Imagery:
Like most of the previous chapters, the main literary device used is animal imagery. Mahfouz utilizes animal imagery to achieve different effects. For example, when Said is walking in the streets, he states that, “He now knew how mice and foxes feel, slipping away on the run. (Mahfouz, 233)” In this instance, Mahfouz uses animal imagery to establish a dark and unsettling tone as well as convey Said’s uncomfortable feeling. Another example where animal imagery is used is when Said returns to Nur’s room to find Nur beaten. As he tenderly strokes her leg, he mutters “The dogs! (235)” Like many other instances, Said uses dogs in a derogatory tone to show his disgust for the people who beat up Nur.
Tags: Animal Imagery, Imagery, Literary Devices, Thief and the Dogs
March 7, 2009 at 12:50 pm
Perhaps in Egyptian culture, the dog is seen as a negative animal and is therefore conveyed as an insult. It could be for this reason that Mahfouz uses this so repeatedly in the novel to show such disgust toward another person.