Conflict

Conflict:  a struggle for power, property, etc.

: strong disagreement between people, groups, etc., that results in often angry argument

: a difference that prevents agreement : disagreement between ideas, feelings, etc.

In Zaat, there are many conflicts within the story, such as Zaat vs. The Boycott, The Egyptian People vs. The Government, and Maguid vs. El Shanqeety.

"Conflict." Merriam-Webster. Merriam-Webster, n.d. Web. 27 Oct. 2014

Anti-Hero

Anti-hero: a protagonist or notable figure who is conspicuously lacking in heroic qualities

Zaat herself, can be seen as a sort of anti-hero with flawed characteristics such as a tendency to stretch the truth and an explosive temper. 

A more distinguished anti-hero in pop culture would be the secretly noble and yet completely infuriating Severus Snape.




"Anti-hero." Merriam-Webster. Merriam-Webster, n.d. Web. 27 Oct. 2014
Snape. Digital image. Wikipedia. Http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Severus_Snape, n.d. Web. 27 Oct. 2014.

Allegory

Allegory: a story in which the characters and events are symbols that stand for ideas about human life or for a political or historical situation

In Zaat, during Chapter 15, Zaat and Himmat work their way through a tangled bureaucracy to return a can of spoiled olives. The chapter in isolation can be viewed as an allegory in which Zaat and Himmat stand for the righteous spirit of people and the manager/officials they encounter stand for neglect and greed. 


"Allegory." Merriam-Webster. Merriam-Webster, n.d. Web. 27 Oct. 2014

Juxtapositions

Juxtaposition: the act or an instance of placing two or more things side by side; also :  the state of being so placed

In Zaat, Zaat's timid nature and demure actions are juxtaposed by Himmat's boldness (as seen on much of page 146).

In this image, the two contrasting messages of the billboards juxtapose each other, creating much confusion in the viewer as to which view to believe. 

"Juxtaposition." Merriam-Webster. Merriam-Webster, n.d. Web. 27 Oct. 2014
10 Classic Examples Of Billboard Juxtaposition Failures. Digital image.NextRound.net. N.p., 19 Apr. 2011. Web. 27 Oct. 2014.

The Hit Man Assignment- Aminophis

The Apostle

The Reality

    The Apostle knows the stories well, time and time again they were murmured to him in hushed tones at bedtime, recited in bland tones every Sunday as a child, run on a loop in his mind as he daydreamed in the back of school.

    Once upon a time there was a Garden of Eden. But Eve and Adam ate the apple and were banished out of paradise and into the harsh desert.

    One day the Armageddon will come and those who have righteously served God will rise to heaven and rest there in peace for eternity with Jesus.

    Thou shalt not sin. Thou shalt not kill.

    But The Apostle knows other stories too, other truths, other realities. The Apostle knows that when he was in grade school he hid the gold cross on his neck, under his T-shirts, and pretended to kneel and pray with the other children. The Apostle knows his mother hid the families bibles in a locked trunk under her mattress, and that his father did not speak of religion outside the house.

The Christmas Card

    Once when The Apostle was no taller than his dining room table, his cousins living in the United States sent his family a Christmas. It showed a smiling family bundled up in sweaters, circling a large tree decorated with strings of colorful lights, with snow falling in the window outside. The Apostle had never seen snow, nor a tree like that.

    “It’s a Christmas Tree,” said The Apostle’s mother. Christmas tree. Christmas tree. The syllables rolled around in The Apostles mouth like warm tea, making his lips curl upwards as the word drew to a close.

The Name

    Aminophis Faltas Kulta. Faltas, the name of The Apostle’s great grandfather, who was head of a village in the far south, and had numerous sons and daughters, and more grandchildren than there were cattle in the village. Kulta, passed down for generations. The Apostle knows Kultas men are men of their words, work hard, and believe above all.

