Rapport

Rapport is a mind-to-mind connection that Anne has established with Mike and can help Jubal develop as he learns Martian. In the passage describing Jubal’s proposed instruction, it is not merely a subject to study: it is a connection that another learner can help him enter, making Anne’s experience central to his progress.

Anne’s Experience

Mahmoud explains that Anne is much farther along than she has let Jubal know. Her total-recall memory allowed her to learn Martian quickly, and she established rapport with Mike. The connection therefore appears here alongside language learning: Anne’s unusual memory advanced her study, while her rapport with Mike represents a further kind of access to Martian experience.

Jubal’s Instruction

Jubal doubts that he can follow Anne’s example because he lacks her memory and Mike is unavailable. Mahmoud answers that Anne herself is available. Dawn can place Jubal in rapport with Anne, if he consents; after that initial step, Anne can manage the lessons without Dawn. Mahmoud predicts that Jubal will be thinking in Martian within days by the calendar, though the subjective duration will be much longer. Rapport thus becomes the proposed bridge between Jubal’s ordinary learning and a more immediate, immersive course of instruction.

Consent and Relationship

The arrangement depends on Jubal’s willingness: Dawn can establish the connection only if he lets her. Mahmoud’s teasing reference to the lessons’ warming-up exercises makes the proposal pointedly personal, and Jubal responds by accusing him of being lecherous and reminding him that he has taken one of Jubal’s best secretaries. Mahmoud replies that Anne has not been lost to Jubal entirely and will insist on teaching him too. The exchange frames rapport as both a means of learning and a relationship mediated by trust, consent, and the existing bond between teacher and student.