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Doctor Lawson Shepherd
The Shah of Bratpuhr is the spiritual leader of a fictional place called Bratpuhr. The fact that he’s a Shah suggests that this made-up region is somewhere in Iran, since “Shah” is a title used in that part of the world (it was also used in Afghanistan until the 1970s). However, it’s also possible that Kurt Vonnegut simply misspelled Bharatpur, which is a real city in the Indian state of Rajasthan (though this wouldn’t make sense of the “Shah” title). Either way, the Shah is a powerful leader who visits the United States with his translator, Khashdrahr Miasma. The purpose of his visit is to tour the country, supposedly to survey the United States’s successful use of machines to create a streamlined, highly productive economy and government. As Doctor Halyard takes the Shah and Khashdrahr around the country, he finds himself having to confront many cultural differences, especially because the Shah assumes that anyone who isn’t in the elite upper class must be enslaved (or, in his words, a “Takaru”). Halyard vehemently refutes this, but the Shah’s observations about the strict hierarchies in the United States feel uncomfortably accurate, even if they’re outlandish. Toward the end of the Shah’s visit, he and Khashdrahr get swept up by members of the Ghost Shirt Society, who mistake them as fellow anti-automation revolutionaries. The Shah is last seen sleeping in a trench near a blockade after the Ghost Shirts overtake Ilium.
The Shah of Bratpuhr Quotes in Player Piano
The Player Piano quotes below are all either spoken by The Shah of Bratpuhr or refer to The Shah of Bratpuhr. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
).
Chapter 2 Quotes
“[…] we’ve raised the standard of living of the average man immensely.”
Khashdrahr stopped translating and frowned perplexedly. “Please, this average man, there is no equivalent in our language, I’m afraid.”
“You know,” said Halyard, “the ordinary man, like, well, anybody—those men working back on the bridge, the man in that old car we passed. The little man, not brilliant but a good-hearted, plain, ordinary, everyday kind of person.”
Khashdrahr translated.
“Aha,” said the Shah, nodding, “Takaru.”
“What did he say?”
“Takaru,” said Khashdrahr. “Slave.”
“No Takaru,” said Halyard, speaking directly to the Shah. “Ci-ti-zen.”
“Ahhhhh,” said the Shah. “Ci-ti-zen.” He grinned happily. “Takaru—citizen. Citizen—Takaru.”
“No Takaru!” said Halyard.
Khashdrahr shrugged. “In the Shah’s land are only the Elite and the Takaru.”
Related Characters:
Related Themes:
Page Number and Citation:
Explanation and Analysis:
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The Shah of Bratpuhr Character Timeline in Player Piano
The timeline below shows where the character The Shah of Bratpuhr appears in Player Piano. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Chapter 2
The Shah of Bratpuhr —who is the “spiritual leader” of the “Kolhouri sect”—sits in a limousine with his translator,...
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Disgusted, the Shah calls this economic structure “Communism,” but Halyard fervently refutes this. He believes the country has...
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...them spits in his face as the limousine passes. As Halyard cleans himself off, assuring the Shah that this is an “isolated incident,” the Shah commiserates with him, saying that it’s “the...
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Chapter 7
The Shah of Bratpuhr goes with Halyard and Khashdrahr to visit the US Army. The Army company marches before...
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Chapter 11
Doctor Halyard, the Shah of Bratpuhr , and Khashdrahr are at the Carlsbad Caverns, which is home to the country’s largest...
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...of the United States, Jonathan Lynn, arrives to give a speech, and Halyard sits with the Shah and Khashdrahr in the audience in one of the caverns. The Shah doesn’t quite see...
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After the speech, the Shah asks the President if he can pose a question. He then walks over to EPICAC,...
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Chapter 17
Doctor Halyard brings the Shah and Khashdrahr to Chicago so they can visit the family home of a typical Reclamation...
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...a result, is unhappy. Edgar also resents that he has to open his house to the Shah . Nonetheless, he lets in the Shah, who goes through the house and learns about...
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The Shah asks why everything has to be so streamlined—what, exactly, does Wanda want to do with...
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When the Shah leaves, Edgar feels so guilty about his affair that he comes clean to Wanda. But...
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Chapter 20
Doctor Halyard sits in a barbershop in Miami while the Shah gets an American haircut. The barber goes on at length about how difficult it has...
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...position, he will have to complete Cornell’s fitness test, which he can do while giving the Shah a tour of the university.
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Chapter 24
The Shah catches a cold on the way to Cornell University. Self-medicating by drinking a special liquor,...
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...says that her husband is one of the only people left with self-respect. Hearing this, the Shah removes a ruby from his finger and gives it to her, speaking comfortingly as he...
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Chapter 33
Halyard rides through Ilium with the Shah and Khashdrahr, who can sense that his social status has diminished ever since he came...
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The driver of the Shah ’s limousine tries to make a run for it, but Khashdrahr puts a knife to...
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...with sandbags. As he tries to reconstruct what happened, he hears two Ghost Shirts mistaking the Shah and Khashdrahr for members of their own society, sending them to help block a nearby...
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As the Shah and Khashdrahr are escorted into a truck full of grenades and taken away, Lasher and...
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Chapter 35
...to the roadblock—where the authorities are waiting for them—Paul and the others pass Khashdrahr and the Shah sleeping peacefully in a trench. Paying them no mind, Lasher takes out a bottle and...
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