Service and Loyalty The Ways of Maintaining His Friendship with Amir

invasion, Rahim Khan, Baba’s close friend, goes to Hassan and asks him to return to Kabul to keep Baba’s house in case they will be back from California someday Hosseini 197-198. Hassan again shows his loyalty and brings his family to Kabul and together with Rahim Khan he keeps the house. Later when Amir meets Sohrab the young boy tells that his father always talks about his wonderful childhood times with Amir Hosseini 267. Hassan never tells his son about the betrayal. He only tells his son about his friendship with Amir. When Hassan knows that Amir lives in California, he always asks Rahim Khan about Amir with many questions that almost most of them cannot be answered by Rahim Khan. The reason why Hassan and his wife want to go back to Kabul is that he feels that Baba is like his second father Hosseini 182. His spirit to keep his childhood friendship with Amir still lives in his heart. He remembers that there is a wall behind the row of corn that Baba has planted. Hassan and Amir call it “the Wall of Ailing Corn”. When a rocket destroys a whole section of that wall, Hassan rebuilds it with his own hands, brick by brick until it stands whole again Hosseini 183. What Hassan does to rebuild the wall is just because he wants to keep his childhood memories. It seems that he still maintains everything good the same as he still keeps his childhood memories with Amir in that house. It illustrates his loyalty even after Amir is far away in California and no one knows whether he will be back someday or not. In his letter to Amir, he says that he has told much to Farzana and Sohrab about their growing up together and playing games and running the streets. They laugh at the stories of all the mischief Amir and Hassan used to cause Hosseini 189. Here it is obvious that Hassan forgives Amir for the betrayal he does to him. He does not tell any bad things to his wife or his son. It needs great determination to do such things. At the end of his letter to Amir, he writes,” And I dream that someday you will return to Kabul to revisit the land of our childhood. If you do, you will find and old faithful friend waiting for you” Hosseini 191. After all those hard times that he experiences, Hassan still regards Amir as his best friend and still waits for him to come back. In summary, Hassan’s behavior and speech which reflects some characteristics of friendship are his ways to maintain his friendship with Amir.

4.2.3 The Meanings of Friendship for Hassan

A friendship means relation between two or more people based on love, care, and affection. We need friends in our life to help us to reach our dreams. We need to have good friends to be healthy emotionally in the process of maturing Lund 9. In the novel Hassan has to maintain his friendship with Amir twice. First, when they used to live together, most of the things that he does reflects characteristics of friendship. His speech and behavior to maintain his friendship with Amir is sincere. Second, after they are separated and grow up to be a man, Hassan still delivers his service and loyalty by taking care of Amir’s house even though Amir is not there Hosseini 182-192. He still sends his attention also by asking a lot of questions about Amir through Rahim Khan Hosseini 181. He also shares his childhood memories with Amir to his family so that they know how wonderful their friendship is. Telling about Amir and his childhood memories is one of his ways to maintain his friendship with Amir. Finally, before he dies he writes a letter to Amir and waits for him to come back to Kabul to meet his faithful friend. The meanings of friendship for Hassan are loyalty, understanding, caring and sacrificing for his best friend. Hassan has done those things to maintain his friendship with Amir because for him those four actions is a must for a good friendship. We will understand more deeply the meaning of friendship for Hassan in the following points of explanation:

4.2.3.1 Loyalty

Hassan believes that loyalty is one of the most important things for friendship. Loyalty is needed in friendship since it drives one to be faithful to his best friend. Based on characteristics of friendship proposed by Peterson 1, loyalty means one will not speak badly or says anything bad about his friend when he is not around. Through loyalty a friend will stay close at your worst and loves you even so Hosseini 190-191 and he will be the one with whom you can share secrets in confidence. Loyalty can measure how far a friendship can last because it takes one to stay close in order to give support and trust. It gives a friend a basic feeling not to leave his best friend while he is in a bad condition. It also makes it easier to give priority to a best friend than to other common friends. Moreover, it is important in building trust and intimacy between best friends since loyalty is the basis of friendship.