The Kite Runner

     Fatherhood is a scary thing for Amir in The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini.  Amir is ready to have a family, but it is frightening.  He wonders what sort of father he would be, and "I wanted to be just like Baba and I wanted to be nothing like him" (184).  Amir grew up praising his father and everything about him.  He was excited and nervous to now get the chance to be the father he wanted to be.  However, when it turns out that Amir and Soraya can't bear a child, it hurts them both.  It starts making a hole in their relationship.  They start to feel an emptiness between them.  Amir is saddened at the fact that he won't get to carry on his father's name and be all that his father was.  Fatherhood is important to Amir because of the relationship between Baba and him.