As the summer of 2019 draws to an end, there is much in the world that has not changed in the last 30 years, and yet there is also much that has changed. One place where this is most evident is in the Middle East. Conflicts there go back millenniums. In the cradle of civilization – Egypt – there is a long history of rulers and those that overthrow them. The monuments built to honor these rulers are a never ending source of fascination and discovery.
Modern Egypt, however, has had its own struggles. Since the British came to install a monarchy there have been struggles between those in power and those that are not. If you have not read The Palace Walk by Mahfouz, you truly need to. His descriptions of the household take me back to those that Henry James wrote in his novels – with the position of the shades helping to illustrate the manners of those that inhabit the home.
In this month’s Horizon’s challenge to read something from Egypt, I therefore picked Chronicles of a Past Summer by Yasmine El Rashidi. An Egyptian author, this is another book that was translated to English. Although at times I felt that the translation was a bit flat in tone, the story was so compelling that I remained dwelling on this for days. The story is told by a woman who grows up through the book. You are never given her name. At the start she is 6 years old and Sadat had just been murdered. Her father has disappeared, and her mother sits on the phone talking in foreign languages so she doesn’t understand what is being said. The girl sits with her mother in front of the TV with 3 channels, all muted. There is only state run programs, and they are only available for parts of the day. The power is cut off for at least one hour a day, and the summer has been hotter than she has ever experienced. She is living in the home her mother grew up in, with her grandmother and aunt (Nesma) living downstairs. Nesma has downs syndrome and must be cared for. She was hidden away in the house and the family did not speak of her much. Her grandmother, however, had people streaming in and out of the apartment, which was filled with food, conversation and debates. This is a metaphor for the country. While there are people invited in to celebrate all that is good, there remains parts of the country that are closed off to others who must speak the proper language to get what they need or want. It appears that the mother’s family was connected to Sadat, and when the Brotherhood murders him, there is great turmoil in who will take over. The girl, however, does not ask questions or understands much, and simply goes with the flow of the tide.
After a time we return to the girl, now in college. The downstairs part of the house has been closed off, as the grandmother and Nesma have died – the old and innocent ways are now gone. She begins to see things around her. Her cousin Dido meets with her often, speaking of politics and trying to get the girl to write a book about what is happening. She is not as convinced, since she is still learning what her voice is. They drift apart as he becomes more strident in his protests against the government. He wants the overthrow of President Mubarak. There is now tv that runs all day long, but there are still cutoffs happening to the power. There are discussions on how Nasser – the first revolutionary in modern times, was idealistic, but made mistakes by promising to give away things. That sapped the desire to work, and corrupted others into just hustling to not pay for anything.
More time goes, and the girl is now in Graduate School. She has lost touch with Dido because she was not as passionate about speaking out as he is. Her father returns home with no explanation. She begins to film documentaries. As she spends more time with her father, he begins to explain that the more things change the more they stay the same. Another leader promising better futures, and the delivery of those promises are not achievable, or can even be detrimental. Anything to move them forward. The power cuts still come, but now for about one hour a day. Dido is in jail and will pay the full price for his dissidence.
In the last section of the book, the girl, now older again, has come to the conclusion that there is a cycle of hope and disillusionment that they are caught up in. It keeps circling and repeating itself. It will not stop if you are silent, nor if you speak. We just keep the record playing until there is a scratch that does not allow for the same thing to continue. That typically means another revolution is on its way.
The Source 4 Books 