The Encyclopedia

    The Apostle knows everyone has a purpose. Each soul is charged with the task of creating something lasting for the good of mankind. The Apostle knows his encyclopedia is his task. Though his coworkers give wrinkled forehead smiles when he brings out the mass of grubby pages, The Apostle knows he will finish the encyclopedia and share his gift with the world, so all may see the allure of his holy nation Egypt.

The Politics

    The Apostle does not understand Politics. When he was young man The Apostle’s father was fired from his job around the same time the company’s ads began having “In the Name of the Holy Allah” published before the text- “politics” his father replied. The Apostle figures Politics is for the foolish and idle, and does not understand it.

The Empty Corner

    There is an empty corner in The Apostle’s living room. It is no bigger than a large cat. Someday, The Apostle tells himself, there will be a Christmas Tree there.

The Portrait

    When the portrait of Nasser was proposed to be removed from the wall in the office of The Apostle’s department a woman spoke out against the action. The woman spoke slowly and meekly, but her devotion to the past president was evident. The Apostle did not want to break her spirit, but he did not want to disrupt the Politics he suspected ran in strange undercurrents through the offices. The Apostle wrote a report to the department head describing his crisis. The Politics removed the woman and the portrait of Nasser. Sometimes when his mind wanders in the midday heat, The Apostle wonders whether he will be judged harshly in heaven for shying from confrontation or whether he will be rewarded for not making faulty judgement.

The Files

    The Apostle keeps his seven files meticulously organized in a row on his desk. The Apostle robotically copies out a report each of the seven days of the week, never realizing how his puny efforts feed the incessant machine of transmission.

The Woman

    The Apostle walks to work every day, past the corner with the barber shop and the cart advertising the same scarves as the department store for a fraction of the price. Everyday The Apostle sees the woman. She sits at the bus stop, bags clutched against her chest, knees pulled in tight, black hijab pooling around her ankles, brushing the perpetual mud of the streets. The Apostle hates the woman, hates her for never looking up from the potholed road, never returning his hopeful smile. But The Apostle knows that good things come to those who wait, so he walks by the bus stop everyday, wondering if he’ll ever get a glimpse of the woman's dainty ankles.

More Vocab! Bestill my ever-beating heart! - Usury

Usury:  the practice of lending money and requiring the borrower to pay a high amount of interest

In Zaat, (pg249) "Allah has permitted trading and forbidden usury, invest your money lawfully and reverently, according to Islamic principles..."

"Usury." Merriam-Webster. Merriam-Webster, n.d. Web. 22 Oct. 2014.

Whoopsy...

Well, apparently the short story Hit Man assignment was intended to be about a character from Zaat... but being the inflammatory, revolutionary, student that I am, I wrote my own Hit Man story, from the perspective of a sort of mafia, criminal, shady character. I will be still be writing (and posting) a Zaat version, but I felt particularly proud of this piece, so here it is.
 Ladies and gentlemen, the labor of love and lazy direction reading, I present to you...

The Janitor

The Mess

The Janitor knows the problem with murder is that it is sticky. The beads of sweat that inch down his spine, as he slumps in the stifling cab of the police car, are sticky. The hairs, the dust, the screams, all stick to his clothes, cling to his worn, black boots. The satisfied smile that creeps into the corners of his mouth as he watches the hearse roll away, sticks to his face, twitching into the crinkles by the corners of his eyes.

The Bedtime Story

At the beginning of time, God created the creatures of the night and the creatures of the day so he would have entertainment to watch by the light of both the moon and the sun. The animals of the night thrived under the cool shadows and bright beams of the moon, while those of the sun basked in the gentle breeze and warm rays of the sun. But there was once a little bat who pined for a taste of the sunlight...

“So now I too fly blindly back to the dark, cursing the light.” whispers The Janitor.

The Mop

Think of it as a mop, said the man with the flinty eyes and slicked hair, they both make messes disappear. The Janitor ran his hands over the smooth, black surface of the barrel, grinning into the muzzle. Here, in case it’s a big mess, the man with the flinty eyes and slicked hair tossed The Janitor a second magazine.

