Propaganda in The Kite Runner

Propaganda is used to influence people’s opinions through different forms of media. It can gain either support or disapproval by shaping people’s opinions or behavior. The purpose of propaganda is to influence the way people view a particular topic. By appealing to people on a more personal and emotional level, the propaganda is more affective. Khaled Hosseini uses The Kite Runner as propaganda to change society’s post 9-11 opinion of Afghanistan. Through evoking strong emotions, The Kite Runner appeals to people on a more personal level and changes the views of Afghanistan and its people.
The Kite Runner depicts the lifestyle of a Pashtun man and his father growing up in America, during a trivial time in Afghanistan. Amir grew up in Kabul, Afghanistan during the 1960’s, and was the privileged son of a wealthy entrepreneur. Although he lived a lavish lifestyle, he spent the majority of his time playing with his faithful servant, Hassan. The strength of their friendship was tested numerous times, yet their bond remained unbreakable. Hassan was loyal to Amir, yet Amir often treated him in unkind ways. After many years of friendship, Amir dishonored his friend one last time, which resulted in him never seeing him again. Unknown to Amir, his actions to get rid of Hassan was only the first of many struggles of a completely new lifestyle.
Amir and his father, Baba, were evacuated out of their home in Kabul when the Taliban took control of Afghanistan. They were relocated to different refugee places throughout the Middle East, but they lived in a continuous fear of death. After moving from place to place in unsafe environments, Amir and his Baba finally escaped the Taliban and moved to the United States. Living in San Francisco, California, Baba worked as an assistant at a gas station, while Amir attended school. Life was not easy for Amir and Baba living in America, but they maintained their customs and struggled to remain happy. Although they had to learn to adapt to a completely new lifestyle, Amir and Baba remained faithful to their cultural ties and values. They primarily associated themselves with other Afghans, yet they learned to accept the American way of life.
Amir’s trivial life in Afghanistan, as well as in America, evokes strong emotions, which make the story more relatable. Therefore, The Kite Runner is used as a form of propaganda because it is able to change the way we feel by connecting with us on a more personal level. Amir describes his experience of going back to Afghanistan in the midst of all the turmoil. He had been living in America for may years, but returned to take care of a few favors asked of him. He describes his homecoming in a disturbing way. The men selling their limbs for money, burned down buildings, armed men on constant patrol, malnourished, parentless children, and the dead bodies lining the streets prove that the people in Afghanistan suffer immensely while under the Taliban rule. Our society is blinded to their suffering by our own problems. We tend to recognize all the harm the Taliban do to Americans, but neglect the torture they inflict upon their own people. This novel raises attention for their suffering and induces a sense of empathy towards the Afghan people.
The Kite Runner shows that not all Middle Eastern people are terrorists. The 9-11 incident instilled a fear toward Middle Eastern people in the majority of Americans. We assumed that all Afghan-looking people were terrorists, therefore we looked poorly upon them and treated them differently. For a while, Americans lived in fear of Afghans, but did not realize that the people in Afghanistan had far more to fear. Amir’s description of the people on the streets and those living in terror of the Taliban prove that only a select group of people is responsible for the problems created in Afghanistan and America. As a result, the novel changes our point of view regarding all Middle Eastern people and the fact that they are not all bad people.
Additionally, Amir explains the struggles he encountered while moving from Afghanistan to the United States and the adjustments he had to make. Before he left Afghanistan, Amir lived in a continuous state of fear, but it was hard for him and his father to leave their homeland. His experience helps us understand the hardships they encountered, while moving away from their culture and induces empathy for all they had to go through. Once they moved to America, they continued to practice their religion and maintained their customs, even though they lived in a new country. His stories of trying to adjust to his new lifestyle make us recognize the struggles they went through. It changes the way we view Afghans because we learn that they were put through very hard times as well. The novel makes us become more understanding and compassionate towards the people of Afghanistan.
Our society typically thinks of Afghans as terrible people, yet our assumptions are far from the truth. The Kite Runner proves that the majority of people living in Afghanistan suffered immensely during that period of time, and had no control over the terror that was taking place. Amir’s stories are relatable because Americans experienced similar suffering during 9-11, yet our society refuses to acknowledge their losses. This novel draws attention to the pain the Afghan’s experienced and helps us acknowledge their struggles. By relating their experiences to ours, it induces a personal attachment and changes our opinions regarding the people in Afghanistan. The novel helps change our opinions of Afghans because we realize that they are not all terrorists and they suffer the same way we do.
After reading the novel, my opinion of Afghanistan greatly changed. Before reading The Kite Runner, I did not understand the suffering that the people in Afghanistan experienced. I did not realize the extend of torture and fear that they went through. I believe the novel is used as propaganda because the stories are relatable and evoke strong emotions. These emotions connect with us on a personal level, therefore creating an attachment between the people of Afghanistan and us. This novel was used as a form of propaganda and changed my point of view of Afghanistan and the people.
Propaganda is used in many different ways to change people’s opinions on particular topics. The Kite Runner is a primary example of propaganda because Khaled Hosseini describes his life in Afghanistan in a time of turmoil, which greatly contradicts how many people view Afghanistan. The novel provokes strong emotions and draws attention to the topics that are commonly overlooked. The Kite Runner uses graphic details and emotional stories to engage readers and change the false notions facing Afghanistan and its people.

