Jane Austen Does It Again

"Like pride in your people, your customs, your language. Afghanistan is like a beautiful mansion littered with garbage, and someone has to take out the garbage." This quote from Assef in chapter 22 also hits on a prevalent theme in the work. Prejudice is the root of a lot of the problems that arise in the book. Similarly, when Amir meets unintentionally with Assef, it is clear that Assef is following in his hero, Hitler's footsteps. By the same token, Baba didn't take Hassan as his son because he didn't want people associating his "pure" blood with that of a Hazara. Pride and prejudice (pun intended) assist Baba in the decision to disown Hassan and pass him off as Alli's. The custom in the Afghan countries was to have Hazaras working for the rest of society because they were seen as being below everyone else. It was Baba's knowledge of the ridicule the harelip would bring to Hassan that led to his paying for the surgery to smooth it out. Time and time again, Alli is verbally and physically abused because of his status as Hazara and cripple.