The Harafish [Paperback]

Naguib Mahfouz (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 17, 1997

Winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1988,  Naguib Mahfouz is perhaps the best-known living  Arab writer. His books have had great success in  this country, particularly The Cairo  Trilogy. Fans of the famed trilogy will be  delighted with The Harafish, an epic  novel that chronicles the dramatic history of the  al-Nagi family -- a family that  moves, over many generations, from the height of power  and glory to the depths of decadence and decay.  The Harafish begins with the tale  of Ashur al-Nagi, a man who  grows from humble beginnings to become a great leader,  a legend among his people. Generation after  generation, however, Ashur's descendants grow further  from his legendary example. They lose touch with  their origins as they amass and then squander large  fortunes, marry prostitutes when they marry at all,  and develop rivalries that end in death. The  community's upper class keeps a watchful eye on the  descendants of al-Nagi for fear  of losing their privileges, but they find no threat  of another such as Ashur. Not, that is, until the  al-Nagi who, like his noble  ancestor, finds his power once again from among  The Harafish, or the common people.  Through the strength of their numbers and their  passion, the glory of the name of  al-Nagi is restored. "Of all  [Mahfouz's] experiments in recent decades, this  is the one which owes least to western inspiration  and is probably the most successful. The  Harafish, fluently translated by  Catherine Cobham, makes accessible and engrossing reading."  -- The Washington Post Book  World.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

From the winner of the 1988 Nobel Prize for Literature comes this story of the prominent al-Nagi family, whose descendents nearly ruin its legendary name.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

The al-Nagi family's history through ten generations in their Cairo alley is "nothing more than a succession of deviations, disasters, lessons not learned." Ashur, the clan chief and ruler of the community, returns after the plague years to find the neighborhood deserted. Appropriating all the wealth and property, he distributes it to the impoverished (the harafish), creating the Covenant of Ashur. His legend is badly served, however, when succeeding generations succumb to the family curse: "A desire for status, money and possessions, at the heart of which was anxiety and fear." Brother kills brother, and son kills father. The devil is evoked to grant immortality, and debauchery is a common refuge. Mahfouz is at his best in this sweeping meditation on the price, demands, and rewards of greatness. This novel dashes across generations as if across a battlefield littered with the descendants of Ashur al-Nagi. Most highly recommended.
Paul E. Hutchison, Bellefonte, Pa.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 416 pages
• Publisher: Anchor; Anchor Books ed edition (September 17, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0385423357
• ISBN-13: 978-0385423359
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 3.1 x 11.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,006,742 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Naguib Mahfouz was born in Cairo in 1911 and began writing when he was seventeen. A student of philosophy and an avid reader, he has been influenced by many Western writers, including Flaubert, Balzac, Zola, Camus, Tolstoy, Dostoevsky, and, above all, Proust. He has more than thirty novels to his credit, ranging from his earliest historical romances to his most recent experimental novels. In 1988, Mr Mahfouz was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature. He lives in the Cairo suburb of Agouza with his wife and two daughters.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Like a fairy tale from childhood, November 6, 2000

By 

Amy T. Ruder - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Harafish (Paperback)

Mahfouz is not well knowin America, but should be. The Harafish is the epic novel of the al-Nagi family who rules a particular alley in Egypt over multiple generations. (The "harafish" refers to the common people of that same alley). The book's chapters each encompass a generation of leadership by some descendant of the original Ashur as-Nagi, a gentle and pure physical giant, filled with pious and spirit-filled humility. His off-spring, and theirs as well, vary widely in their emulation of this great man and their stories are fascinating and quite unique. Each story's characters are vividly painted for the reader and all of the generations their good guys and bad guys. The entire book will captivate the reader and the simplicity of the read will remind you of books you read in childhood. However, the story themes are not to be thought of as childish- but rather as timeless and transcultural. Greed, piety, fidelity, cunning, love, lust, faith, and compassion all rolled together in an easily read documentary of one family's influence on many. An absolute joy to read. Mahfouz is one of my favorites!

