How does Hosseini create drama and tension in the rape scene?
Hosseini uses a variety of techniques to foreshadow Hassan’s rape. Pathetic fallacy, a literary device that uses the weather, is a powerful tool in reflecting the feelings and events happening to the main characters. Reference to the “beautiful day” with “fresh snow” and “blameless blue” skies lulls the reader into a sense of false security- the day seems to have no fault for Hassan and Amir. It contrasts sharply with the “overcast” skies that seem to settle in permanently, following Hassan’s rape. This has dismal, depressing connotations, almost as if the weather is in mourning.
Hassan and Amir are on a pedestal: together, the boys have faced their biggest victory against their antagonistic arch-enemy, Assef, a powerful cruel teenage Pashtun. By using a series of simple and complex sentences, the reader is taken on the victorious journey of being a kite running winner with Amir. “Then the moment came/ I closed my eyes and loosened my grip on the string…” Every emotion, look, feeling and smell is heightened at this precise moment so when Hosseini writes that Amir next sees Hassan “smile unabashedly, twenty-six years later” the feeling of unease begins. It builds up suspense as the reader is forced to wonder why Amir would state that.
