In the “Gabal” section, there are many echoes of the “Adham” section, but the most interesting for me is the one when Zaqlut appeared in the Al Hamdan to punish the rebels. At that moment, the poet told about Adham’s family when the father got to know about an act of fratricide (Mahfouz 107). This story refreshed memory about the most dangerous and unforgivable sin in the alley and warned that something no less terrible could happen again. Mahfouz added several illustrative descriptions like “the circle of light” and the “park of the darkness,” which provoked “glowering, menacing, and terrifying” feelings (107). It seems the author wanted to underline the significance of the event and the importance of human emotions. Mahfouz used a death-like metaphor for the silence in which the Al Hamdan people found themselves (107). This echo enhanced fear and trembling, specifying the inevitability of sins in life.
Work Cited
Mahfouz, Naguib. Children of the Alley. Translated by Peter Theroux, Anchor Books, 1996.