Father Figures

Baba- is Amir’s father and a rich business man in Afghanistan. He is popular in the community for his charity work and has married into the royal bloodline.  He is 6’5’’ and muscular. It is said that he fought bears in his younger days.  He wonders how Amir could be his son because he considers him to be both physically and mentally weak.  Baba strongly believes that the greatest sin is stealing, whether it is money, objects or the right to truth.  This becomes an important issue as later in the story the reader learns that Hassan is also his son and Baba has been living a lie all these years.  He immigrates with Amir to the United States where he works as a gas station attendant.  In America, Baba does not get the same respect or social status that he had in his own country and always longs to one day go home.  This never happens and eventually he dies of lung cancer shortly after Amir gets married.

 Rahim Khan- is Baba’s business partner. He is one of the only people to support Amir’s desire to become a writer. He stays in Afghanistan to watch over Baba’s home in the hopes that one day they will return.  Aging and a reoccurring illness, results in him asking Hassan to look after the house while he goes to Pakistan for medical care.  While there Hassan is killed by the Taliban trying to protect the home of his best friend.  Rahim then contacts Amir and asks him to come home. This character has kept the secret of Hassan’s real identity for all these years and he is the one who eventually informs Amir that Hassan was really his half- brother.  He also is the one who tells Amir to find his orphaned nephew before it is too late.