In the novel The Kite Runner, author Khaled Hosseini focuses on many critical aspects of life. The main character, Amir, struggles to find redemption throughout the story, and finally finds it when he saves Sohrab, the son of his half-brother Hassan, from the man who also tormented Hassan as a child . This man, Assef, is the main external antagonist of the novel. At the beginning of the novel, he rapes Hassan because Hassan is a Hazara and refuses to betray Amir by giving Assef the kite that Amir won. When Amir returns to Afghanistan after years in America, to save Sohrab, he discovers that Assef has joined the Taliban. Amir also learns that Assef is the man who took Sohrab and mistreated him. Unlike Amir, who constantly yearns for redemption that he believes is unattainable, Assef never feels the need to be redeemed. With everything Assef did in the novel, how can we not feel guilty and actively seek redemption? Say no to plagiarism. Get a custom essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”?Get the original essayMerriam-Webster defines a sociopath as “someone who behaves in a dangerous or violent manner toward others and does not feel guilty of such behavior. » Over the course of the novel, we, the readers, are presented with ample evidence that Assef is clearly a sociopath. It could be argued that because he believes he does the cruel things he does in the name of his religion, he should not be considered a sociopath. However, for the majority of what he does, he simply uses religion as a facade, so only his twisted mind seems to be right. The first time we see Assef do something truly cruel is when he rapes Hassan for not giving him the kite. One of his friends, Wali, said: “'I don't know... My father says it's a sin'” (Hosseini). His religion clearly does not condone this act, so this is not a valid explanation for his actions or his lack of culpability. Later, when Amir returns to Afghanistan, his first reintroduction to Assef is the sight of Assef stoning a man and a woman who have committed adultery. The majority crowd was appalled, but could do nothing to stop him, if they themselves wished to remain unharmed. This scene clearly has religious overtones, with the cleric quoting the Quran and explaining to the masses why the couple needed to be punished. It is interesting, however, that instead of listening to the cleric speak and treating the event as a religious ceremony, Assef stays in the truck until the cleric has finished speaking. He only gets out of the truck to be the one to throw the rocks and clearly delights in killing the couple. As Westerners who grew up in the era of the War on Terror, we have almost been trained to associate Assef's cruelty and lack of empathy solely with the fact that Assef is a terrorist. We were raised on the concept that “terrorists must be crazy, or suicidal, or psychopaths with no moral or feelings toward others” (McCauley). However, numerous studies have shown that this is not actually the case. In fact, “thirty years of research has shown that psychopathology and personality disorders are no more likely among terrorists than among non-terrorists” (McCauley). This is not to say that Assef does not suffer from psychological disorders, but rather that they are not directly linked to Assef being a member of the Taliban. Although Assef's being a member of the Taliban is not directly related to him being a sociopath, this factor can still tell us.