Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Kite Runner: Children Aren't Coloring Books
One of my favorite quotations in these first few chapters is the statement made by Rahim Kahn. When Baba, Amir's father, complains to Rahim that Amir is not the kind of boy he expected to have as a son, Rahim Kahn replies, "Children aren't coloring books. You don't get to fill them with your favorite colors." Parents are often guilty of this. They project their own wants or needs onto their children and rather than helping them find their own paths in life, they push their children along a path of their own design. This only makes people unhappy. The children either live lives that are not truly their own or they live their lives feeling they aren't really worthy of their parents' love and respect. Do you agree or disagree with Rahim Kahim? Please support your position with a text-to-text or text-to-self connection. Don't forget to use some specific details from both Kite Runner and another text or your own life.
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I definitely agree with Rahim Khan when he tries to tell Baba that he cannot force Amir to be the person he wants him to be and that Amir must follow his own path. This is extremely similar to the situation in Things Fall Apart with Okonkwo and Nwoye. Okonkwo and Baba are both strong, wealthy, well-respected men whose sons, Nwoye and Amir, do not necessarily carry the same qualities. Because they are so disappointed with this fact, they do not give their sons any of the love or affection they crave. Both Baba and Okonkwo fail to see what is wrong with this, and their sons become more and more estranged from their fathers instead of having good, respectful relationships with them.
ReplyDeleteI definitely agree with Rahim Khan’s statement that, "Children aren't coloring books. You don't get to fill them with your favorite colors." Many times people want their children to be just like them. I am guessing that people might fear that their children are not going to be what they dreamed of them to be. In my opinion I think it’s rather stupid that a parent would want their child to be a certain way. I understand a good behavior but to control how their personalities and abilities are is just ludicrous. A connection that I have is the fact that Baba, just like Okonkwo, wants his son to be like him. Baba yells at Amir and says, “Haven’t I taught you anything?” when he ask his father to back down during a confrontation. Okonkwo beats Nwoye for crying when Ikemefuna is killed. Both fathers are tough and confident men. Their sons are described as weak. Lastly both fathers are blind to see how much their sons love them and want to please them no matter how feeble they seem. However I am a person that fully supports the idea of being an individual, to stand out. There is only one of every person in this world. Who wants to be the same as the next person! Not I.
ReplyDeleteI actually agree with what Rahim Khan said. It is extremely important for children to experience life without the pressure of parents. I am not saying that pressure is something awful but, there is a limit to the pressure a person should put on another. Children will always flourish when a parent shines light on the things they do well. My mother has always been supportive of me in any endeavor I wish to take on. For instance when I was ten my goal was to be a trombone player, that didn't work out. I was always on a swim team; this is mainly due to the fact that I was a mini Micheal Phelps. I get great grades, I am the perfect child. Even though I know she supports me I don't ever think she is proud. This is were it all depends on the child’s psych. Baba could love Amir to the fullest and give encouragement all the time but, this doesn't mean Amir's thinking will change. "The problem, of course, was that Baba saw the world in black and white...You can't love a person who lives that way without fearing him too. Maybe even hating him" (Kite Runner 15). Amir may never feel like he is good enough for his father, and it could be a major problem for him later on in life. People will do anything to seek approval from others.