Contagious Diets

“Dying to be Thin?” This title caught my attention on the cover of the latest issue of People magazine on the stand at the grocery store. As I waited in line, I grazed the pages of this magazine and saw article after article depicting the lives and styles of thin celebrities. The feature article boasted of the most popular celebrity crazes to be excessively thin. It showed pictures of these celebs growing increasingly skinnier and talked about the health risks that came along with being too skinny. Yet, on the pages separating the article, there were ads for diet pills and workout techniques. I could not understand the contradiction between the messages that were being sent to the readers. Although the article spoke negatively of excessive diets, there was still the message being sent to loose weight. Our society, especially women, is under constant pressure to be thin. Celebrities and models are the role models for our society, but they send a false message. Many of the women models are naturally thin, diet excessively, or their pictures are edited. The media idolizes their bodies, which makes women think that that is the ideal way to look. The pressure to be thin is an on going problem, and there are more and more cases of women being treated for eating disorders. I do not think that the media should continue to promote the need to be thin. Not everyone is naturally skinny and can pull off a size 2. Magazines should promote healthy eating and normal looking models, in order to help boost self-confidence among the readers. Unfortunately, being super skinny is the “in” thing right now and the craze will continue spread.

Mercury News

After reading a few articles from the San Jose Mercury News, I looked online at the Mercury News website. The first thing I noticed was that the news on the front page of the newspaper was not on the opening page of the website. Clearly, the news on the website is more updated and can be modified at any point throughout the day. As well, I found it more difficult to navigate myself throughout the website, which made it harder for me to read the articles I was looking for. Because of the fact that I may not be technologically savvy, it was probably the main reason why it was harder to work the online edition.
As I compared the news in the two different media forms, I concluded that the Mercury News online is more knowledgeable. There are the same articles, word for word, are published in both forms, which keeps the news understandable and credible. But there are continuous updates and new news online, whereas the hard copy newspaper is published in the morning, and by the evening, that news is considered “old.” After finishing one of the articles online, I noticed that there was the option to comment on the article. I feel this is very important and a good idea because it allows people to be involved with the news. Through other’s comments, it allows people to learn more about the topic, which keeps people well informed. Although there are many features that appeal to me on the online publishing of Mercury News, I still prefer reading the hard copy of the newspaper.

TV's and Safeway??

