Patrick DePeters

            In Naguib Mahfouz’ Fountain and Tomb, the adult author recalls and reflects on his, as well as his neighbors, anecdotal experiences, so as to subtly provide the reader with a well-rounded, hardly interpreted vantage point of his societal culture. Mahfouz’ stories, comprised of lovers, laborers, bums, elegant businessmen, relatives, and nomads, piercingly expose the thinking of a hardly differentiated people. The narrator records his lonely travels down the “narrow path” that leads to the graveyard in order some how understand his own life (81). The villagers are confined by a problem defined by philosopher Immanuel Kant, which is the hampered ability to use one’s own mind without another’s guidance, for fear of being wrong or ousted by the society at large. I contend that the society and culture in which Mahfouz lives is narrow-minded, superficial, and relatively inactive and therefore its influence on the people (including, but not limited to, values/religion, tradition, human relations, and innovation/progress) is harmful. In section one, I will lay out the conditions of Mahfouz’ society by exposing primary information such as anecdotal experiences from the novel. By section two, I will have set up my evidence, and I will begin to analyze and criticize Mahfouz’ perspective.  In section three, I shall make an appropriate recommendation regarding a world in which tradition/culture/values are balanced with innovation, change, and understanding.

Section I:

            The narrator of the story, presumably a young Mahfouz, resides in a society in which traditions, religious values, customs, and propriety are passed down from generation to generation with few attempts at discovering their origin. The narrator endures the culture of his society with instances of apathy, happiness, and sadness.  It almost seems as though there is a prescribed route set out for him; a set of beliefs to adhere too, ceremonies (such as circumcision) to take part in, games to play, and an occupation to fill. Perhaps the narrator has no problem with his culture because he knows no different. Although he experiences a fair amount for himself, it seems as though many things are forced upon him, and he doesn’t understand, he just complies without confrontation. As evidenced by his collection of stories, he learned a great deal about life, not because of what he experienced, but because of what those around him did. Just as the rest of the alley, the narrator is most interested in the lives of others. This further represents the cultures impact on the narrator. The narrator certainly finds goodness in many things around him. He notes that neighbors flock to one another for support and guidance when they are experiencing a hardship, or pain. In story 15, “people come to console Am Tulba and sprinkle his hands with pearls of words…for the first time in his life, he finds himself in the midst of citizens of every class, respected by people who never bothered to return his greetings before” (29).  For the narrator, the alley serves as an extended family, where the business of an individual is everyone’s business, and the well-being of the town and population is also of top priority. Although the narrator recounts the exciting tales of his alley, filled with action, death, life, love, and pain, he is most comforted by the beautiful world of the sanctuary—a place separated from the insignificance and bustle of the alley. “Isolation drenches the whole compound,” says the narrator, “Our hands stretch toward this wall—reaching for the moon” (11). The moon, I gather, is synonymous with independence.

Section II:

The culture of the alley is harmful because it condemns eccentricity and independence. Collectively, the population of the alley discourages non-conforming behavior by spreading rumors, designating demeaning names, and ostracizing subjects who have misbehaved, in hope of providing an example. The villagers frequently vilify acquaintances for choices regarding personal issues such as marriage. The reason for this is unclear. Do the villagers feel as if another man’s marital choices, much less his personal choices, are of concern or even of influence to themselves? As with many cultures, tradition and customs, though they are not laws, they are expected to be upheld by every member of society. In story 47, Shalaby Illaly is humiliated by the society, but he manages to free himself from the influence of their opinion. The influence of public opinion seems to be confining and oppressing to many in the alley.

“On one hand he leads a pure, steady, even exemplary existence, while on the other he’s becoming, because of his humiliation, quite free of the influence of public opinion, figuring it will look down on him no matter what he does” (69). 

An innate characteristic of humans is that they feel more comfortable when surrounded with like-people and like-values. The most basic problem of this ideology is that progress and ingenuity are seldom found as a result. In story 31, Sayeeda is harassed by “her family and the community at large” and “avoided like the plague” just because she pursues her personal wish of marrying a man of poor social standing. In the end, she does what she wants, but because of the pressures of society that prevented her from marrying him at a young age, the two lovers “lives are melted away by fidelity perseverance, and pain.” I argue that pain and loneliness are more frequently endured emotions as a result of society and the culture at large. Although feelings such as happiness, pride, and love are also seen in this culture by the narrator, it seems as though there is an imbalance with more negative emotions.

