1.1 Literature Review 

    1.1.1 The Introduction of the Author, Khaled Hosseini and His Famous Novel The Kite Runner

  Khaled Hosseini (born March 4, 1965) is a novelist and physician who was born in Afghanistan. Since he was 15, he has lived in the United States. His 2003 debut novel, The Kite Runner, is an international bestseller, with more than ten million copies sold worldwide. His second novel is A Thousand Splendid Suns which was released on May 22, 2007. In 2008, the book was the bestselling novel in the UK, with more than 700,000 copies sold. His third novel, And The Mountains Echoed was published May 21, 2013. Hosseini is also a Goodwill Envoy to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, the UN Refugee Agency, and the founder of the Khaled Hosseini Foundation , a nonprofit that provides humanitarian assistance to the people of Afghanistan. So far, there are an increasing number of people who like this novel. They can’t stop reading it.

    His most famous novel, The Kite Runner, is the story of a young boy, Amir, struggling with his own conscience because what happened in his childhood is always haunting him. He is terribly eager to obtain identification from his father who pays much more attention on Hassan, his servant also his illegitimate child. He doesn’t know about the truth. He hates Hassan because he thinks that Hassan robs his love from his father. He is a threat for Amir. So he often makes fun of Hassan. Not only does he ignore the suffering on the Hassan, but also he wrong Hassan for stealing his watch in order to get rid of guilt. However, Hassan, who always regards Amir as his best friend, can do everything for Amir. “For, a thousand times” is the sentence Hassan says to Amir. He is the one who protects Amir from being bullied by Assef. In the depth of my heart, I am deeply moved by what Hassan has done for Amir. So I decide to discuss the important role of rhetoric in The Kite Runner to have a better understanding of the theme in the novel.

    1.1.2 The Definition of Rhetoric

Rhetoric is the art of discourse, an art that aims to improve the capability of writers or speakers to inform, persuade, or motivate particular audiences in specific situations. As a subject of formal study and a productive civic practice, rhetoric has played a central role in the European tradition. Its best known definition comes from Aristotle, who considers it a counterpart of both logic and politics, and calls it “the faculty of observing in any given case the available means of persuasion.” 

    1.1.3 Book Review and Comments on the Novel

 There are a lot of comments about the novel. Many people and magazines speak highly of the novel. For instance, The Washington Post Book World has commented on it as “A powerful book…no frills, no nonsense, just hard, spare prose…An intimate account of family and friendship, betrayal and salvation that requires no atlas or translation to engage and enlighten us.”Parts of The Kite Runner are raw and excruciating to read, yet the book in its entirety is lovingly written. Hosseini clearly loves his country as much as he hates what has become of it....A tale told in simple brush strokes, closer to Kawabata’s Thousand Cranes than Mahfouz’s Trilogy. Hosseini is at his best describing moments of slow, silent agonyz.” (The Washington Post Book World 2) Library Journal also passes judge on the novel: “Provides a vivid glimpse of life in Afghanistan over the past quarter century. The characters of Amir and his father are all carefully and convincingly described and developed. Hosseini, now a doctor in California, is possibly the only Afghan author writing in English, and his first novel is recommended.” (Library Journal 3) Obviously, it is because the novel is written in such a moving way that makes it popular and obtains so many good reviews.