This past weekend I went to Laguna Beach for a wedding. During my stay, I needed a few things from the grocery store. So my cousin and I thought we were going on an average grocery shopping trip. We were wrong. The Safeway we went towas far from the average grocery store.
Since when did they start putting plasma screen TV's in the grocery store? We could not understand why they were there and what the purpose was. We finished our shopping, still amazed with all those televisions. After the grocery store, we went to Target and Wal-Mart, and to our surprise, those stores had plasma screens throughout the stores, as well.
As I watched some children watching cartoons, while the adults watched the advertisements, I began to understand the reason for the televisions. The T.V.s were being used as promotional items in order to attract customers to their stores. With all of the advances in technology, the stores must keep up in order to maintain thier appeal to customers, and the televsions are a perect tool of attractions. Knowing that our society has become addicted to televsion, I felt that the companies were smart enough to recognize this addiction, and use it to benefit them.
The TVs are also being used for advertisment and promotion. Even though the products can be seen in person, they appeal more to the customers through the advertisments on the televisions. It is upsetting to know that we have become so relient upon TVs, that we must have them while we shop. Although TVs are a great benefit for the stores because they appeal more to customers and help sell their products, it is unfortunate that we are becoming more and more addicted to television. I am not sure when this phenomena began, but I assume that this is only the beginning of what will be in stores in order to attract customers.

Influential Advertisements

As I was reading through my latest issue of Vogue magazine, I noticed all of the advertisements for the “in” stores and newest fall fashions. Each ad tries persuading me to buy the latest fashions and from the right store. The majority of them boast well-known celebrities that endorse their products. This form of propaganda attempts to persuade the consumers’ style and views on fashion. The idea is that if the popular celebrity is publicly giving their approval of that particular store or fashion accessory, then they would be able to persuade the consumer to support it as well.

Addtionally, alluring advertisements have become increasing popular. Half naked models grace the pages of the magazine ads in hopes of convincing readers to buy the product. A major reason behind this form of propaganda is trying convey the idea that if you wear that certain product, then you will look the same way. In reality, this would never happen, yet the companies succeed in this way of convincing the consumers. So far, these forms of propaganda seem to be working extremely well. As I see people walking down the street wearing the same items shown in the magazines, it proves that these ads continue to set the newest trends and people shop in the stores that appeal to them.

Today, propaganda has evolved into more than just persuasions involving politics. Propaganda is everywhere we go and in almost everything we see. Whether it is billboards tempting us to buy the newest cars, commercials persuading us to eat at certain restaurants, or magazine ads telling us to keep up with the latest fashions, we cannot escape all the propaganda in our everyday lives.

An Age-Old Tale...

As technology advances, it seems as though books become more of an "old fashion" form of media. There are numerous resources that have begun to replace this age-old media, such as the Internet, videos, and CDs. Unfortunately, these advances do not seem to be slowing down. As information and publications become more accessible through new and various forms of media, the demand for the hard copies of books is drastically decreasing. The appeal of listening to books on tapes and CDs, as well as watching the movie form of a book outweighs the appeal of actually reading the book. This affects the publishing world because the demand for books will continue to decrease. Yet, I do not feel as though the publication of books will completely disappear. Although there will continue to be new forms of releasing books, whether through the internet or videos, the actual publication of hard back books will always remain a favorite of many people. Therefore, there will be a continued demand, no matter how small, for this form of publication.

Fortunately, I have saved numerous books from my childhood and plan to pass them on to my children, who will hopefully continue to pass them onto future generations. Many of my favorite books are no longer published, which is the reason I am saving them for my children. I cherish the books I grew up with and I hope to pass them on to my children, so they can enjoy them and learn the same things I learned from them.

Although there will always be new forms of publishing books, the “old fashioned” hard back copies will never go out of style.

Im in a Band!!

I chose to respond to the idea that if i were in a band, how would i distribute my music without a record company, but still be compensated for my work.
Well if I was in a band and there were no record comapnies like there are today, I would have to do all the work myself. Record companies are primarily responsible for producing and promoting the albums, but without them I would have to take on those responsibilities. This is exactly how many bands today, also known as "underground bands", get started. They must do the work themselves in order to be recognized. I would use the tactics they use to get their big break. I would estblish myself in well populated areas and get my music to the public.

