the_lady_lily (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
the_lady_lily) wrote2011-12-11 06:53 pm
the_lady_lily) wrote2011-12-11 06:53 pm
Entry tags:
Bibliography
God Dies By The Nile - Nawal El-Sadawi
Ah, now, I don't know whether this is a reflection on my reading preferences or on El-Sadawi as a writer, but this is much more like it - and a much more satisfying read than The Circling Song. The book plays with the theme of god, and power, and the abuse of power, through the story of a small village tyrannised over by its mayor, who takes advantage of his position to satisfy his sexual desires. The story has a satisfying comeuppance, but it's a story of people being wound tighter and tighter by injustice until they snap. It's also a story of brokenness, of herd mentality, of superstition, of mob rule - violence is done to those who least deserve it, and who are least able to protect themselves.
In terms of the themes of El-Sadawi's writing, some familiar things come to the fore again - the oppression of women, the abuse of power by those who hold it, the disjunct between social expectations and what people have to do to live. But she also weaves religion into the plot this time, in interesting and sophisticated ways, and questions precisely who the god of these village people is and how their relationship with him works.
It's a powerful book. Again, it's a short book. And it's probably the one I'll recommend to anyone expressing interest in El-Sadawi as the place to start.
Ah, now, I don't know whether this is a reflection on my reading preferences or on El-Sadawi as a writer, but this is much more like it - and a much more satisfying read than The Circling Song. The book plays with the theme of god, and power, and the abuse of power, through the story of a small village tyrannised over by its mayor, who takes advantage of his position to satisfy his sexual desires. The story has a satisfying comeuppance, but it's a story of people being wound tighter and tighter by injustice until they snap. It's also a story of brokenness, of herd mentality, of superstition, of mob rule - violence is done to those who least deserve it, and who are least able to protect themselves.
In terms of the themes of El-Sadawi's writing, some familiar things come to the fore again - the oppression of women, the abuse of power by those who hold it, the disjunct between social expectations and what people have to do to live. But she also weaves religion into the plot this time, in interesting and sophisticated ways, and questions precisely who the god of these village people is and how their relationship with him works.
It's a powerful book. Again, it's a short book. And it's probably the one I'll recommend to anyone expressing interest in El-Sadawi as the place to start.