Three Cups of Tea!

Three Cups of Teas scores well as an ethnographic work of writing. The book emphasizes the people and the relationships that Mortenson soon forms. There are many different types of people that are described and each is done so carefully. The reader gets to see what the culture is like through the people of Pakistan that Mortenson discovers. Not only are the people described in detail but the beliefs, values, and behaviors of the Pakistani people are constantly shown in Three Cups of Tea. Mortenson is very observant of the Pakistan culture and one of the reasons he had such great success was because he valued the people and was able accomplish things in the Pakistan way not the American way. Thus the writing in Three Cups of Tea does an excellent job of portraying culture and the reader gets an in depth look through the expert on Pakistan culture, Mortenson.

Another technique the book uses to explore culture is through language. The writers often use bits and pieces of Urdu, Pashtun, and other languages throughout Mortenson's travels. I thought that this was a great technique and think it added to the validity of the work as a piece of ethnographic writing. By studying the language we are able to see deeper into the Pakistani culture and examine it through yet another lens.