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Elite Edition

What happens to Baba in Chapter 12

Author

Emily Dawson

Published Apr 11, 2026

Baba is diagnosed with lung cancer but refuses to receive treatment. Amir tells Baba he doesn’t know what he’s supposed to do. Baba replies that he’s been trying to teach Amir precisely this all his life and forbids Amir to tell anyone about his illness. Baba weakens as the months pass until one day he collapses.

How does Baba die?

Amir can tell that Baba is happy watching him and Soraya together. Baba dies in his sleep that night.

Does Baba die in Chapter 13?

Realizing that Baba does not have long to live, the traditional engagement period is minimized, and Baba spends nearly all of his life’s savings on the wedding. Soraya moves in with Amir and Baba, and within one month of the wedding, Baba dies.

Why did Baba have a seizure?

Baba loses weight. The Sunday after New Year’s Day, Baba has a seizure and collapses at the flea market. The doctor at the hospital goes over Baba’s CAT scans with Amir. … General Taheri, Khanum Taheri, and Soraya visit Baba and Amir at the hospital.

What happened to Amir's father Baba )?

Summary: Chapter 2 Meanwhile, Hassan and his father, Ali, lived in a small mud hut on the grounds of Baba’s estate, and Ali worked as Baba’s servant. Neither Amir nor Hassan had a mother. Amir’s died giving birth to him, and Hassan’s ran away after having him.

What did Baba do the night before he died?

What did Baba do the night before he died? He said he did not need his morphine because he was not in pain, but he was at a party. Why didn’t the general work? He thought the jobs that he could get in the US were beneath him.

Does Amir adopt Sohrab?

Lesson Summary Sohrab is a young boy who is the son of Hassan and his wife Farzana. He is also Amir’s nephew and becomes his adopted son.

What political party does Baba support?

Baba Gana Kingibe OV GCONBorn25 June 1945 Borno, Northern Region, British Nigeria (now Borno State, Nigeria)Political partyAll Progressives Congress (2015–present)Other political affiliationsPeoples Front of Nigeria (1988–89) Social Democratic Party (1989–1993) Peoples Democractic Party (2006–2015)

Does Baba accept radiation therapy?

Baba then refuses radiation treatment. After Baba is released from the hospital, Amir asks his father to visit the General and ask for his daughter’s hand in marriage, and Baba agrees to do this.

What do Baba and Soraya take without Amir's permission?

What do Baba and Soraya take without Amir’s permission? The manuscript to his first novel.

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How does Baba die in Kite Runner?

Baba weakens as the months pass until one day he collapses. Cancer has spread to his brain. Afghans arrive in droves to see Baba in the hospital. At Baba’s bedside, Amir asks if he will go to General Taheri to ask Soraya’s hand in marriage for Amir.

How much did Baba spend on Amir's wedding?

Baba spends almost his whole life savings on Amir’s wedding. $35,000.

What is Baba mourning for in The Kite Runner?

Amir claims to use America to “bury my memories,” whereas, for Baba, it is a place “to mourn his.” Amir embraces America and all it has to offer as a means to escape the ghost of Hassan that was haunting his life in Afghanistan. While Baba is working, Amir is attending high school, and then graduates.

How did Ali come into Baba's family?

How does Ali come to live with Baba and his family? His parents were killed when they were hit by a car, Amir’s grandfather heard of this and adopted Ali in to his household.

How does Baba betray Ali?

Baba had betrayed Ali, his closest friend since childhood, by sleeping with Sanaubar. As Amir says, having sex with a man’s wife was the worst possible way an Afghan man could be dishonored. Amir had similarly betrayed Hassan.

What does Baba do when Ali and Hassan leave?

Amir realizes Hassan saw him in the alley, and he knew also that Amir was setting him up now. Baba forgives Hassan, but Ali says they must leave. Baba pleads with him to stay, but Ali refuses. It rains when Ali and Hassan leave, and Amir watches from inside as they go.

Why does Sohrab feel dirty?

They talk a little about their parents, and Sohrab asks if God will put him in hell for what he did to Assef. … Sohrab is glad his parents cannot see him. The sexual abuse he suffered makes him feel dirty and sinful.

Does Sohrab have a cleft lip?

Hassan’s cleft lip symbolizes his poverty and low social status, especially compared to Amir. … The scar on his lip also symbolizes his new role as father figure toward Sohrab.

How was Sohrab abused?

Throughout the end of The Kite Runner, Sohrab acts as an extension of Hassan. In addition to their “breathtaking” physical similarities, both characters are born and raised in the same hut, both are sexually abused by the same man, both kite-run with Amir, and both carry a slingshot.

How does Baba redeem himself?

Although Baba never told Amir, Ali, or Hassan of his affair, and took the anger of his guilt out on his loved ones, Baba was able to find redemption. He forgave himself by helping those in need, and later improving his relations with Amir.

Who lived in Baba's house with Rahim?

Rahim Khan stayed the night, and in the morning, Hassan told him that he and Farzana would go back to Kabul. Out of respect, Hassan and Farzana live in the small servants’ hut on Baba’s property, and Hassan works diligently cleaning and repairing the house.

What were the Kite Runner doing?

The kite runners were flying kites.

What was Soraya's secret?

Soraya’s secret, that she ran away and lived with a man on drugs for a month when she was eighteen years old, is out in the open where she can deal with it. Amir is jealous that she doesn’t have to live with the dysfunction of secrecy. Baba kept his secret to the grave: He was the biological father of Hassan.

Who pays for Amir and Soraya's wedding?

Who pays for this? Amir and Soraya’s wedding cost $35,000. Baba paid for it. How does Soraya help Baba during the last month of his life?

Where do Baba and Amir live in America in the 1980s?

Baba and Amir are in Fremont, California, where they have lived for nearly two years.

What did Amir sacrifice for Baba?

At the same time, Amir never learns to assert himself against anyone else because Hassan always defends him. All of these factors play into his cowardice in sacrificing Hassan, his only competition for Baba’s love, in order to get the blue kite, which he thinks will bring him Baba’s approval.

What is Baba's greatest fear?

register and alleviated one of his greatest fears: that an Afghan would see him buying food with charity money. Baba walked out of the welfare office like a man cured of a tumor.

What job did Baba get in America?

The move to America is very difficult for Baba, who is used to being wealthy and well-respected in his community. He goes from having wealth and a position of power to working a low-paying job at a gas station and living modestly.

What chapter does Amir get married?

In Chapter 13 of The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini, Amir gets married to an Afghan girl, Soraya, that he met at the flea market and they learn to live in their expanded families.

How does Baba see Hassan?

Baba has a very close relationship with Hassan; he treats him like he’s his own son. There’s a good reason for this: he is his son. Amir doesn’t find out about this until later on, but when he does, it explains everything. Growing up, Amir was always jealous of the attention that his father lavished on Hassan.

What was Soraya mistake?

Soraya’s father exacted punishment on Soraya for tainting the family name and honor. He made her cut all her hair off while he sat in front of her and watched. This act shamed Soraya and prevented her from being seen in public until her hair grew back.