ReplyDeleteI absolutely agree with the quote said by Rahim Khan. Everyone wants their child to become better in life then what they were. So mothers and fathers tend to try and help their children majority of they way, doing that they also get a little carried away and try to take full control of all their decisions that need to be made in their life. For example my father wanted me to become a professional football player, for the Dallas Cowboys. As a kid he introduced the sport to me and it became one of my passions, but as I got older my love for the game decreased drastically and I didn’t want to play anymore. When I was in high school I finally told my father I didn’t want to play football anymore, he was disappointed but he still wouldn’t take no for a answer. So he signed me up and talked to the coaches about me being on the team. Even though he put his happiness before mine I continued to stay on the field but every moment was pure torture. After the last game, my father and I had a conversation about passions. Even though his dream was for me to become a professional football player, he finally realized that those were not my dreams they were his. Now he’s behind my goals 100% of the way. My personal connection shows that its alright to want the best for your child, but there is a time in life were you have to let your child explore and see what brings happiness not just for yourself but for them as well.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the statement that Rahim Khan said, that parents can’t force their kids to do something they don’t want to do. I believe that parents should not force but encourage their kids to be successgul in what ever they choce to become. In my case my mother has always supported me to become something in life and not end up like them working low wage jobs. Even thought she supports me she wants me to become a nurse but i tell her that i don’t like that. If i think about it sometimes if parents push to much than their kids will go to the bad side because of how hard they have tried not to become what their parents want. A perfect example of this was with Okokwo and Nwoye even though Okonkwo was pushing Nwoye to hard so he could become a great farmer, Nwoye ended up converting to Christianity something that Okonkwo would had never permitted. Is the same deal with Amir and Baba because he wants Amir to be just like him and clearly we can see that Amir is very different.
ReplyDeleteWhen I think of what Rahim Khan said about how children aren’t like coloring books and how Baba couldn’t fill them with only his favorite colors, I think of the many families who are torn apart based on what they believe in. I absolutely agree with his statement. Amir loves his father dearly and only wants to make him proud. He wants to spend quality time with him but he father doesn’t totally agree with his constant reading and writing. Amir feels like he has to prove himself to his father, for instance she pretends to enjoy the soccer game they were watching together, just yelling and cheering for the team his dad liked. The crazy thing is even though Amir loves his father her states “ I wished I could open my veins and drain his cursed blood from my body.” He knows that he isn’t what his father wants him to be and because he still pretends to be the son his dad wants he feels cursed and alone. I have a perfect connection with this saying, one of my friends I run with is in a spot she doesn’t quite like. Her parents wanted her take up health careers and so she does but she really wanted to do cosmetology. She is now a junior and has to wait until she gets to college to change her major, now she is stuck and has to do something she doesn’t enjoy.
ReplyDeleteI can absolutely postively agree with Rahim Kahn. Its very unforunate that people, especially parents, can't have their cake and eat it too. I am kind of excited that Amir is different from his father because he beats to his own drum. For example, Amir loves poetry,even though he had envisioned his father would disapproved because "real boys" didnt do that. I definitely see a connection with Kite Runner so far and Things Fall Apart. Both fathers want their first born sons to be strong and want their sons to be like them which ends up seperating the bond between father and son. But I have a question myself. I realized with Kite Runner and Things Fall Apart that they both invlove father and son relationships. The fathers are successful and the sons are the complete opposite.Both Nowye and Amir are very sensitive. As men, men do not show emotion, we are viewed to be strong and the provider. So do you think that Baba is actually trying to change Amir or trying to make Amir into a man?
ReplyDeleteI also agree with Rahim Kahm. When I first read this quote, I made a note saying, "You get what you get. Can't make your children what you what them to be". It's all about acceptance, in my opinion. From the time a child is born, its parents are bound to have expectations for he or she. However, if you are not able to let go of some of these expectations, for the happiness of your child, then the child will also not be happy. Amir was much like his mother, creative and a bit more sensitive than his father would have liked. His father doesn't seem to accept this, instead leading to resent Amir and putting unnecessary pressure on him. This connected to parents not accepting a gay child. No parents hopes or expects a gay child, yet like I said, "You get what you get". The parents must accept their child for whoever they turn out to be, or there will be resentment from both parties.
