The Kite Runner Post A # 3

Vocab
Dilapidated (137)- reduced to partial ruin or decay
Insinuated (148)- suggested or hinted slyly

Figurative Language
"'The rest of them--'" he used to wave his hand and make a phht sound "--they're like gossiping old women (124)."' The phht is an onomatopoeia for sound that Amir's father would make when making remarks about gossiping women. ONOMATOPOEIA

"He's not fit to run this country. It's like putting a boy who can't ride a bike behind the wheel of a brand new cadillac (126)." Amir's father compares Jimmy Carter's presidency to an inexperienced boy driving a cadillac. SIMILE

"America was different. America was a river, roaring along, unmindful of the past (136)." Amir and his father now live in Fremont, California. He is comparing America to a river, and life there is vastly different than any other life he has had. METAPHOR

Quote
"My father wants me to go to law school, my mother's always throwing hints about medical school, but I'm going to be a teacher. Doesn't pay much here, but it's what I want (151)."
This passage talks about doing what you want. There comes a point where the job you pick must have a decent pay (e.g. ice cream man would not suffice), but one of the single most important things in life, is that you must do what you want. Amir knows what he wants, and I commend him for that.

Theme
It doesn't matter what someone is doing and how good he or she thinks it is. If it is not what he or she wants to do, it is not worth it at all.