Why does Hosseini change from past tense to present?

• A. To emphasize the historical timeline.
• B. To highlight action sequences.
• C. To move between the present and the memories.
• D. To follow a strict chronological order.

Answer: (C)

Shifting between past and present is a deliberate narrative choice that lets memory feel immediate. When the author moves into present tense, it signals that the narrator is re-living a moment as it’s being remembered, not merely recounting it as a distant event. This creates a sense that the past continues to affect the present, making guilt, remorse, or realization feel urgent and alive. In The Kite Runner, the frame narrative places Amir in the present while his Afghanistan memories surface, and the present-tense passages often occur as he confronts those memories or recounts them to someone else. That immediacy helps readers sense how the past constantly shapes his current life, rather than simply listing events in a strict chronology. So the purpose of the tense shift is to move between the present moment and the memories it contains, not to emphasize a historical timeline or to merely highlight action sequences.