I would perform in front of crowds, initially for free, and then move on to selling my album that I recorded with the help of someone I hired to help make the CD. I would sell them from town to town, so I could still get my music out there, yet still be able to make some money off of it. The most important part is to get the music to the public in order to become recognized. Although there are many ways to become a hit group, it does involve taking chances. If my band felt confident enough to become successful, I would probably invest as much money as we needed to produce a quality album. We would need to promote ourselves through many different forms of media, such as posters, concerts, and the internet, especially sources like myspace. Through much hard work and patience, we could only hope to make it big. A lot of success depends on how society responds to the music that is produced. Therefore, we could only hope for the best!

A European Realization

Last summer I spent three amazing weeks in Italy. While I was there, I learned and experienced so many new and exciting things. I visited many different places and took the time to embrace the culture. Not only did I get to walk the stone paths of Rome, shop in the famous streets of Milan, and get lost in the alleys of Venice, but I also took tours of the Vatican, rode vezpas, ate too much gelato, and had mass with the pope.

During those three weeks of adventure and excitement, I noticed something that greatly separated the United States and Europe; their advertisement and use of media is far more risqué than that of the United States. As I looked around at all the bulletin boards and posters covering the walls, I realized that the models were half dressed, if dressed at all, and they promoted things that the United States would never allow to be advertised. The commercials in Europe were extremely revealing and used sex as an everyday promotional object. Although this form of advertisement came as a shock to me, I noticed that this was normal to Europeans.

The United States is very conservative when it comes to advertisements and the media. Although our society has become more revealing, we still consider the current advertisements to be pushing the limits, and some are even banned from airing. Whereas, in Europe, revealing pictures and half naked models are an every day appearance. This is because Europeans have grown up with these images and the freedom with the use of media; therefore they are more liberal with the different forms of advertisement.

It is nice to see more freedom in the media, but if the United States were given the same freedom, it would not come across as calmly as in Europe. Due to our conservative nation, there would be an uproar among many because we are not used to this form of advertisement. The need to push beyond the limits would cause our advertisements to take this freedom a step too far and cause more chaos in the industry. Therefore, I think that the United States should stick to its guidelines and stay conservative, because although revealing ads suit some countries, it does not work well in others.

Napster Paved The Way

Almost everyday, we are faced with media piracy. Whether we illegally download music, copy CDs, burn DVDs, tape TV shows, or make copies of pictures from magazines, we are breaking the law. There are so many laws against it, yet we do it on a daily basis.

The most common type of piracy is downloading and coping music. For years, music companies have tried preventing with the latest music coping, but they continually fall short of keeping people from downloading.

The downloading craze began in 1999 when a college student, Shawn Fanning, created a way for music lovers to share music. The file-sharing network, known as Napster, was an instant success, yet controversy was soon to follow. Artists, such as Metallica and Dr. Dre, sued Napster for copyright infringement. Yet many other artists used Napster as a resource to boost their popularity. After numerous lawsuits, Napster officially shut down in 2001, after a court order to stop trading copyrighted music.

Napster paved the way for many other file-sharing networks. Downloading is illegal, but it is almost impossible for the government and music companies to stop it from taking place. The music industry continues to lose more and more money each year because of illegal downloading, but it is almost inevitable that file-sharing will become even more popular and technically advanced.

Another reason music companies lose money is due to CD coping. CD coping, also known as “burning”, has become widely common and very accessible. Almost every computer made today comes with a CD burner. Some would argue that burning is against the law, but others see nothing wrong with it. Those that see nothing wrong with it believe that once we purchase the CD, it is ours so we should be able to do what we like with it. Yet, what we fail to understand is that although we bought the CD, we still do not own the rights to the music. Therefore, any type of coping or downloading is illegal because we are essentially stealing the music. Although companies have tried so many different techniques to keep society from illegally downloading, as technology advances, it is almost impossible to keep it from happening.