20th Century Themes in Midaq Alley
20th century themes in Midaq Alley Cairo Egypt, as well as the rest of the world today, is going through fast changes quite often. In Midaq Alley, Naguib Mafhouz slows down the fast paced changes in Cairo during World War 2 by revealing the intimate lives of the Alley inhabitants. The roles that the characters are born into are no longer wanted by the younger generations due to the hopeful gains offered in the material world. By referring to and utilizing the four 20th century themes of, global interrelatedness, identity and difference, the rise of the mass of society, and technology versus nature while reading, the audience can better understand life in the Middle East. Midaq Alley helps make clear what the innermost workings and true spirits of Arab population and culture are, and how they face the same struggles as the rest of the world does.
In order to understand how global interrelatedness is a vital subject in Midaq Alley, one must pay attention to what is occurring in the silent but transparent background of the story. Although there is no mention of exactly why the British Army is in Cairo during World War II, their presence directly affects the inhabitants of the Alley. The military is providing Egyptian natives many employment opportunities, and as a result, it has given them wealth and stability that they never thought was attainable. Amongst the somewhat fortunate people of the Alley that are employed are the love blinded Abbas Hilu and one of the Alley’s cleverest, Hussain Kirsha, son of the café owner Kirsha. Hussain’s, “daily wages were now thirty piasters compared to the three piasters in his first job” (Mafhouz 33). If it were not for British occupation, Hussain would not have been able to afford his unimaginable new life comforts such as fine dining, clothing, cabarets and women. Not only had British occupation affected the job market in Egypt, it had affected societal norms and conducts in Egypt. For instance, the girls, “from the Darasa
In order to understand how global interrelatedness is a vital subject in Midaq Alley, one must pay attention to what is occurring in the silent but transparent background of the story. Although there is no mention of exactly why the British Army is in Cairo during World War II, their presence directly affects the inhabitants of the Alley. The military is providing Egyptian natives many employment opportunities, and as a result, it has given them wealth and stability that they never thought was attainable. Amongst the somewhat fortunate people of the Alley that are employed are the love blinded Abbas Hilu and one of the Alley’s cleverest, Hussain Kirsha, son of the café owner Kirsha. Hussain’s, “daily wages were now thirty piasters compared to the three piasters in his first job” (Mafhouz 33). If it were not for British occupation, Hussain would not have been able to afford his unimaginable new life comforts such as fine dining, clothing, cabarets and women. Not only had British occupation affected the job market in Egypt, it had affected societal norms and conducts in Egypt. For instance, the girls, “from the Darasa