Abstract

The Kite Runner is the masterpiece of Afghan-American writer, Khaled Hosseini. It is this work that makes him one of the most outstanding novelists of the 21st century. The Kite Runner tells the story of an Afghan boy Amir focusing on his betrayal to his closet friend and his self-redemption in the first-person perspective. The Kite Runner has moved millions of readers since its publication in 2003, arousing great interest of studies.
This thesis attempts to analyze the internal growth of the male protagonist, Amir, and the fundamental causes of Amir’s spiritual redemption. The study will be given from the perspective of initiation story as well as Freudian theory of personality constructs —the id, the ego and the superego. Through the analysis of features of initiation story and principles of Freudian Psychoanalysis, the paper delivers the internal changes especially the betrayal and redemption of the protagonist and attempts to explore how Amir overcomes his weaknesses and turns into a mature and noble man. Thus, the thesis is expected to deliver the theme of betrayal and redemption, exploring the insight into human beings’ inner world in The Kite Runner. 

Key Words:     The Kite Runner      Amir     initiation story   Freudian personality theory     betrayal and redemption  

摘 要

《追风筝的人》是阿富汗裔美籍作家卡勒德•胡塞尼的代表作。正是这部作品，使卡勒德•胡塞尼成为了二十一世纪最杰出的小说家之一。《追风筝的人》以第一人称的口吻讲述了一个阿富汗男孩对自己最亲密朋友的背叛以及后来的自我救赎过程。《追风筝的人》自2003年出版以来感动了全世界无数的读者，同时引起了广泛的学术研究热潮。
本文从成长小说结合弗洛伊德的人格结构理论（本我，自我，超我）的角度，深入挖掘小说男主人公阿米尔的心理成长历程，重点分析阿米尔精神救赎的本质原因。通过对成长小说特征的分析以及弗洛伊德人格理论在小说中的运用分析，本文呈现了主人公的内在改变，尤其是其背叛与救赎的表现，同时分析了阿米尔如何克服人性的弱点，最终迈向成熟成为高尚之人的过程。通过论述，本文竭力探究《追风筝的人》中的背叛和救赎主题，从而洞悉人类的内心世界。

关键词：  《追风筝的人》    阿米尔    成长小说    弗洛伊德人格理论   背叛和救赎

1 Introduction
    This part specifically expounds life experiences of Khaled Hosseini, his works, the major plot of The Kite Runner, as well as a brief introduction of the research significance, and then the framework of this thesis.