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A GREAT story from a BRILLIANT Writer !!!, June 4, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Harafish (Paperback)

One of the world's finest writers tracks the lineage of one Egyptian family through time beginning with Ashur Al-Nagi, a giant of a man with the elements of TRUE greatness. He becomes the greatest clan chieftain in memory. As generations go by, fewer of his virtues are passed along, while his flaws become ever-more prominent in his descendants. The pursuit of a Paradise Lost consumes his descendants for generations as they lose and sporadically regain their influence in the area. Mr. Mahfouz does throw dozens of inconsequential characters at the reader, but there are more than enough extremely interesting ones in brilliant life-stories to more than compensate and quide you through time. So much so that I had to tear myself away from it because I often found that I could not put it down. A first-class novel.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Harafish, January 17, 2006

By 

Robin Friedman (Washington, D.C. United States) - See all my reviews
(TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Harafish (Paperback)

Naguib Mahfouz' 1977 novel, "The Harafish," is an intriguing mix of allegory and saga. The term "harafish" refers to the large underclass of poor and downtrodden in an Egyptian city, presumably Cairo. The novel focuses upon the sufferings and the fortunes of the harafish and upon the history of a particular family, the Al-Nagis, over the course of generations. The story has a timeless quality with the author giving few details that identify either a specific place or a specific time. Yet, the novel succeeds in bringing the characters to life as individuals and in creating a sense of place.

The book is told in ten chapters, each recounting successive adventures that befall the Al-Nagis. Each chapter is subdivided into many short paragraphs. The story moves forward with simplicity but becomes increasingly complex as it unfolds.

There is a great deal of indirection in the book. The reader learns slowly by seeing and not by being told. Thus, Mafouz never explicitly explains the "clan" system at the heart of the book but rather shows the reader how it works. The "clan" is the informal ruler of an "alley" or section of a town. It can be analogized to an American gang or to a crime syndicate but enjoys quasi-official status. It accepts "protection" money, wars with neighboring gangs, keeps a semblance of order in the alley, and is headed by an all-powerful chief. Some of the religious leaders of the community are closely allied with the clan. The "alley" includes not only the many poor people, but rich and successful individuals as well, called the "notables". Most, but not all of the clan leaders ally themselves with the notables while exploiting the harafish.

The chief character of Mafouz' tale is Ashur al-Nagi, a foundling who ultimately rises to the position of clan chief. Although he ultimately marries a prostitute and appropriates property that is not his, Ashur becomes a legend in the alley as a result of his compassion, strength, and protection of the harafish. His son, Shams-al-Din continues, for the most part, in the path of Ashur, but the family then deteriorates and its worst traits come to the fore. Its members, men and women, descend into murder, corruption and licentiousness. They move in and out of positions of power and are forever haunted by the fame of their illustrious ancestor. At the end of the book, another Ashur arises and restores and enhances upon the family name.

Mahfouz' story unfolds with detail and with a deep compassion for the poor and the weak. There is a sense of human frailty and of the overriding force of change. There are several themes suggested by the story. First, there is the sense of decline, reminding me of charismatic figures who found religion or social movements which soon fall into torpitude. The story opens with something of a golden age with heroic figures and deeds. As it progresses, human life slips into the mundane. I also found in the book the suggestion that people tend to look too much to the alleged glorious deeds of their ancestors and judge themselves and their own potentialities falsely in their light. Mid-way in the story, one of the characters is reproached because the al-Nagi's view themselves in light of their founder, Ashur, and not in light of what they themselves can do. At the end, there is a deepening of the story. The final al-Nagi we meet, also named Ashur is said to be greater than his forbearer because "the first Ashur had relied on his own strength, while [the second Ashur] had made the harafish into an invincible force". While the first Ashur had conquered the evils of slum life, the second Ashur had achieved an even greater conquest: "his victory over himself". The second Ashur achieves a moment of spiritual awakening at the end.

This is a fine book, both in its description of places, characters and societies and in the meditation it offers on the human condition.

Robin Friedman