ENG4U

Applying Critical Perspectives to The Kite Runner

Instructions: After reviewing the supporting documents on Schoology, please answer the
following questions on a separate sheet of lined paper:

1. Formalist critics focus their attention on the formal elements of a literary text. In your
opinion, which element is most significant in The Kite Runner: setting, characters, plot,
conflict, symbols, structure, point of view or theme? Justify your answer.

2. Biographical critics propose that readers gain from knowing about the lives of writers.
Research the details of Khaled Hosseini’s life or refer to the introductory presentation on
Schoology. What influences in his life are reflected in the novel? What impact does this
have on your understanding of the text? Explain.

3. Historical criticism provides context and background information necessary for

understanding a text. To what extent can we understand the past as it is reflected in The
Kite Runner? What were you able to learn about some of the key historical events
discussed in the novel? Explain your answer.

4. Moral/Philosophical critics agree that the larger function of literature is to teach morality
and probe philosophical issues. What is the most important lesson that you learned from
reading The Kite Runner?

5. Reader-Response critics analyze the role of the reader in the production of its meaning.
How have your personal experiences shaped your reading of The Kite Runner? Explain
your answer by making text to self, text to text and text to world connections.

6. Within the psychological approach, Sigmund Freud divided the mind into three entities:
the id, the superego and the ego. Explain how these three entities manifest themselves
in the character of Amir.

7. Feminist critics examine what a literary work reveals about the role, position and
influence of women. Discuss how women are represented in The Kite Runner by
referring to specific characters and providing textual evidence to support your answers.

8. Explain how one might interpret The Kite Runner through a Marxist perspective by
discussing the power imbalances that exist within the novel.

9. With a postmodernist perspective in mind, research the story of Rostam and Sohrab.
Summarize the story and explain how it adds meaning to Hosseini’s novel.

10. Mythological critics are concerned with the recognizable and universal patterns found
within literature known as archetypes. Review the list of archetypes found on Schoology.
Identify and explain one situational archetype, one character archetype and one
symbolic archetype that you feel is most significant within The Kite Runner.