The Reunion

The Janitor wasn’t sure why he went. Partially, he assumes, he wants to show off his suit, his Rolex, his glossy leather shoes with the toes that pointed so precisely outwards. Had anyone else done as well as he?

He smiles as approving pats and firm handshakes rained down upon him in between bites of pastrami and toasts to the “good ‘ole days.” The Janitor watches the faces of the men with the worn faces and relaxed jaws, the women with the pearls and pinched grins, wondering what it must be like to live one’s entire life in fear of the “bad guys.”

The Janitor strikes up a conversation with a bubbly young woman he does not remember from his years of textbooks and cold football games; she asks him what he does for a living that has afforded him such a lovely lifestyle.

“Boring business stuff, you know, organizing, cleaning, bossing people around, nothing exciting.”

The Socks

The Janitor pulls up the pant leg of his jeans, revealing yellow socks with red and green dinosaurs on them.

“These are my favorites, I like to wear them on special occasions- birthdays, holidays, when the Mets win the World series.” The man tied to the chair does not laugh. Some people have no sense of humor muses The Janitor as he mops up the man.

Vocab Entry: Strife

Strife: very angry or violent disagreement between two or more people or groups
"Strife." Merriam-Webster. Merriam-Webster, n.d. Web. 19 Oct. 2014

In Zaat (pg 234) "Zaat did not realize she had fallen into the trap of sectarian strife until Ramsis said, without looking at anyone: 'The ledger's with Mustafa.'"

Vocab Entry: Perestroika

Prestroika: :  the policy of economic and governmental reform instituted by Mikhail Gorbachev in the Soviet Union during the mid-1980s 

In Zaat (pg 227) "From medicine to over-employment, the Iran-Iraq war, the Japanese economic miracle and perestroika, the tight-fisted Swiss, and then racism in Europe..."

"Perestroika." Merriam-Webster. Merriam-Webster, n.d. Web. 19 Oct. 2014

Vocab Entry: Corpulent

Corpulent: having a large, bulky body: fat

In Zaat (pg 245) "They moved into the room immediately next door, where Mahmoud handed the file to a corpulent woman wearing glasses..."

 "Corpulent." Merriam-Webster. Merriam-Webster, n.d. Web. 19 Oct. 2014.

 

Lam, Jason. Char Siu Bao. Digital image. Me So Hungry. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Oct. 2014.

Reported Speech

Reported Speech: narrator reports speech or thought of a character using quotations marks

In Zaat (pg 207) "Abdel Maguid failed to understand what she meant until she added: 'The pussy comes everyday to the kitchen window and says 'meow' so I let her in.'"

Indirect Discourse

Indirect Discourse: narrator reports speech or thought of a character without quotation marks

In Zaat (pg 207)
"Here's what we need: a loan form the bank for 450 thousand pounds on a guarantee of 700 tons of peanuts. The papers are ready and include an insurance policy on the merchandise for around 200 thousand pounds. What is the problem?"

In this instance, Maguid's thoughts as well as the Hagg's dialogue is presented without quotation marks.

Symbolism: All that trash

Symbolism: the use of symbols to express or represent ideas or qualities in literature, art, etc.

: the particular idea or quality that is expressed by a symbol

 Throughout the novel the pervasive nature of trash crops up frequently. 

(pg 44) "Because of the exodus of labor in search of pickings amongst the valuable refuse of the Gulf, local rubbish piled up in buckets left in front of apartment doors, which allowed the cats to hold riotous carnivals that went on all night."

(pg 201) "The plea had met with a positive response, for it was not only the rubbish falling out of overfilled litter bins that had sullied the area; the square, as well as the streets leading off it, were full of laundries, for souls as well as money." 