ReplyDeleteCHILDREN ARENT COLORING BOOKS:
ReplyDeleteI agree with Rahim because everybody is different. Nobody is the same as another person no matter how similar they are. It is true that parents try to make their children like them. Or as I have learned they try to place their hopes and dreams on their kids. Like all proud fathers they Baba want his son to be like him but is disappointed when he isn’t. This reminds me of Okonkwo in the novel Things Fall Apart because as a hard working warrior he wanted his song to work hard so that he could be respected like he was. But at the age of twelve Nwoye was lazy and a very sentimental person. It hurt him to hear the rude insults form his father. Okonkwo and Baba are the same for this because they want their sons to be like them without thinking about the fact that they are complete different people. So yes I do agree with Rahim.
I do agree with Rahim because like he said "Children aren't coloring books. You don't get to fill them with your favorite colors.". I feel like parents have a tendency to do this alot because their first instinct is to make their child do what THEY think is the right thing to do or what they did when they were their age. Like in the book when Amir explained that Baba was trying to make him play soccer Baba didn't even ask him if he was interested he simply tried to push it on him. But when Baba realized Amir had no type of athlectic talent for that sport he didn't want to give up so Baba tried to change him to a passionate spectator, he wanted to make Amir interested in soccer one way or another as he was. Though through Baba's effort of doing this, soccer was the last thing on Amir's mind, he wanted to read and write stories. Of course Baba found this to be a weakness in a young boy, he basically wanted a spitting image of himself and when he didn't get just that, he was disappointed. This parental factor also is shown in "Things Fall Apart" when Okonkwo wants Nwoye to be a stong willed young man who showed no feelings, but when he realized Nwoye was the opposite, he was ashamed of him. Instead of both Baba and Okonkwo being understanding to the fact that Amir and Nwoye may not be what THEY want but what they themselves want,they just showed dissapoint in them which caused the boys to feel like they failed as a son. I understand that a parent wants the best for their child but maybe what they believe is the right thing for them may not be the case. Parents should listen to their childs dreams and be there for them instead of being ashamed because its not what they want.
ReplyDeleteYes, i agree with Rahim Kaham becasue children don't always turn out the way you want them too. they need to find their cause in life themself and can't be told by anyone else. In my life my grandfather wanted me to become a lawyer, but I wanted to be a pediatrician. He was mad when I applied to PSU a top medical college and got accepted; because then he knew that I was going to follow my dream and not his.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Rahim Khan 100% because children although are under the influence of their parents, guardians, or role models they eventually take on a life of their own and forge their own path in the journey of life. Parents usually have an idea of how they wish their child should turn out but in the end it is the child's decision. In my life i constantly feel bad for trying to go to a college outside of delaware because I am nearly all the family my mother has left but a wise woman once told me that i have to live for myself and make my own unique destiny and not live the life others want for me or i will never be truly happy. In the story Baba wanted his son to play sports and be like he was when he was a child but this only make Amir unhappy and feel unloved by his father.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Rahim KHAN's point of view on children, and how they should be individuals. The way Rahim Khan promotes Amir's actions, such as when Amir wrote the short story, Rahim wanted to praise his writing with a simple letter. That boosted Amir's confidence. One cannot expect their child to become something that the child may not want to be. A pushy parent is often found in young beauty pageant girls, where in some cases, it is obvious the girls are not enjoying themselves.
ReplyDeleteYes, I do agree with Rahim Kahn. I believe that the parent can’t force their children to do anything. The children can’t always be what the parent wants them to be in life. The parents can only give their children words of wisdom and support on whatever they decide in their future. If the parents is always hard on their children and want them to be something their just not, it makes them feel like they are a disappointment to their parent’s life. For an example in the book Things Fall Apart Okonkwo pushes his son so much to be like himself, he really pushes his son further and further away from him. Okonkwo’s son actually runs away to the Christians that came and took over their village. This situation connects with Amir and his father Baba in the book Kite Runner. Baba thinks his son can’t defend himself and that he is the total opposite from himself. For those parents that want their children to follow in their every footstep, try not to be very assertive because it will bring the bond apart without the parents even knowing it at all. That’s my reasonings why I agree with Rahim Khahn.
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