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4. King Zahir Shah- Abby Gritis

Cultural: Mohammed Zahir Shah holds the title of “Father of the Nation” although when he was alive held no actual power. Many people were in favor of him at the beginning of his presidency because he caused a stable government for his people. He was credited, and worked for, peace in his country among other nations. Although, not everything was peachy under his rule, as a history website depicts, “Under his rule political parties were outlawed, and students were shot and killed when they protested” (Ritscher 1). This made many of his people dislike him although outsiders would view King Sahir Shah as a great man who helped the country a lot. He helped many people, but also was very controlling, which caused people to have a dislike towards him. Now though, as stated previously, he is credited what would seem to be a very respected title, and he even “ opposed the restoration of the monarchy and declined to run for president, was later given the honorary title Father of the Nation” (“Mohammad Zahir Shah 1”). Even with his seeming wrongdoings he attempted to make a positive life for the people of his country, even years after his position was abolished.

Historical: Mohammed Zahir Shah was the King of Afghanistan from 1933-1973. During this time he created a stable government for his country. As an article from Britannica states, Zahir Shah came to the throne at the age of 19, after the assassination of his father in November 1933, having previously served as a cabinet minister” (1). He was a positive influence on his country, showing them economic stability as well as a stable foreign affairs agenda. Some parts of his rule were less than positive though, as the country went through drought near the end of his ruling and many people were upset at this and other factors. Near the end of his life and, “after many years of silence, in the late 1990s and early 2000s he initiated a plan to bring peace to Afghanistan” (“Mohammad Zahir Shah” 1). His efforts went unheard due to various parties in Afghanistan though. He then held the title as the “Father of the Nation” but held no actual power.

Aim: The purpose that King Zahir Shah possessed was to make his country a better one. As a biography of this king states “ Zahir Shah undertook a number of economic development projects, including irrigation and highway construction” (“Mohammad Zahir Shah” 1). Mohammed Zahir Shah had a goal to make sure that people would be helped. His purpose as King was that of making the lives better for those in his country. It is even said that “attempts were made to “modernize” the country” (Ritscher 1). He tried to help his country more than he had seen with his family members. King Zahir Shah tried very hard to make sure that his people had better facilities and that they were more sustainable. His efforts were valiant, even if many people did not appreciate him in the end.

Audience: The audience of King Zahir Shah is the Afghani people. They were the ones that saw him triumph and fail. Zahir worked for his people, even “ initiated a plan to bring peace to Afghanistan” (“Mohammad Zahir Shah” 1). His people were his audience in the sense that he basically worked for them and it was the people who he needed to make happy. The audience of this term present day is also the Afghani people in modern society since they are the ones that have to live with some of the choices that were made during his ruling. Even in the 21st century he was still affecting them, since “he returned to Afghanistan in 2002” (“Mohammed Zahir Shah” 1). He was very impactful to the Afghani people, in both positive and negative ways and his actions affected their lives. Their actions also affected his life since they are the people of the nation and the people need to be happy in order for the royals to be happy. All in all, the people were Zahir's audience, but they affected his as well.

Works Cited: "Mohammad Zahir Shah." //Afghanistan Online: Biography //. Web. 31 Oct. 2014.

The Editors of Encyclopædia Britannica. "Mohammad Zahir Shah (king of Afghanistan)." //Encyclopedia Britannica Online //. Encyclopedia Britannica, n.d. Web. 31 Oct. 2014.

"Afghanistan History." //Afghanistan History //. Web. 28 Oct. 2014.