Ballarat High School

Ballarat High School Unit 1 English – Reading & Responding 2012

THE RUGMAKER OF MAZAR-E-SHARIF

By Najaf Mazari & Robert Hillman

Outcome 1 On completion of this unit the student should be able to identify and discuss key aspects of a set text, and to construct a response in written form. Assessment

READING & RESPONDING - UNIT 1 SAC

An analytical essay, of 600-800 words, in response to a set question on Najaf Mazari and Robert Hillman’s novel, The Rugmaker of Mazar-E-Sharif.

This will be done under exam conditions. You will have two periods to complete the task.

This task will account for 20% of your Unit 1 mark.

READING & RESPONDING - UNIT 1 COURSEWORK

(To be assessed as either S or N, satisfactory or non-satisfactory)

1. CHARACTERS:

Najaf Mazari is the major character in the story. He is thirty years old when the reader first meets him. When the story returns to his earlier years in Afghanistan, Najaf appears as a young boy, a teenager and as a young man. Najaf starts his working life as a shepherd boy, then becomes an apprentice rugmaker, and finally a master rugmaker. Gorg Ali Mazari is Najaf’s eldest brother. He takes over as head of the family when Najaf’s father dies. Gorg Ali is a bee-keeper. Abdul Ali Mazari is Najaf’s second-eldest brother. He becomes head of the family when Gorg Ali is shot dead by a sniper. Abdul Ali is a butcher. Rosal Ali Mazari is Najaf’s younger brother. Rosal Ali is killed when the Mazari house in Mazar-e-Sharif is destroyed by a high-explosive rocket. Najaf’s mother comes into the story in the chapters set in Afghanistan. Robin Bourke is an Australian woman in her sixties who helps Najaf when he first settles in Melbourne and becomes his closest friend in Australia. Colin Young is a Melbourne rug and antique dealer who became Najaf’s friend when Najaf established his rug shop in Prahran. Abbas is an Afghani and fellow-refugee of Najaf’s. Abbas is a musician who plays an Afghani instrument known as a tullah.

a) Complete a detailed character study on Najaf Mazari

Your character study should be set out under the following headings and contain the following information:

1. Najaf as a child Growing up in Shar Shar & Mazar-e-Sharif, Afghanistan, being a shepherd; his education; his father’s death; his regrets about his chosen occupation; his feelings about his family.

2. Najaf becomes a rugmaker How he becomes a rugmaker; the death of Gorg Ali; the incident with Rosal Ali; the explosion & Najaf’s injuries; the recruitment officers;

3. Najaf the man in Afghanistan Thinking about marriage; war raging all over Afghanistan; hiding; his experiences of the Taliban

4. Najaf the refugee Being the “chosen one” (p220) ; the journey; Woomera: His role in the camp; his fears; his perceptions of the interview process/tests; the visas.

5. Najaf in Australia Najaf’s reflections on his life in Australia. What has he accomplished in the years since he arrived? What experiences please him most? Birds & fish, Robin & Colin b) Make a list of quotes which illustrate Najaf’s world view. Here are two to get you started:

“I realised that a man is not what he thinks, not what he says, but what he does with his hands and legs and with his heart.’ • ‘War had always been the background to my life and it surely helped to form the way I thought about things.’ c) Gorg Ali

 Give examples of things that Gorg Ali taught Najaf.  Why does he tell Najaf the story of the king’s son? What is the lesson? (p78)  What is Najaf’s opinion of Gorg Ali? (p106-110)  What changes in Najaf’s household does the death of Gorg Ali bring about? d) Other characters Complete a character map which contains brief notes & quotes relating to all the other characters. 3. THEMES

Cultural differences a) Complete the following table:

Afghanistan Australia Roles within the family Childhood Education Marriage/love Male/female relationships Business culture Clothing Religion b) What are the differences that Najaf notices between Dandenong and Mazar-e-Sharif? What do these differences reveal about Australian culture compared to Afghani culture?

Conflict v peace c) What are the short term and long term consequences of conflict? d) Describe moments in the novel when Najaf experiences peace.

Hope v despair e) Give 4 examples from the text of events that illustrate these opposing ideas

Freedom v powerlessness f) Again, give 4 examples from the text of events that illustrate these opposing ideas

Politics of displacement g) What becomes of a person in our world if political developments make it impossible for him to live in his own country? h) Why is Woomera made to look so unwelcoming? i) The refugee whose story has been rejected by the authorities resorts to self-mutilation. What is symbolised by this act? What point may the refugee have been attempting to make? j) The broad claim made by Najaf in the opening chapter is that most refugees simply want a secure land in which to build a new life. Do Najaf’s reflections on the world within the camp tend to support or to undermine that claim?

Relationship between culture & identity k) Write a paragraph on this theme taking into account the following questions:  Will the habits and customs of one culture flourish in a new and different cultural environment?  Is ‘identity’ portable?  What factors are involved in the successful preservation of identity?  Why is ‘identity’ important to people?  What is the role of religion and its teachings in the shaping of an individual’s life?

4. HOW THE AUTHOR CONSTRUCTS MEANING Narrative structure The story is told in both present tense and past tense in the voice of Najaf Mazari. Chapters set in Australia are written in the present tense and alternate with chapters set in Afghanistan, which are told in the past tense.

The Australian chapters range over a six year period, from 2001 to 2006. The Afghanistan chapters range over a much longer period, from 1977 to 2000. The events of the Afghanistan chapters gradually catch up with the Australian chapters, so that the final Afghanistan chapter brings the reader to the point at which the first Australian chapter commences. This narrative strategy permits the reader to learn about Najaf’s past and present at the same time. Each chapter set in the past enlarges the reader’s understanding of what is happening in the present.

Use of metaphor a) Discuss Najaf’s metaphor of weaving on page 167. Why does this metaphor suit the story told by Najaf in this book? b) Discuss, also, the metaphor Najaf employs on page 207 concerning the dangers that liberty encounters. Why does this metaphor suit the story?

ESSAY QUESTIONS

Complete an analytical essay of 600-800 words in response to at least one of the following questions:

Character questions

1. “We admire Najaf because he has been able to survive terrible conflict not only physically but also psychologically.”

Do you agree?

2. ‘War had always been the background to my life and it surely helped to form the way I thought about things.’

“Najaf’s values and character are shaped by more than just war.”

Discuss.

Thematic questions

3. “The Rugmaker of Mazar-e-Sharif dispels rather than accentuates cultural differences.”

Discuss.

4. “The Rugmaker of Mazar-e-Sharif is ultimately a story of hope.”

Do you agree?

How the author constructs meaning questions

5. “The Rugmaker of Mazar-e-Sharif is the story of one man overcoming enormous challenges.” How does the narrative structure of The Rugmaker of Mazar-e-Sharif convey Najaf’s achievement?