as an adult waking up in a hospital, small sensory details like the color of someone's skin can teleport Amir back into safer, more innocent times.
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Explanation and Analysis—Black Sorrow:
After he discovers Sohrab’s attempted suicide, Amir uses a simile comparing sorrow to a black night and describes grief as a physical invasion to describe his overwhelming sadness:
I picture Sohrab’s face, the pointed meaty chin, his small seashell ears, his slanting bamboo-leaf eyes so much like his father’s. A sorrow as black as the night outside invades me, and I feel my throat clamping.
The image of sorrow as “black as the night” creates a feeling of total darkness and suffocation in this scene. At this point in the novel Sohrab believes he’s going to be put in an orphanage and abandoned by Amir; he attempts suicide to avoid that fate. Amir is horrified and grieved when he discovers what Sohrab has done. By comparing his sadness to the deep, endless black of night, Amir demonstrates how all-encompassing his grief is. It offers no space for hope or escape. In this moment the idea of the night does not offer rest or peace for Amir.
Describing grief as a force that “invades” his body strengthens the reader’s sense that Amir has no control over his emotions at this point. After he hears what happened to Sohrab, sorrow acts on Amir like a natural force. It crosses into his body without permission. It is not just a feeling he’s having, but an affliction that physically changes how he breathes and speaks. The image of his throat “clamping” shows how strong sorrow’s effects are on his body. He is so heartbroken that the dark cloud hanging over him is stopping him from breathing.
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