Chapter 7

This chapter is key as it provides an event on which the rest of the story hangs. The rape of Hassan is an event which Amir foreshadows in the previous chapters and one he will refer back to in the rest of the novel. It is the central point around which the narrative revolves.
The beginning of the chapter Hassan talks to Amir about his dream. In it he and Amir are seen as heroes. This would seem to be a positive omen for the forthcoming kite-fighting tournament. It also shows the reader Hassan's love for Amir and his willingness to stick by his side. However, the image of the monster 'swimming at the bottom, waiting' could reflect how Amir feels about Hassan, and how he is afraid Hassan has a monster, somewhere below his friendly surface, and he wishes Amir would banish that side of his personality, just as he banishes the monster int he dream.
Amir then says, 'Upstairs, I could hear the water running in Baba's bathroom.' This image of water could reflect Hassan's dream. The 'running water' could also represent the fact that the future is in motion and cannot be stopped.
The words Amir uses to describe Kabul, such as 'blameless blue' and 'blinding white' could reflect how Hassan feels about the even which will occur, suggesting he is blameless for it, and white being a symbol of innocence and you cannot hide anything on white as everything shows up.
Amid adds in 'The immensely popular Ahmad Zahir had revolutionised Afghan music and outraged the purists by adding electric guitars, drums, and horns to the traditional tabla and harmonium' indicating a clash or conflict between western Afghanistan and purist Afghanistan. It emphasises the fact that Afghanistan is moving onto western ways.
Before the kite fight, Amir describes Hassan saying 'Sunlight washed over his face, and, in it, I saw how well the pink scar above his lip had healed.' The image of light reflects Hassan's angelic and innocent character, and the fact that his scar has healed indicates that he is about to be scarred again and he is defenceless.
When Hassan says, 'It's a beautiful day,' this contrasts with the events which are about to occur. There is also juxtaposition of the tournament, where Hassan's rape means that the act of winning is immeadiately contrasted with the act of losing. When Amir decides not to speak up either whilst the attack occurs or after, it tells the reader that he is choosing his father's praise over his friendship with Hassan, thus betraying him.
When Amir is about to win the tournament against the blue kite, he describes how 'the blue kite knew it was in trouble. It was trying desperately to maneuver out of the jam, but I didn't let go.' This could be a metaphor for Hassan and how he acts when he is being attacked. It also personifies the blue kite, as it says it 'knew it was in trouble' however an inanimate object wouldn't think for itself.
When Amir says 'We won! We won!' it shows him sharing the victory with Hassan which is quite unexpected for the reader as we know Amir as a selfish child who is jealous of Hassan.
When Hassan tells Amir 'I'm going to run that blue kite for you,' it's almost as if Hassan is meeting with his fate, as the blue kite is like a metaphor for Hassan.
After Hassan leaves, Amir states, 'The next time I saw him smile unbashedly like that was twenty-six years later, in a faded Polaroid photograph.' This is assuring us something bad is going to happen soon, and tells us the scale of the event, as it stopped Hassan smiling genuinly for the rest of his life. It also indicates that this could be the beginning of the end of Hassan and Amir's relationship.