PASSAGE ANALYSIS

CHAPTER 15

"I did not kill the servant of Rauf Ilwan. How could I kill a man I did not know and who didn't know me? Rauf Ilwan's servant was killed because, quite simply, he was the servant of Rauf Ilwan. Yesterday his spirit visited me and I jumped to hide in shame, but he pointed out to me that millions of people are killed by mistake and without due cause."

Yes, these words will glitter; they'll be crowned with a not-guilty verdict. You are sure of what you say. And apart from that, they will believe, deep down, that your profession is lawful, a profession of gentlemen at all times and everywhere, that the truly false values--yes!--are those that value your life in pennies and your death at a thousand pounds. The judge over on the left is winking at you; cheer up!

"I will always seek the head of Rauf Ilwan, even as a last request from the hangman, even before seeing my daughter. I am forced not to count my life in days. A hunted man only feeds on new excitements, which pour down upon him in the span of

his solitude like rain."

The verdict will be no more cruel than Sana's cold shyness towards you. She killed you before the hangman could. And even the sympathy of the millions for you is voiceless, impotent, like the longings of the dead. Will they not forgive the gun its error, when it is their most elevated master?

"Whoever kills me will be killing the millions. I am the hope and the dream, the redemption of cowards; I am good principles, consolation, the tears that recall the weeper to humility. And the declaration that I'm mad must encompass all who are loving. Examine the causes of this insane occasion, then reach your judgement however you wish!"

His dizziness increased. Then the verdict came down: that he was a great man, truly great in every sense of the word. His greatness might be momentarily shrouded in black, from a community of sympathy with all those graves out there, but the glory of his greatness would live on, even after death. Its fury was blessed by the force that flowed through the roots of plants, the cells of animals and the hearts of men.

Analysis

This passage is an extract from chapter 15 and at this point it’s reaching towards the end of the book where the readers are almost fully exposed to Said true identity. This passage focuses significantly on Said’s interior monologues which are leading the readers to believe that Said is mentally ill. The passage takes place at the cemetery where he offers his own defense in his imaginary hypothetical scenario of his murder trial. The interior monologue occurring gradually shifts to a second person narration, seeming as though Said is talking to another person even though he is conversing with himself hence this further leads the readers to expect him to be mentally unstable. Through the interior monologue, one is able to see how Said doesn’t consider himself guilty but rather sees himself as a great man: “Then the verdict came down: that he was a great man, truly great in every sense of the word” and he views himself as “not like the others who have stood on this stand before.”

Mahfouz creatively implements this section onto the chapter in order to portray the development of Said’s character after having committed two failed crimes- it’s an opportunity to dig deeper into Said’s mind and to explore his inner thoughts to these incidents. At this point, having killed two innocent people, one would assume Said would suffer from agony and regret but is rather surprised to see that he dismisses these accidents and continuous to plot.  In the section “Whoever kills me will be killing the millions. I am the hope and the dream, the redemption of cowards; I am good principles, consolation, the tears that recall the weeper to humility” and especially the personification of the tears constructs the impression that Said sees himself as the savior of the country and everyone else is a coward and ignores his crimes as he seeks to justify them. He does this repeatedly as he says: “Rauf Ilwan's servant was killed because, quite simply, he was the servant of Rauf Ilwan” and he continues to be hungry for revenge stating: “A hunted man only feeds on new excitements, which pour down upon him in the span of his solitude like rain." The use of this metaphor closely examines how Said has truly become obsessed with seeking revenge and sees it as something exciting and thrilling. He goes on to mention his daughter, Sana who had previously coldly rejected him as he says: “The verdict will be no more cruel than Sana's cold shyness towards you. She killed you before the hangman could. And even the sympathy of the millions for you is voiceless, impotent, like the longings of the dead” Said equates her rejection to be more cruel than himself and having caused him endless pain as he exaggerates by saying “she killed you before the hangman could” using past tense in order to discuss their first encounter after his jail release. 

The Thief and the Dogs: Stream of Consciousness

In the book The Thief and the Dogs, Mahfouz draws a lot of focus onto the main character’s stream of consciousness. Stream of consciousness is a technique that depicts the numerous feelings and thoughts within the minds characters. This is seen through Said’s characters, as we the readers travel through his mind as he develops within the story and we explore how the hatred and his need for revenge grow throughout the book. Being able to do this, Mahfouz allows the readers to not only follow the characters mind like in first person narration but rather to be one with the mind. This, in turn, creates a complex dynamic throughout the story, making it more intriguing and an exhilarating read. To signify the importance that stream of consciousness plays, the sections where we see inside Said’s mind are represented by italics which is important as it differentiates the different types of stream of consciousness that are presented- mainly between an indirect and a direct interior dialogue, this helps to create a sense of awareness and clear switch. At this point, the readers feel as though they’re a part of the situation and the book itself, hence it constructs a sort of connection between Said and the readers.

Within the Arab world, Naguib Mahfouz is very well known for his creative writing style which led to his win of the Nobel Prize for Literature. His book The Thief and the Dogs differs from his other works when it comes to the focus of stream of consciousness. Yet Mahfouz manages to portray the book from many different perspectives as he switches from third person narration to either direct or indirect interior monologue or even a soliloquy and he does so exactly according to the situation that is presented such has when Said is expressing his love for this daughter, Sana and we see his true feelings when he realizes his daughter no longer wants him. The indirect format is also seen when Said first emerges from the jail and describes the place and his feelings at that moment but it is rather expressed through the narrator. This helps create a very powerful connection as well as interesting touch to the book making the readers explore different perspectives.

