How we cite our quotes: Citations follow this format: (Chapter.Paragraph)
Quote #7
I unfolded the letter. It was written in Farsi. No dots were omitted, no crosses forgotten, no words blurred together – the handwriting was almost childlike in its neatness. (17.7)
First, it's amazing that Hassan learns how to read and write as an adult. But even more amazing is the aura of innocence still surrounding Hassan. Hassan lives through a tragic attack at a young age. His best friend, Amir, betrays him. He and his father leave their home. War comes to Afghanistan. But through all this, Hassan holds onto something like innocence.
Quote #8
A scrawny boy in a tweed jacket grabbed my elbow and spoke into my ear. Asked me if I wanted to buy some "sexy pictures."
"Very sexy, Agha," he said, his alert eyes darting side to side – reminding me of a girl who, a few years earlier, had tried to sell me crack in the Tenderloin district in San Francisco. The kid peeled one side of his jacket open and gave me a fleeting glance of his sexy pictures: postcards of Hindi movies showing doe-eyed sultry actresses, fully dressed, in the arms of their leading men. "So sexy," he repeated. (21.67-68)
There's some charming innocence here in the midst of poverty and oppression by a totalitarian regime. This kid is trying to sell pictures of fully-clothed actresses.
Quote #9
"Bia, bia, my boy," the Talib said, calling Sohrab to him. Sohrab went to him, head down, stood between his thighs. The Talib wrapped his arms around the boy. "How talented he is, nay, my Hazara boy!" he said. His hands slid down the child's back, then up, felt under his armpits. One of the guards elbowed the other and snickered. The Talib told them to leave us alone.
"Yes, Agha sahib," they said as they exited.
The Talib spun the boy around so he faced me. He locked his arms around Sohrab's belly, rested his chin on the boy's shoulder. Sohrab looked down at his feet, but kept stealing shy, furtive glances at me. The man's hand slid up and down the boy's belly. Up and down, slowly, gently. (22.57-59)
Assef is so evil. We wonder, though, how much Assef (and the guards) have affected Sohrab. Sohrab stares at his feet and shyly glances at Amir. Don't these gestures still have something innocent in them? Later, in their hotel room, Sohrab will tell Amir how "dirty" he feels, but these glances suggest that Sohrab, like Hassan, retains an essential goodness and innocence despite the evil of the world around him.