It is also possible to formulate a question of your own. Again, the question should appear at the top of the page. In this case you will be evaluated on the quality of the question as well as on the answer.
: Realism in Fiction, 1940 to 1960 (Egypt and Colombia)
Mahfouz: “Excerpt” from Cairo Trilogy: Bb, 9 pp. +
García Márquez: “Artificial Roses,” Longman 757-61.
- In the scene describing the large street demonstration in “Excerpt,” what is Fahmy’s actual behavior? When his fellow students come to talk with his father, how do his fellow students sum up his behavior? Discuss which version of the events seems more “realistic.”
- What strengths of character does Fahmy show in talking with his father? Does his father recognize these strengths in his son?
- García Márquez liked to say that, like icebergs, his stories were written in such ways that most of the real story lay beneath the surface. If Mina’s anger about her grandmother’s mistake in washing the “modesty” sleeves for her dress is the apparent story, what is Mina’s “real story”? Which passages in “Artificial Roses” make this “story beneath the story” clear?
- What is the “real story” involving the relations between Mina’s mother and her grandmother? Who seems to be the better “mother” for Mina?
- Mina calls her grandmother a “witch” in anger, but also hinting that she suspects her of having supernatural powers. Yet the head-note to “Artificial Roses” (Longman, 757) states that the story provides a “matter-of-fact” account of an everyday event. What are Mina’s reasons for associating her grandmother with magic? Does the story suggest common-sense explanations for her belief that her grandmother has witch-like powers?
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