It is my interpretation that the trash serves as a tangible manifestation of the corruption in Egyptian society. Is this for this reason that Zaat is seen as so strange, since, at least on page 44, she is the only member of her apartment who seems disturbed by the trash. Zaat sees this decomposition of society and the corruption raging through her country and is disgusted by it, but more importantly, feels, unlike the majority o the Egyptian population, that the fight against corruption is worthwhile.

 "Symbolism." Merriam-Webster. Merriam-Webster, n.d. Web. 19 Oct. 2014.

Quick Narrative Pace

In case you missed the entry about Quick Narrative Pace, to quickly recap, narrative pace is how fast the story is relayed, as seen through the syntax.
Short syntax= fast narrative pace
Long syntax= slow narrative pace

In Zaat (pg 225) "She did not know quite what to make of it. Should she be happy with what might be construed as a flirtatious first move, or annoyed because of what it could lead to? Her doubts were confirmed when he asked her to offer him a helping hand. What for? Here came the surprise: she hadn't noticed that his breasts had filled out somewhat and the hair surrounding had grown thinner?"

In this passage the shorter sentences allow the reader to understand the rapid pace at which Zaat's though process is occurring.

Slow Narrative Pace

Narrative Pace: the pace of the storyline as conveyed through the length and structure of sentences; the pace as seen through the syntax
short syntax= quick narrative pace
long syntax= slow narrative pace

In Zaat (pg 200) "He passed the palaces and villas, which as a result of shifting fortunes has changed hands form one cream to another, then the villas from the forties, solid sturdy buildings with lofty entrances (some with piles of rubbish in front of them that no one had the motivation or the energy to remove) and standing no more than a few stories high (unless extra floors has been added), served by slow ambling elevators whose wood had preserved the smells of bygone days, with side balconies, some showing signs of age, like people betrayed by fate, or those waiting in Europe and America for the situation to settle down; others, after being closed off with alumetal and fumee, and a coat of gleaming white or dark brown paint, had been transformed by the second or third generation into business offices...[and so on and so forth]"

The sentence is 22 lines long. Evidently, this is a very, painfully long syntax and a narrative pace like a snail through molasses. However, this slow narrative pace allows the reader to fall into the same meandering pace that Abdel Maguid is maintaining as he drifts through the city. In this way,, Ibrahim allows the audience to experience the read, rather than read about an experience. 

A Catch 22

A Catch 22:  a problematic situation for which the only solution is denied by a circumstance inherent in the problem or by a rule <the show-business catch–22—no work unless you have an agent, no agent unless you've worked — Mary Murphy>; also :  the circumstance or rule that denies a solution 

"Catch-22." Merriam-Webster. Merriam-Webster, n.d. Web. 19 Oct. 2014.

An illustrated example of a Catch 22

In this example the economy will not improve unless there is a rise in employment, but the companies don't want to hire anyone until the economy improves.

In Zaat (pg 198) "Then he went on about an illness: a ramified stone in his kidney and high blood pressure, and to remove the stone needed surgery, which meant the blood pressure had to be controlled, but the blood pressure was caused but the stone initially..."
The limiting conditions of the man's kidney stone and high blood pressure prevent him from making any progress in his health. In a way, the state of Egypt as a whole is stuck in a Catch 22, in which the state is so broken that no progress can be made; corruption in the government can not be stopped unless the people and the police take action, but the police are so corrupt they cannot take action to clean up the government.

Vocab Entry: Escapades

Escapade: a usually adventurous action that runs counter to approved or conventional conduct 
- an exciting, foolish, or dangerous experience or adventure

In Zaat pg(202) "Once on the tram he started to make up one of his Antarian super-hero escapades for Zaat, who would be crouching in wait at the nest with the chicks (three men with iron bars came up to him just outside the Armed Forces Joint Command building, imagine..."

"Escapade." Merriam-Webster. Merriam-Webster, n.d. Web. 17 Oct. 2014.

