Tuesday, November 11, 2008

The Azazel Book Discussion: In The Beginning There Was Man

As I admitted previously, when I first read Azazel, I was not really sure how to feel. Growing up I was constantly injected with ideas totally the opposite of what Azael suggested.
- The Coptic population was under oppression all the time. Anything to the opposite was not even remotely discussed.
- Arius and Nestorius were two heretics that nearly destroyed the entire Christian faith if it wasn't for the bold resistance that the church made and so forth....

In our history school books, the period of Christian Coptic Egypt is totally ignored. Furthermore, the history told by the Church itself, under the best circumstances, is biased and ambiguous.

However, this is not what it is all about or what matters most.
Azael is not just about history and finding the truth.
The book (and then the discussion) is a rare invitation to think and question. Unfortunately a feat perceived by many as a heresy/crime in itself these days.

Three Major points really arose my interest during the discussion:
1) Everything Changes and Humanity Remains:
The same people who built the Pyramids are the same people who embraced Christianity are the same people who built El Azhar to enlighten the entire Moslem world. Civilization, religions, perceptions of religions and world orders. Everything changes but humanity remained.
2) We are still dwelling in past and ancient ideas when the future is ahead of us: We as Middle Easterns have the rare gift of dwelling ruthlessly over the past. We are very good in remembering selectively and fighting futile battles over issues that perhaps mattered 1400 to 2000 years ago. The world has moved on. It is really simple: No one should kill in the name of religion, no one should judge and condemn in the name of religion and No one should rule and own in the name of religion. All throughout history this model failed. Today is no different.
3) Discussions, Ideas and Taboos is our country: Why are we (Egyptians) always so on the edge? We cannot, in the most part, stand discussion and debate? Especially when it comes to religion. Actually, as Youssef Zeidan said during the discussion. We cannot tolerate anything even ourselves!!!
As said in the old play Bel 3araby El Faseeh: We cannot discuss politics, religion, race, sex or football. What has happened to us?

Anyway, the discussion was fabulous in every respect. IT IS the time for change. This could be very well the start...

The Road, The Machine and Literature (2): The Great Gatsby

"No one really knew who Gatsby was"

F. Scott Fitzgerald can hardly be identified as a "Road" writer. Almost all of his works were dedicated to account for the Post World War I America. The period identified by Fitzgerald himself as the "Jazz Age." After the Great War, the States experienced an unprecedented era of economic prosperity and growth. An entire social class of newly rich families appeared and indulgence in luxury became a trend. This was further accompanied by the total dominance of material pleasures as well as disregard of morals and values. This is precisely what The Great Gatsby is all about.

In 1922, Long Island (NY) was divided into two distinct parts: West Egg where all the New Rich lived and East Egg where the Old Aristocracy resided. A young man, graduate of Yale, called Nick comes to live in West Egg. His next door neighbour is an incredible mansion belonging to a mysterious millionaire called Jay Gatsby. The other side of the bay, in East Egg, is the house of his second cousin Daisy Buchanan. Daisy is married to Tom but their marriage is in trouble. Tom is short tempered and a brut. Anyway, Nick knows that Tom has an affair with Myrtle Wilson the wife of a mechanic whose home and workshop are on the road from East Egg to New York City. In his vast Gothic house, Gatsby throws lavish parties each weekend. One day, Nick gets invited to one of those parties and he ends up meeting Gatsby himself who turns out to be quite young, charming but mysterious at the same time. As time goes by, Nick and J. Gatsby become friends and Jay confides into Nick that he used to love his second cousin Daisy. Also, he asks him to arrange a meeting between them. Nick agrees. The reunion starts awkward but ends up in reviving the relationship between Daisy and Gatsby. The story goes on till Tom realises the affair and a tragic end is then inevitable of course.

The story, as mentioned earlier, is not a road story. However, all throughout, the characters are driving from their Long Island homes to New York City (and back certainly.) A lot of the key events happen during these short trips. Tom introduces his mistress to Nick in a drive to the city. Gatsby starts approaching Nick regarding Daisy in also a similar trip. A major sign of Gatsby's wealth is a Yellow "Beautiful" Roadster. Ultimately, the key event of the novel is a car accident that occurs to the Yellow Roadster while Daisy is driving it.

It was just 1922 and cars were relatively new to the society. Fitzgerald meant for this new sign of modern life to play an integral part of his chronicles for this age.

For more about the Novel: http://www.sparknotes.com/lit/gatsby

For the full Novel: http://etext.library.adelaide.edu.au/f/fitzgerald/f_scott/gatsby/