Karnak Cafe and The Day the Leader Was Killed by Naguib Mahfouz - Literature review Example

? Contrast Order 510167 Topic: Contrast and compare 'Karnak Cafe' and 'The Day the Leader was Killed' by Naghuib Mahfouz Karnak Cafe is an interesting novel. The theme of the novel and the author’s attitude towards the theme evoke curiosity. The level of detachment achieved by the author in this otherwise serious plot is commendable. Without giving room for too much sentimentalism, situations manifests clearly, grow, and attain new dimensions. The book deserves an outstanding position on account of this approach. It is a difficult story of a difficult society at the time of difficult social and political conditions. The mutual interaction over delicate situations between the characters reveal in the most natural way, the convictions for which the novel stands for. This is the uniqueness of the writing style of the author. As the story develops, it becomes poignant without losing its ground and reality. Mahfouz has created a sensational and beautiful character in Qurunfula, the proprietress of Cafe. She is just like the oases in desert. The stern author becomes an entirely different man when he portrays her character. He turns a poet in adoring her qualities of head and heart. How she puts up with the vicissitudes of life is brilliantly elucidated by the author. How intelligently she detaches from her glorious past and maintains her essential dignity as a common individual, is a lesson for womenfolk in any part of the world. Contrast….2 The protagonist, though entered the Cafe, by chance, he was surprised to see Qurunfula there in her new role. He describes his past relationship with her in a cryptic style. Mahfouz (2008, p.4) writes, “We had never had any kind of relationship, whether of affection, self-interest, or simply courtesy.” How and to what extent she is able to retain her past beauty of the body and nobility of soul! Here is another masterful description of the Karnak Cafe with the presence of Qurunfula. Mahfouz (p.5) writes, “Here you get to sense past and present, in a warm embrace, the sweet past and glorious present. To top it all, there is that enticement that the unknown brings.” The author has intelligently analyzed the contemporary ground realities of the Egyptian government. Though the governments change, nothing much happens to improve the social and economic conditions of the common people. The author touches upon the issues, how psychological imprisonment works in a seemingly free society, how an atmosphere of fear persists and how people are subjugated. No positive improvement is seen to break the age-old societal traditions, the freedom of the individuals is not guaranteed. It is a peculiar type of society of mutual suspicion. No violent or radical reactions are depicted in the novel from the side of the government or from the people, though! The discontent of the people is seething within and they are compelled to carry on with the available discipline and remain amenable to the bitter realities of the Cairo-world from where political power is unleashed. Kanak Cafe is sort of a ‘mini parliament’ of the people where a cross-section of the people meets. An attempt has been made by the author to depict the generation gap that was Contrast….3 emerging in the society, the clash of the values of the old and the combustible younger generation. The legendary former dancer Qurunfula is the link, and the ambience created by her is to the liking of both the old and new, for strange reasons. Perfect human values, love and affection springs forth in that Cafe, and the people gather there, find psychological relief by discussing the hot political issues and by tendering varied reactions. The disappearance of the three young customers of the Cafe, create terror in the hearts of the customers. Various guesses float forth about their fates. Secret police took them to an unknown destination and they were cruelly tortured. The pleasant atmosphere in the Cafe stands vitiated due to mistrust with the fear that someone amongst them is the police informer. The heaven of camaraderie is transformed into a place of disillusionment at a time when the country is coming to terms with the devastation due to defeat in the six day war with Israel 1967. The social upheaval of the era is reflected through the line of conversation of all those who earlier made the atmosphere at Kanak Cafe lively. The Day the Leader Was Killed: The novella “The Day the Leader was Killed,” holds the mirror in front of the readers of Anwar al- Sadat’s Egypt and the time is 1981. How politics of the day impacts the middle-class family has been described in this compact, small novel, projecting the Cairene family. It consists of contradictory characters, family patriarch Muhtashimi Zayed, his timid grandson Elwan, and his beautiful but tough fiancee Randa. The political events flow throughout the novel, the Contrast…..4 author has penned them intelligently with the climax of assassination of Sadat on October 6, 1981. The message contained in the novel is universal and not restricted to Egypt alone. It embraces the entire humanity. Mahfouz (2000, p.3) seems to have crossed the mind-barrier and entered the portals of spirituality when he writes, “Prayer is communion and annihilation. God loves those who love to commune with Him.” The utterances of Muhtashimi Zayed indicate his thought currents which are engulfed in spirituality. Mahfouz (p.7) puts it thus: “Solitude of the soul, of place, and of time. It is a year now since I was last able to read. I get very little sleep, but I am not afraid of death. I shall welcome it when it comes, but not before it is due.” Politics is the playing field for Mahfouz. The darkest era of Egypt has brought forth sterling observations from his pen. Lyrical prose is the highlight of this novel. The reading is a pleasant experience from the point of view of language, though it relates to the bitter events of Egypt. His fancy and love for the Arab traditions of writing is evident and he goes to prove the observation of Pierre Cachia (2002, p,1) who writes, “Indeed poetry has long been deemed the supreme art from among the Arabs, one that flourished even at times when other arts were virtually unknown. The literary prose of the same period on the other hand, consists only of some proverbs and orations reported at a much later date.” In fine, Mahfouz has challenged political atrocities of the day through his thought-currents —with the remarkable style of his prose-poetry. Contrast…..5 Comparison and contrast: 1. Karnak Cafe: A socio-political thriller. The old people enjoy the recollection of the ‘noble’ past. The younger generation wishes to break away from such age old traditions. Kanak Cafe becomes the melting pot of ‘various ideologies.’ A peculiar situation develops there with every one getting disillusioned about the system prevailing in Egypt. The various characters interpret in their own style, with their bitter experiences, the political, social and economic tragedies which severely curb the aspirations of the people in all walks of life. The Day the Leader was Killed: The bigger picture of the society is highlighted through the contradictions that are shown through the personal narratives relating to three characters mentioned above. The situations are the same—the clash of the traditional values with that of modern ideals impacted by the materialistic civilization, industrial and internet revolutions is highlighted. The younger generation is more concerned about its love-life and career goals, than about the family bonds. 2. Karnak Cafe: Freedom for the country is one thing and that doesn’t guarantee freedom for the individual. The author tackles this aspect of the society in Egypt with rare insight, through his characters. The Day the Leader was Killed: The plot of the novel centers round the historic Arab-Israeli conflict, and the assassination of Anwar Sadat on October, 6, 1981. Deep resentment of the people, the poverty-stricken Muslims, the hatred for Americans, now fanned by the Camp Contrast….6 David Accord between Israel and Egypt in 1978, that brought peace but not prosperity are some of the contributing factors that have been depicted by the author. The author has crafted the socio-economic backdrop in the novel, very well. The prevailing uncertainty in Egypt is highlighted. Gender and economic issues are discussed in depth through the reactions of the characters. 3.Karnak Cafe: Through the reactions to the different type of developments in own life and that of the conditions prevailing in the society, the author treats with admirable restraint questions related to loyalty, betrayal, love, fear peace and war. The novel, as a whole is set in dark moods of the post 1967 war, in which Egypt was defeated and suffered humiliation. The Day the Leader was Killed: One sees the reflections of Karl Marx ideology. Though strongly religious to the borders of fanaticism, the present struggle of the masses in the Middle East is an important issue and the author has tried to explain how the coming events cast their shadows before and how corruption eats into the vitals of the society. When the situation becomes intolerable, people take on to violence. Strong resentment brewing behind the close doors of Muslim houses pours out in the form of a violent, uncontrollable volcano, leading to the assassination of Anwar Sadat. 4. Karnak Cafe and its political message: Mahfouz propounds the fundamental human values. Condemns autocracy and dictatorship; Pleads for giving up violence and force; defends essential human dignity; argues about the advantages of scientific methods. Contrast….7 The Day the Leader was Killed: Militant strains of the minds of youth are depicted yet the tone of the novel is benevolence. The author advocates that inner illumination is the permanent solution for all the ills afflicting the society. Language-wise, the author has used Rashomon-construction. In both the books, Mahfouz reveals involuntarily that he is a poet at heart and the true torch-bearer of literary forms of Arabic traditions. As Sasson Somekh (1991, p.248) points out, “The focus of the book therefore is the stylistic dimension of modern Arabic writings and the way language operates in them as it accommodates itself to the nature of the literary genre of which it is a vehicle and to the social and cultural constraints under which the authors perceive themselves to be operating.” Both the books bear testimony to this observation. About the spiritual inclinations in his writing, Rasheed El-Enany (2005, p.2) observes, “Mahfouz himself stresses the importance of Jamaliyya, or ‘the hara world’ as he refers to it sometimes, as a source of inspiration for his work throughout his creative life: ‘It seems to me that a [a man-of-letters] must have a tie with a certain place or a certain object to form a point of departure for his emotions.” This belief gives credence to his writings and why it found world-wide acceptance. Contrast….8 Works Cited Cachia, Pierre, Arabic Literature: An Overview, Routledge Curzon, 2002 El-Enany, Rasheed, Naquib Mahfouz: the pursuit of meaning, Taylor & Francis e-Library, 2005 Mahfouz, Karnak Cafe, Anchor, 2008. Mahfouz, The Day the Leader Was Killed, Anchor, Later printing edition, June 6, 2000 Somekh, Sasson, Genre and Language in Modern Arabic Literature: Studies in Arabic Language and Literature, Volume I. Wiesbadedn: Otto Harrassowitz 1991. Xii + 141 pp Written in 1974 and newly translated by Roger Allen, the novel takes place in the mid-1960s and focuses on the Karnak cafe regulars as they respond to some key moments in contemporary Egyptian history. For the young people, “history began with the 1952 Revolution,” in which the army, led by a young officer named Gamal Abdel Nasser, overthrew King Farouk, abolished the pro-British monarchy, and established a republic, inspiring other Middle Eastern and north African countries in an Arab sovereignty movement. In 1954, Nasser became President of Egypt. Hopes were high then and continue to be high for the young at the cafe in the early 1960s, despite the acknowledged (and continuing) problems with civil rights, poverty, and the abuses of the police. Mafouz recreates in a mere one hundred pages the historical record of a country yearning to be free at the same time that he depicts the movements against individual freedom which are at their peak. The young people he creates here are ordinary college students, despite the fact that all of them have overcome far more than the average western college student will ever dream of, and though they insist that they still believe in the future of the revolution of 1952, their experience less than fifteen years later, shows them and the reader just how far they have left to go. Dynamic, powerful, and thought-provoking, this novella carries a punch—and modern relevance--that the reader will not soon forget. Read More