Vocab Entry: Perambulation

Perambulation: the act of perambulating
Perambulate: 1. to travel over or across, especially by foot
2. to make an official inspection of a boundary on foot

In Zaat pg (205) "The two neighbors were afforded the opportunity, one evening, to combine their perambulations when El Shanqeety suggested that Abdel Maguid accompany him in a visit to the office of one of his acquaintances."

"Perambulate." Merriam-Webster. Merriam-Webster, n.d. Web. 17 Oct. 2014.

Vocab Entry: Vociferously

Vociferously: expressing feelings or opinions in a very loud or forceful way : expressed in a very loud or forceful way

In Zaat (pg 212) "...instead of poring over her books as she usually did, was poring over the table in tears, while heir apparent howled vociferously in solidarity." 

In context, the term "vocifeous" adds to the chaotic mood of the scene.

Illustrated Example: The child's screams were so vociferous the china glasses broke.


"Vociferous." Merriam-Webster. Merriam-Webster, n.d. Web. 17 Oct. 2014. 
 Crying Child. Digital image. Got Brainy. N.p., n.d. Web.

Vocab Entry: Efficacy

Efficacy: the power to produce a desired result or outcome

In Zaat (pg 231) "The machines voiced their doubts as to the efficacy of any move against the managing director, not to mention the consequences."

"Efficacy." Merriam-Webster. Merriam-Webster, n.d. Web. 17 Oct. 2014.

Blog Assignment #4

1. The news-clippings of Chapter 14 relate to state of Egyptian food supply. Specifically Chapter 14 focuses on the lack of sanitation and the absurd spread of disease within the mass distribution of food in the country. Chapter 15 discusses Zaat's efforts to make her household healthier, based upon nutritional suggestions from Manal's husband (the Doctor). There is a prominent contrast between the utter disregard for health on behalf of the Egyptian government and nutritional authorities, with Zaat's vehemence towards eating healthily (she takes it so far as to boil all the vegetables).

2. Within the chapters devoted to news-clippings, Ibrahim generally relies upon the disparities between the sources to criticize the corruption and lack of communication within Egyptian society. For example, in Chapter 12, the Irrigation Minister on page 187 reports "A better than average flood. All indications confirm that Egypt is not in danger of drought." This statement is contradicted on page 188 with the two clippings "Water level in Lake Nasser falling" and "Water level in Lake Nasser continues to fall" as well as on page 189 "Ten meters of water remaining High Dam turbines stop working." By drawing from different sources, Ibrahim illustrates the extend to which authorities are willing to lie in self preservation at the expense of the masses (in the instances of lying about rotten food or drought which threaten public health).

3. An example of absurdist literature can be found on page 202, in which Abdel Maguid watches women eat ice cream cones with a bizarre erotic fascination.

4. Himmat
My mind raced faster than my mouth which remained firmly shut, not out of stupidity, but fear. I lived in my head, not realizing when the hungry stares of male classmates turned into brutish personal invasion on the streets.

Vocab Entry: Muhaggaba

Muhaggaba: a woman who wears the higab

This definition was actually found in the glossary of Zaat, indicating it is a native Egyptian term.

(pg 197) "A muhaggaba at work gave her the telephone number."
This is the only instance I found, though in all honesty the context provides little information about the connotation or association of the term.

Ibrāhīm, Ṣunʻ Allāh., and Anthony Calderbank. Zaat. Cairo: American U in Cairo, 2001. Print.

Vocab Entry: Feddan

Feddan: a unit of land, approximately 1.038 acres. When Egypt adopted the metric system, the feddan was the only old unit that remained legal.

In Zaat this appears throughout Chapter 12, one example on page 193 "Locusts destroy 600 feddans in five governorates."

"Feddan." Sizes: The Online Quantinary. N.p., n.d. Web. 13 Oct. 2014.

Vocab Entry: Osteopath

Osteopath:one who practices osteopathy (no duh... okay what is osteopathy?)
Osteopathy: a system of medical practice based on a theory that diseases are due chiefly to loss of structural integrity which can be restored by manipulation of the parts supplemented by therapeutic measures (as use of drugs or surgery)

Thank you Merriam-Webster. Merriam-Webster, n.d. Web. 14 Oct. 2014. 

