Best of Week: The "Real" Afghans

Throughout the book, we have been discussing the significance of the fake memoir format that Hosseini chose to write his story in. One reason was that Hosseini needed the freedom of fiction to get the true emotions of his story across. As we read, we kept in mind what made the format of 'real fiction' so important to the truth of this story.

On Friday, we discovered another reason. We had been assigned a number of articles to read that explored the Taliban, as well as provided some basic statistics about the troubled country of Afghanistan. This was extremely helpful because it provided me (I can't speak for my classmates) with a clear backdrop for the story. Although I knew the bare bones of the history of Afghanistan, I really needed a clear picture of the conflict the country was going through. As we discussed the political struggle of Afghanistan, I thought of another reason why Hosseini might have chosen to keep his story from being pure fiction- the perfect back story.

Obviously, most of the class was disgusted with Amir for abandoning Hassan and never truly letting Hassan be his friend. We've called him selfish, whiny, and everything in between. How could Hosseini have demonstrated the social ties Amir was struggling with if there was no such thing as Pashtuns and Hazaras? If he didn't have the ability to create the plot around a real conflict and real cultures, it would have been nearly impossible to demonstrate the struggle going on in Amir's mind throughout the book. The fact that it's a real situation saves Hosseini the laborious task of making up a conflict and making the social divide seem real and not 'cheesy' or 'unrealistic'. Now while reading, people can connect to the situation going on today and it brings awareness and understanding of the horrors brought on by Russia and the Taliban.

Why was this the Best of the Week? Because it influences how I view the book. When I connect the social divides Afghanistan suffers to REAL PEOPLE in the world, it changes everything. Books are an incredible resource to understanding the world and its inhabitants, so we should never disconnect a story from the world around us, or we miss its impact. Sometimes its easy to convince yourself that its only a story and nothing so terrible could happen to a country and its people. If we fully accepted that all the time, it would be a miracle if we could get through the news without bursting into tears. That is why this Friday was important. It broke through the 'just a story' barrier and reminded me why this book is a powerful example of real-life fiction.