loves him so much and ready to do anything as he wishes upon him. It is Amir’s feelings, thoughts, and actions changing which make him considered a round one.
Hassan himself is a flat character because of his unchanged act of loving Amir as his dear friend during the story.
The relationship of Amir and Hassan can be observed from three main things. Those are between a master and a maid, a Pashtun and a Hazara, and the
last is friends. This following explanation will encompass those three aspects of Amir and Hassan’s relationship.
4.1.1 The Relationship between a Master and a Servant
According to Murphy 161 -173, there are nine methods by which the readers can understand the character, one of them is by the character’s speech.
Amir is a young boy who comes from a royal family in Kabul, Afghanistan. He is a son of Baba, a successful trader that owns some businesses. Baba is known as
one of the richest merchant in Kabul. Baba and his close friend, Rahim Khan, build a massive carpet exporting business, two pharmacies and restaurants
Hosseini 13. It is said that Amir and Baba have the prettiest and huge house in Kabul.
“A broad entryway flanked by rosebushes led to the sprawling house of marble floors and wide windows. Intricate mosaic tiles, handpicked by
Baba in Ishafan, covered the floors of the four bathrooms. Gold-stitched tapestries, which Baba had bought in Calcutta, lined the walls; a crystal
chandelier hung from the vaulted ceiling”. Hosseini 4
In taking care of both his beautiful house and daily needs, Baba, like what can be seen in a life of a royal family, hires some people. He needs some people
who are capable to do some household things such as preparing dishes, gardening,
sweeping the house and else. Baba has two servants who are in charge of such jobs. They are Ali and Hassan.
Hassan is indeed a maid in Amir’s family as it is generally described that he has to help Ali in taking care of Baba’s house. He prepares Amir’s needs every
day and doing it as a maid daily. Hassan makes Amir’s bed, polishes his shoes, irons his outfit for the day, and packs his books and pencils Hosseini 26.
As a servant, Hassan is loyal to his master, Amir. Amir once says: “Hassan, never wanted to, but if I asked, really asked, he wouldn’t deny me.
Hassan never denied me anything” Hosseini 4. Hence, it seems true that Hassan serves Amir more than just in his daily household tasks in Amir’s house. He
serves Amir in many ways including to obey all that Amir asks him for. Once Amir asks Hassan to hit the one-eyed dog near their house, though he does not
want to do it, merely because Amir asks him to, then Hassan does hit it. Each and every word which comes from Amir has always become Hassan’s command.
Furthermore, Hassan understands his destiny as a maid very well because he does not need ordering about what he should do. At the time when Amir wins
the kite tournament, Hassan runs the cut kite for Amir. He does it voluntarily by saying “For you a thousand times over” Hosseini 66. He really gives all that he
has got as a maid to his master in order to make his master happy. An incident which happens in a market alley proves that Hassan even knows exactly what his
master needs. Hassan knows that Amir longs for the blue kite that they both have won together. For the sake of Amir’s happiness and pride, Hassan is willing to
sacrifice his body to be raped by a notorious group of Pashtun children because he merely does not want to give in the blue kite Hosseini 70-71.
As a Hazara servant, Hassan receives good treatment from Baba, who is also his master beside Amir. Baba never forgets to give him a birthday present
like bringing him Dr. Kumar from New Delhi, a plastic surgeon to fix his hare lip Hosseini 43. Thus, as a servant of Amir’s family, it is shameful not to do what
his master asks. Automatically Hassan will do whatever it takes to keep his status and to show his thanks to his master. One way to show his gratitude is by carrying
out his household duties diligently. He tries hard daily to begin his day by praying the morning namaz with Ali and continuing to have Amir’s breakfast neatly ready
on the dining table Hosseini 25. As a master of Hassan, Amir only knows that everything has already been
prepared for him daily. Through the story of The Kite Runner, we know that it is only Hassan who serves as Amir’s personal maid. As a master, Amir can
complain if he feels what his maid has braced for him is not appropriate to his desire. After hearing secretly what Baba and Rahim Khan have talked an evening,
Amir gets angry at Hassan because he knows that Baba has considered him lower than their servant Hosseini 20-22. As the result, Amir becomes rude to Hassan
next morning. Lewis and Saarni as quoted in Child Development and Personality suggest that thoughts and memories, and even previous emotional experiences,
can also bring forth feelings, particularly as children get older 408. Amir’s previous hurt, which is knowing that his father amazes his servant much more
than his son, has made him mad at Hassan.
Based on what we can see through the facts within the story of The Kite Runner above, it can be seen that Hassan is a very loyal and humble servant while
Amir is a bit superior with his dynamic emotion which is frequently hard to control. These traits of both show that the relationship between Amir and Hassan
is between the superior and the inferior or more specifically, among a master and his servant. Amir has ever even said deep down in his heart that Hassan is just an
illiterate Hazara. He thinks that Hassan will never be anything better but a cook. Amir even argues that Hassan should have not critized him Hosseini 32.
These show that Amir tends to show that he has more power than Hassan because of his status as Hassan’s master, as well. Instead, Hassan, however, keeps
showing to Amir his respect because it seems that he has other expectation i.e. to make Amir admitting him as a best friend as it is explained in other following
subchapter.
4.1.2 The Relationship between a Pashtun and a Hazara
