Every person inherently possesses attributes that determine the strength and weakness of their personality. Daily situations test the strength and weaknesses of an individual's personality, while some may act with courage others will give into their weakness due to their fears. In Hosseini's novel "The Kite Runner", Hassan shows strength through courage and loyalty while Amir proves to be weak, this is shown through the bullying, rape and framing scenes. The significance of this is the weaknesses and strengths of people determine differing outcomes within similar situations. Hassan and Amir's strengths are tested proving Hassan to be a courageous character while evidently portraying Amir as a weak character. Throughout the novel, Hassan suffers through bullying, false accusations and rape while Amir stands along the side and is either the purpose of his suffering or watches while it happens fearing the consequence of standing up for his friend.
Throughout the novel, Amir shows weakness within many areas of his daily life. The first instance in which his weakness is shown is the first noted confrontation with Assef and his friends. Within this confrontation, Assef insults Hassan on his cultural background and states that Amir and Baba are the reason Afghanistan is dirtied with Hazaras. Amir's courage and loyalty prove to be on the line, an ideal friend would stand up for his best friend however he thinks to himself, "He is not my friend!. He's my servant!" (Hosseini, 41). This shows that Amir is weak, he does not stand up for who he loves, and is easily persuaded. This instance displays Amir's denial, repression, and displacement. Viewing this purely from a psychoanalytical lens, Amir denies his love for Hassan due to his fear of Assef. He also uses the defense mechanism of repression by suppressing his love for Hassan so he can justify Assef's twisted ideology.