¶ … Hamida
Nobel Laureate Naguib Mahfouz is given credit as the author who was first to bring the narrative art of novel writing to the world of Arabic literature. He is also the literary genius who wrote Midaq Alley - and numerous other highly acclaimed works - about the fascinating real people from a slum in Cairo who were caught in between old Arabic traditions and emerging modern behaviors and materialism from the world of the West. Among his many interesting personalities in this novel is one of the central characters, and a compelling protagonist, Hamida. She is an orphan; she yearns, dreams, and pines for a way to escape the bitter realities of the poverty her life is saturated with.
Hamida is a very interesting and unique character. Her passion to attempt to escape the dregs of an impoverished lifestyle through the seamy world of prostitution is a behavior which is probably not unlike the actions of scores of young girls in third world countries all over the planet. And on the surface, when a woman tries to escape poverty by turning to street walking, she is really trading one evil for another. But because of her particular Arab cultural and physical environment, Hamida was inclined to do some radical, daring and even dangerous things, all of which helps author Mahfouz weave his web of dramatic and colorful events for her and her interacting characters.
The description the author gives readers of Hamida (26), in a scene where her foster mother is talking about the upcoming marriage of an unlikely character, is of a twenty-something woman with "bronze-colored" skin and "black, beautiful eyes." The contrast...
Midaq Alley by Naguib Mahfouz is a portrayal of several individuals living within a particular section of Cairo. Almost all of the characters are Muslim. Several are middle class but others, the most striking of the narrative, are quite poor and simply struggle to survive. Through creating such variety of characters from different social stratum, whom all meet in the context of the alley of the title, the author
Of course, the geography of the Middle East was greatly influenced in the later Twentieth Century by the ongoing conflict between the Arab states and Israel. The creation of Israel itself in 1948 made the greatest change, and the British were involved in that struggle as well. The state of Israel was created in 1948 in a battle between the newly declared state and her Arab neighbors, ending in 1949
Midaq Alley Key Ideas and Its Significance Religion Marriage Upward Mobility Egypt Nationalism In the book Midaq Alley, Naguib Mahfouz is talking about life in Egypt during the 1940s. It is focusing on several different concepts which are relevant in the Middle East today. To fully understand the importance of these insights requires examining key insights from the book. This will be accomplished by carefully examining key ideas and analyzing their significance. Together, these elements will
Arabic literature thrived from the 4th to 7th century which mostly involved poetry about love, fighting and courage. With the arrival of Islam, literature lost its value and the Quran (Noble Book of the Muslims) became the focus of all study. Arabic poetry underwent a period of decline from which it arose during the reign of the Umayyads. Many works were translated in Arabic during the reign of the
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