The Kite Runner, by Khaled Hosseini, follows the maturation of Amir, an Afghan boy, as he discovers what it means to stand up for what he believes in. His quest to redeem himself after betraying his friend and brother, Hassan, forms the heart of the novel. For most of the book, Amir attempts to deal with his guilt by avoiding it and refusing to admit his mistakes. Due to his past, Amir is unable to move forward. His entire life is shaped by his disloyalty to Hassan and his desire to please his father instead of helping his friends. Throughout the novel, his attempts to atone for his sins end in failure, as neither physical punishment nor the rescue of Hassan's son Sohrab from Assef prove sufficient for Amir to redeem himself. Only when he decides to bring Sohrab to the United States and offer his nephew an opportunity for happiness and prosperity denied to his half-brother, does Amir take the necessary steps toward atonement and redemption. Khaled Hosseini uses a series of symbols to reinforce the message that atoning for one's sins means making up for past mistakes, rather than simply relying on the forgiveness of the betrayed person or a higher power. In Amir's early childhood, kites represented happiness. Flying kites was his favorite pastime, as it was the only way to fully connect with Baba, who was once a champion kite flyer. However, the kite takes on a different meaning when Amir does not stop Hassan's attackers from raping him to prevent the kite from being stolen. The kite serves as a symbol of Amir's guilt throughout the novel. He chose his fragile relationship with his father over the well-being of his best friend and half-brother: “Baba and I lived in the same… middle of paper… we didn't do anything. All right. Just a smile... But I'll take it... Because when spring comes, the snow melts one flake at a time, and maybe I just witnessed the first flake melt. (371)A sign of things to come, Sohrab's smile implies that the abuses of the past cannot dominate him or anyone else forever, and that ultimately Amir and Sohrab will look to the future and be healed. When Amir mentions the melting snow, he is referring to the barrier Sohrab has built between himself and others. The novel returns to the same symbol with which it began. He tells Sohrab the last words Hassan said to him before Hassan was raped: "'For you, a thousand times'" (371) while flying the kite for Sohrab, but despite the fact that those were the circumstances of the last time These words appeared in the book, the tone of hope suggests that Amir has paid his penance and found his redemption.