Background of the Study

1

CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION

This chapter consists of five parts; they are background of the study, problem formulation, objectives of the study, benefits of the study and definitions of terms. In the background of the study, the writer describes the main topic of the thesis and also presents the reason in choosing the topic. Problem formulation deals with two research problems in this thesis that would be figured out later in the following chapter. The objective of the study is to describe the aims of conducting this research. The benefit of the study identifies the benefit of this study for the readers and future researchers. Definition of terms, which is the last part of this chapter, clarifies some important terms that are used in this study to avoid misunderstanding.

A. Background of the Study

Reading is a means of gaining and enriching our knowledge in different areas of activity. Therefore, many people like reading especially literary works. Because these works give them many values which can enrich their knowledge and also make them have different perceptions of life. Michael Wagner states, Literature has the “ability” to develop the reader’s moral vision through the means of imagination. This awareness is developed not through the theory or abstract but through stimulation of the reader’s perception. The reader can participate vicariously in that imaginary life context. 30 There are many literary works that are familiar to us such as novels, plays, poems and the works have their own interesting topic to be discussed. In this study, the writer decides to discuss a literary work in the form of Three Cups of Tea novel, which has a very interesting topic. This novel tells a story of a man’s struggle to build schools in Northern Pakistan. Since education is very important, it is fascinating to explore more about the role of education in our life. We need education as one of the critical tools to achieve our goals in our life. The result of a research published in an Institute Education journal states, Education in broadest sense is any act or experience that has formative effect on the mind, character, or physical ability of an individual. In its technical sense education is important as the process by which society deliberately transmits its accumulated knowledge, skills and values from one generation to another. http:www.wikipedia.education journal.com By having good education, we can develop our skill, ability, and knowledge. Education is effective if people get it since they are young. However, we can see that not all children today can get good education they need. There are a lot of poor children who cannot get proper education because of various reasons, among others are the absence of educational facilities or family economic factor that unable them to afford good education. It sounds ironical when we know that children deserve to get education in their young age but they cannot get the education they really need. Such a grieving situation occurs in Korphe village, North Pakistan, where the setting of this novel mostly takes place. The children in Korphe do not have good education. They do not have a school as their place to study. Nonetheless, the children in Korphe have strong motivation to study to get more knowledge. They usually study in frosty ground without any teacher. A man named Greg Mortenson, who gets lost in Korphe when he fails to climb K2 summit, is very concerned about the education there. Therefore, he tries to solve that problem by setting a humanitarian mission by building some schools there. Three cups of tea is a true story by Greg Mortenson. His story becomes an inspiration for many people. Many people believe that one man can change the world by his humanitarian mission in promoting peace through education. Greg Mortenson is a nurse who is also an avid mountaineer. He used to climb mountain since he was a kid. He was born in Minnesota, but when he was three months old, he followed his parents to move to the continent’s highest peak, Mount Kilimanjaro, Northern Tanzania. In this novel, Greg Mortenson changes his occupation from nurse and mountaineer to be a humanitarian as a director in CAICentral Asia Institute. Toward a tribute for his beloved sister Christa, Greg Mortenson, together with his friends, attempts to climb K2, the world’s second highest mountain, in the Karakoram range of Northern Pakistan. The difficult route in K2 makes him failed in attempting the mountain. After several days of getting lost, he comes across Korphe, a small and remote village built on shelf jutting out from a canyon. He is greeted well by Haji Ali, the chief of Korphe village and he is treated by the villagers until he recovers. Feeling very comfortable with the Korphe society and admiring their hospitality, Greg wants to repay what they have done to him. He wants to build a school there, Greg is fretful seeing the condition and situation of children in Korphe who cannot have good education and also places to study. At that time, Greg Mortenson’s motivation is getting bigger because of his promises to Haji Ali and the villagers in Korphe to return and to work on a solution to solve this problem. The writer thinks that Three cups of tea is interesting to analyze because it shows how Greg Mortenson struggles hard to realize his promise and also his motivation to accomplish his mission. Thus, this study focuses on it.

B. Problem Formulation