The two drunkards subtly illustrate my point further in story 74. One-Eye leaves the bar and “fades into the darkness without any idea where he’s going” (112). The drunkard and the madman, both men of little or no competence, are blindly leading each other. An observer watched them “circle each other and imagine that they were making progress.” This seems to be directly related to my thesis because all of the people in the alley seem to be mashed together, with insignificant individual objectives, and collectively, they have no objective or ability other than to “imagine they were making progress”—but in reality, they are “fading into the darkness” (112). This situation invokes the idea of the blind leading the blind.

Furthermore, the narrator harvests a fantasy about witnessing the High Sheikh that he made himself believe was real. He doesn’t know if it was because he saw a “drowsy mirage,” but I contend that it was because “a whole neighborhood [repeats] the High Sheikhs name, despite the fact that no one has seen him.” Although Sheikh Omar Fikri tells the narrator that “Nothing is worse than repeating verses like this without understanding them,” I am convinced that few in the village actually understand the verses and origins of their own religion that they themselves repeat.

Moreover, pressure in the society results in a various men committing suicide.  An example of suicide is of Abdun Lelah (story 68), an otherwise peaceful and nonchalant man, unexpectedly commits suicide. Perhaps it was because of the “his boss’s tantrums, petty grievances from customers, and the derision of his friends”—all of which are characteristic of many people in the alley. Despite his best effort to brush off all of his daily annoyances, he was unable to be happy and enjoy life for himself. Unlike many of the villagers, he couldn’t bring himself to be like those in the alley.

In anecdote 73, Mahfouz shares the conversation between his father and Mustafa Al-Dashoory—a schoolteacher with a solid education, regarding the meaning of life. Mahfouz’ father is depicted to uphold many of the same beliefs and values as the rest of the village, and therefore represents them in this episode. Mustafa is representative of the shunned innovative scholar, the intellect who is not afraid or ashamed of sharing his alternative perspective regarding religion and life. Mustafa questions whether or not the father understands “life, death, and what comes after death.” The father, a staunch believer in God, becomes intolerant of the opposing views and abruptly yells for him to stop. This reaction proves that the culture is not open to diverse ideas and beliefs, most notably ones that are sacrilegious. Mustafa continues to offer his idea that without a God, “there’s no avoiding high resolve and new achievements, no escape from morality, law, and punishment…Their wills won’t wilt away when they find themselves in a ship without a captain on a sea without a shore in a time without beginning or end. Heroism and nobility and sacrifice will never die (111).” The “wholeness” that Mustafa thinks will be obtained by man once they come to this Godless conclusion will enable them to comprehend the “meaning of divinity” (111). Mustafa stands as one of the few in this society who is audacious enough to step outside of the mold of common beliefs that society and its culture have constructed. The father, concerned with “poverty, disease and strife,” makes it quite clear that they (the villagers) only understand one language, which is the language of God. If one were to “pluck [God] from their hearts” they would be virtually blind, mute, and unable to understand the human condition. I contend that this society’s reliance on religion (an aspect of their culture), and its inability to step back to define the problems and propose solutions, is negative because of its inherent lack of progress and advancement. Ideas, just as people like Mustafa, are “ignore[d]” by “life in [the] alley” (111).

Part III:

A proposal to tear down the takiya (representative of culture/religion) in order to expand north (representative of innovation/progress) is passionately opposed by villagers. They contend that there is more than one way to the north. I agree that culture, tradition, and religion are integral to human life, and should therefore be held sacred, and promoted from generation to generation. However, I do not think that we should ever be so accustomed to the status quo, and so afraid and resistant of change that progress never occurs, and ingenuity becomes a scarce commodity. The unforeseen consequences of change scare the denizens of the alley, even though change may very well benefit their own well-being. The people of the alley must find a way to keep their traditions and culture, a so-called “security blanket,” sacrosanct, but also to be nurturing and tolerate of new ideas, alternative vantage points, and innovation.

Conclusion:  

            In conclusion, I view the conditions of the alley and the people in them to be stagnant and intolerant of difference and change. Often in the novel, the people were so concerned with each others business, that they forgot to live life for themselves, and as a result were unhappy, depressed, and lonely. The subject society is harshly segregated by sex and class, filled with people that have poor motives, harsh in judgment, and inundated with varying emotions, but it is slowly changing, and liberal thinking as well as progress are sure to ensue so long as people begin to distance themselves from their self-imposed nonage and begin to think for themselves.