That was a mouthful. Pretty much an osteopath is someone who pushes and massages bones and muscles to treat diseases. 

In Zaat (pg 190) "Dr. Abdel Basset Ahmed Youssef, osteopath at Qous General Hospital...[talks about what failing condition his hospital is in."

Public vs Private Sectors

Okay, so technically this isn't a vocab entry, it's more a concept entry. There's a lot of talk in Chapter 12 about the public and private sectors of businesses and privately owned businesses, and it's pretty apparent these are important concepts, but how many of us actually know what they are? Well folks, y'all in luck, prepare to be enlightened.

From the Dictionary:
Private Sector- noun that part of a country's economy consisting of privately owned and operated businesses, etc.

Public Sector- noun the part of a country's economy which consists of nationalized industries and of institutions and services run by the state or local authorities.

Where does it pop up in Zaat?

(pg 186) "The president of the Republic accuses a private company of maliciously interfering with the products of a public sector company because its prices are cheaper."

Applying our new-found knowledge to this quote we can conclude that the president of the Republic's accusation is completely bogus. Clearly, both institutions are legal (we hope) businesses which naturally engage in competition with eachother. However, given the context provided by the novel, we can deduce that the concerns of the president are valid; the government of Egypt is so corrupt, especially on local levels, that most likely, publicly owned businesses are floundering due to poor management. 

"The Chambers Dictionary." Chambers. Hodder Education, 2011. Web. 15 Oct. 2014.

Not quite hyperbole...but still very literary and important!

Hyperbole: an over-exaggeration (like the fact that I used "over" to quantify exaggeration, kind of overkill)

This is not quite a literary feature entry, because in all technicality, hyperbole is not really being used.

As anyone who has actually read the non-prose chapters will have noticed, for the most part, the news-clippings are all very, very extreme. Examples include:

(124) "Two plumbers compete in an auction to buy a palace belonging to the former queen of Egypt, valued at two and a half million pounds."

(133) "The public sector loses 790 million pounds every year in joint public and private sectors."

(163) "A Central Security trooper: 'We get paid six pounds a month, the price of one load of foreign bread in the Jolie Ville.'"

 

These are extreme events! The news clippings are nothing short of shocking, and the sheer volume of the clippings in the novel is overwhelming. So many of the news clippings are groundbreaking news that we begin to wonder whether all Egyptian news is really this insane, or whether Ibrahim just chose the most extreme clippings to illustrate a point. Regardless, the absurd content of the clippings, and the frequency at which bad news appears to happen clearly illustrates Ibrahim's point: corruption in Egypt is so prevalent, it occurs daily, that is begins to seem almost commonplace, and expected. 

Collusion-Good word to know, bad thing to do.

Collusion: a secret agreement or cooperation, especially for an illegal or deceitful purpose

pg (127) "Teachers at Mansoura University's Engineering Faculty squander a quarter of a million pounds in collusion with employees of Kassico Company."

In this instance, collusion specifies the unethical manner in which the money was taken. The negative denotation of squander also serves to emphasize the dishonest nature described in the passage.

Yay! MLA Citations! "Collusion." Merriam-Webster. Merriam-Webster, n.d. Web. 08 Oct. 2014.

Frottage...like a cross between a cottage and a frog.

Frottage: the technique of creating a design by rubbing (as with a pencil) over an object placed underneath the paper; also :  a composition so made

2

:  the act of obtaining sexual stimulation by rubbing against a person or object

By examining the context in which frottage is used in Zaat we are able to discern it's usage is the second definition.

(pg 146) "... her chest, which stuck out assertively and attracted hungry looks, rude comments, and accidental frottage..."

Beautiful MLA Citation: "Frottage." Merriam-Webster. Merriam-Webster, n.d. Web. 08 Oct. 2014.