Summary: Chapter 12: Haji Ali’s Lesson
In Skardu, Mortenson cannot find Changazi or the building supplies that were
left in his keeping. He receives help from Ghulam Parvi, an astute accountant
working for Changazi. Parvi stands up to Changazi’s men and locates the supplies in
an abandoned hotel. About a third of the materials are missing, but Mortenson has
enough to return to Korphe, where he expects preparations to be far along. Little
has been done, however, and Mortenson is upset. Haji explains that the villagers
decided to work on the stones themselves rather than hiring laborers who might
exploit Mortenson. He puts the matter into perspective by saying that one more
winter will not matter after six hundred years without a school. Mortenson tells
Twaha about his marriage and Twaha is delighted, although somewhat baffled by
Western marriage customs. Sher Takhi, the religious leader of Korphe, gives special
prayers for the school-builders and Mortenson goes into the village mosque for the
first time. He realizes nervously that he has been taught the Sunni form of prayer,
which is different from the Shiite form used by the villagers.
Mortenson returns to America and he and Tara have Thanksgiving dinner with
Jean Hoerni. Hoerni announces that he wants to start a foundation, the Central Asia
Institute (CAI), and make Mortenson the director. The goal will be to build a school
every year. After learning that Tara is pregnant, the Mortensons move to Bozeman,
Montana, to be near Tara’s mother. Back in Pakistan, Mortenson invites his former
guide, Mouzafer, to work for the CAI and also engages the accountant Parvi. He
travels to Korphe to complete the school, but when he tries to oversee construction,
Haji tells him that his Western impatience is making everyone crazy. Haji explains
that Mortenson must respect the ways of the Balti people if he expects to succeed.
He must understand that building relationships is as important as building schools.
As the chapter ends, Haji Mehdi, a corrupt leader who dominates the local people,
comes to Korphe and threatens Haji Ali. Haji Mehdi says he will not allow Mortenson,
an “infidel,” to build a school and claims that girls should not be educated
according to the Koran. He demands that Haji Ali give him twelve rams, half of the
village’s wealth. Haji Ali agrees, and explains to Mortenson that this is not too
great a price to pay for the village children to have education.
Summary: Chapter 13: “A Smile Should Be More Than a Memory”
Mortenson is intent on going into Waziristan, an untamed area of Pakistan’s
Northwest Frontier, to look for another school site. The year is 1996, a time of
political upheaval, and Osama Bin Laden has recently arrived in Afghanistan. In the
frontier town of Peshawar, Mortenson sees Taliban forces heading across the border
to Afghanistan, while refugees flee in the opposite direction. Mortenson sets out
with a driver, but along the way he is kidnapped. For eight days he is held in a
small room, although the reasons why are never made clear. He tries to make friends
with his captors by asking for a Koran, and he passes the time reading an old copy
of Time Magazine and thinking about Tara. An English-speaking Wazir
arrives, and Mortenson, who believes the man to be a Taliban commander, tells him
about the work he has been doing in Baltistan. One night, Mortenson is blindfolded
and taken away in a pickup truck. Mortenson fears he will be killed, but when Khan
removes the blindfold, Mortenson sees his captors holding a feast. Without
explanation, they embrace Mortenson, give him money for the school project, and take
him back to Peshawar.
Analysis: Chapter 12 and Chapter 13
Chapter 12 contrasts the Balti’s ancient culture with Mortenson’s modern way
of life. Three years have passed since Mortenson originally wandered into Korphe,
and in that time his life has changed a great deal. But his personality and his way
of doing things are still very much the same. He is impulsive and impatient, with a
great need to see results immediately. Like many people from modern societies in the
West, Mortenson makes spontaneous decisions and craves excitement. Haji, on the
other hand, has lived all his life in a fixed society where very little changes.
Everyone in Korphe carries out their expected roles because the group’s survival
depends on shared responsibility. Life is difficult, and things often go slowly.
Haji has developed his view of the world as the result of a lifetime of dealing with
this reality, and although he has no formal education, he has learned from the
traditions handed down to him. In sharing his wisdom with Mortenson, Haji teaches
Mortenson not only how to get things done in Baltistan but also how to live his life
differently.
Haji’s decision to give over the rams reveals how important the school is to
the people of Korphe. His decision also demonstrates his ability as a leader. The
rams represent half of the village’s wealth, making them difficult to part with,
particularly since the village has so little. To make clear how valuable the rams
are, Mortenson describes them as being like “a firstborn child, prize cow, and
family pet all rolled into one.” Giving them up is difficult, but Haji recognizes
that a better life is possible for his people, so he believes the sacrifice is
worthwhile. He is sad that he cannot read the Koran and he does not want the
children of Korphe to grow up illiterate as well. As he explains to his people, the
rams would only last a little while, but the school, and the education it provides,
will last for a lifetime.
The second half of the book, in which Mortenson’s experiences become part of
the larger political developments in the region, begins in Chapter 13. Previously,
the action has switched back and forth between California and Korphe, with other
places, such as Rawalpindi and Skardu, appearing only because of their proximity to
Korphe. Once Mortenson’s mission has been extended beyond Korphe, however, tensions
beyond the village become much more important. We have already heard about the
political problems of Pakistan, including the ongoing conflict with India and the
differences between the two factions of Islam, Sunni and Shia. In this chapter, we
also learn more about the dangerous tribal lands that lie along the border of
Pakistan and Afghanistan, and we get a closer view of what life is like in this
area. The most telling point about Mortenson’s kidnapping is that we never know why
it happened or what it meant. The situation in this region is complicated in a way
that no outsider can fully understand.
Throughout the book, Mortenson has frequently behaved somewhat recklessly, but
in Chapter 13 his willingness to take risks goes still further. Although he was
warned by Haji Ali never to go anywhere in Pakistan without trustworthy allies,
Mortenson is so intrigued by tales of Waziristan that he ignores the potential
danger. He realizes he is taking a chance by traveling into unknown territory with a
strange driver, yet he does it anyway. From the reader’s viewpoint, it is obvious
that Mortenson does not have to go to Waziristan. He could just as easily look for
potential school locations in safer places. We also see that he is repeating a
familiar pattern, setting out with no preparation and having made no connections
ahead of time. In previous circumstances, however, he was operating in a reasonably
safe part of the country, where Western climbing expeditions often traveled. In
going to Waziristan, he acts foolishly, and he ultimately suffers the consequence of
being kidnapped. In addition, Mortenson’s risk taking takes on a new dimension as he
is newly married, meaning his actions will affect someone beyond just him. Still, he
never appears to consider this fact.
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