Mahfouz creates an important sense of appreciation for the language that is being used throughout the book. Although in the Arabic writing certain words and phrases have a deeper and a different connotation that aren’t always properly communicated through translation, the English version nevertheless uses a high degree of language and style to portray the themes within the book as well as the stream of consciousness throughout. In general, the language is significant to the cultural context as well as the historical setting of the book which in turn creates more of an appreciation of the language used. In relation to the stream of consciousness, language is also used as a powerful tool. In chapter 2, when Said visits the Sheikh, one sees how the Sheikh speaks in the language of old times where he has a double meaning to his words/sentences in order to emphasize and bring attention through repetition, the importance of his message which causes confusion to Said and through his stream of consciousness we see how he feels about this and how he feels alone : “I am alone with my freedom, or rather I'm in the company of the Sheikh, who is lost in heaven, repeating words that cannot be understood by someone approaching hell. What other refuge have I?"
As well as that, the stream of consciousness is a revolutionary modern technique hence when used my Naguib it introduced new style into the Arab literature world as created an appreciation for the style used.

In a way stream of consciousness is of course very effective and creates a bond in which readers are able to experience and have more significant access to the feelings and thoughts of the characters and hence this makes the experience of the story more genuine and real. Yet at times, it can be too focused within the feelings and thoughts of particular characters that it diverts from other characters and the main storyline. As well as that, using stream of consciousness can disregard the outer realities that are happening within the book -  the author concentrates only on the consciousness of his characters and therefore he shows no interest in events.

Value of Literature in Translation

Literature is an artistic form of expression in which authors present their aesthetic excellence of writing in different forms as well as languages. Literature itself and in translation serve a lot of values and purposes that can teach a variety of things to people. Through literature, we are able to place our mindset into that of someone else’s and sympathises with other people's situations. It helps people develop skills that are applicable outside their range of schema and explore beyond their usual capacity. Hence, when looking into literature in translation, there is so much more that can be taught. It opens doors for developing a new understanding as well as a cultural appreciation for cultures that are being studied and might not be known about. 

It provides perspectives and emotional insights to topics and cultures that might not be familiar to certain people but expands their knowledge.

Yet as beneficial and valuable it is to learn and study texts in translation, one must also be aware of the challenges that occur from it.  

Each writing and writer has their unique was of expressing them self and their ideas in a way that best resembles them and their culture and therefore when translating such a text a lot can be lost through translation and in certain times there is a loss of cultural context that isn't necessarily expressed thoroughly for instance when reading Chinua Achebe's things fall apart, Achebe would sometimes express his sentence or certain words in his native language that cannot be directly translated and  he actually explains it in order to allow the readers to obtain a more in-depth understanding of what is happening. As well as Naguib Mahfouz's Thief and the dogs, having only read a couple pages in Arabic, I can already distinguish the difference. Naguib Mahfouz is known in the Arab world for his amazing  and outstanding writing as well as his creative way of using language and his use of Arab expression that are visible when seen through the Arabic text but are  lost in the translation. The language itself has a great use of flourishing language and expressions that have strong meanings to them but when directly translated seem exaggerated or not right and hence are translated in another form to suit the understanding of the audience and lose their intentional meaning.  

A text read in class of an interview showed the perspective of two different translators and their approach to their technique. One proposed that translating is impossible and it is rather a create way to express yourself though the author to your approximate level, unlike the other translator who thought that the cultural ambience was key when translating texts in order to make people fully understand the approach the author is making. 

Overall studying translated texts is truly an eye opener to another side that people aren't well aware off. This relates back to the learning outcomes of part 3 of this course which requires students to consider the changing cultural and social context as well as understand the attitudes and values expressed by the texts and their impact on readers.  This, in turn, demonstrates the importance of studying a translated text and consider the cultural and social context of it. 

Paper 2

Discuss the significance of social status in at least two literary texts that you have studied, and comment on its contribution to characterization

Thesis statement : Achebe explores the structure of social status in Things Fall Apart to further enhance the theme of respect and reputation in order to exemplify the way characters develop within the story and signify the importance of social status within the Igbo culture which can be seen with Okonkwo’s prideful character which is contributed to by his father’s failure and low social status.

Topic 1: the characterization of Okonkwo - he gains titles and is known to be one of the greatest men:
-  Okonkwo cares about his masculinity and titles
- Looks down at people with no titles or achieved less
- Ashamed of his lazy father
- Leads to his prideful and violent character 

Topic 2: Okonkwo's father had no titles and had a bad reputation and social status which not only lead to his characterization but also contributed to the characterization of Okonkwo:

- There is a very visible and powerful contrast between Unoka and Okonkwo when examining the social status and this, in turn, has a major influence on Okonkwo's character over the years.

- They had different visuals as to what they prioritise and whats important, for instance, Okonkwo cared about hard work, dedication and having pride in achievements and always act masculine whereas his father was lazy and dedicated to music

- This lead Okonkwo to resent his father and do anything to avoid himself or his sons to end up like him