Thief and the Dogs | Paper 2 Outline | Structure

‘With regards to Thief and the Dogs, explain why Naguib Mahfouz may have chosen to depict events in a particular sequence or order.’ 

The specific structural choices in the “Thief and the Dogs” allows Mahfouz to effectively write Said’s descent in madness and ultimately his tragic death. Which reflect Mahfouz's paranoia as an intellectual writer living in a value shifting Egyptian society. 

Mahfouz utilizes flashbacks as a means of further characterization of Said’s motivation for revenge against his enemies, in order to blend methods of western literature with unique elements of Arabic literature (Don’t know too much about context to say anything critical) 

Mahfouz structures the events and conflicts of the novel as a very fast paced, causing both the reader and Said to have little to no time to reflect on the conflict, this allows for Mahfouz to mirror the paranoia of living in an Egyptian society which oppresses Egyptian intellects 

Lastly, Mahfouz creates tension through his structural choices to create an impactful tragic death for his protagonist Said, revealing Mahfouz's theme that decisions driven off of revenge will lead to the downfall of a person 

Texts In Translation

Your task is to write a response that examines the study of literature in translation. Your response should demonstrate an awareness of specific benefits and challenges through references to today’s readings, as well as making tangible connections to the learning outcomes from Part 3 of the course. 

In a growing interconnected world, the literature produced by a multiplicity of languages is appreciated by cultures all over the globe. The translated of literature from one language to another contains inherent benefits and flaws due to its methodology. The first and most apparent benefit of the study of literature of translation is the consumption of knowledge from a cultural context which is divergent from an individual. In most cases, a translated text is from a different social context. Hence, the text intrinsically embodies the culture and socio-political atmosphere in the context its written in. Thus, allowing a reader to experience a cultural context differing form their own. A debatable positive or negative that translated texts contain is the lack the ambiguity which the original pieces of texts had. As in instances of poetry, language and specific play a huge role in the ambiguity of the conveyed message. Hence the messages/themes conveyed in translated pieces are more direct and straightforward than the original piece of text. This can be inherited as a positive or negative, depending on the intended effect of the ambiguity. Lastly a large negative of the study of translated literature is that literary devices typically don’t take on the same effect as they did in their original language. As on example is certain idioms and metaphor that are unique to specific cultures. An example is the Arabic idiom “على قد لحافك مد رجليك”, which has the literal translation of “Stretch your legs as far as your blanket extends”, this doesn’t make much sense in as a western society. Though the understood meaning is “Live within your means.” Hence, showing how certain idioms and figurative devices are altered significantly to find the true meaning of the text. These are significant to part 3 of the course as we see how the translated text is unique and effect by the social context that it was written in.