By Ramadan Abdel Kader
In recent years, the Egyptian literary scene has seen the emergence of several writers, who have grown popular mainly with youngsters. Their books have proved best sellers and infused fresh vigour into the publishing industry.
Big names among them include Ahmed Khaled Tawfik (1962-2018) and Ahmed Mourad (born in 1978). A third is Mohamed Sadek who was born in 1987 and published his first novel in 2010.
In their output, those authors portray the 21st century world with its realities and dreams for the youth community, using a simple, uncluttered style that sometimes mingles transliterated English terms with Arabic. To be fair, they should take the credit for drawing the young generation to reading and interacting well with them through in-person and online seminars on their writings.
A popular example of youth-friendly literature is “Hepta”, a bestseller novel by Sadek. Published in 2014, “Hepta” has been printed several times and made into an equally popular film produced two years later. With its title meaning seven in Greek, “Hepta” explores the phases that a love relationship can go through and highlights what makes such an affair work or not.
In the process, human foibles are exposed. The lead character is Osama Hafez, a specialist in marital and family relations. He gives an expertly glimpse into the twists and turns of love relations through an hours-long lecture presented to a group of people from different age groups. The lecture never proves boring, thanks to the author’s cinematic technique of narration.
While the seven phases of a romance are analysed, the presentation takes the shape of scenes as if in a film.
The lecturer cites tales of four characters in love referred to as A, B, C and D. As the 220-page novel draws to a close, the reader is in for a surprise: All those four are one person, depicted in different stages of age. The narration evokes in the reader a mixture of emotions. At one point, the reader laughs. At another, he is moved to tears due to break-ups or ill-conceived decisions.
As explained in “Hepta”, the seven phases of love are defined as the beginning; attraction to the other partner; early feelings of joy; cognisance i.e. recognising responsibilities linked to the relation; reality or personal flaws that take a toll on love such as possessiveness, lack of appreciation, jealousy, doubts and boredom; decision-making, i.e. steps necessary for keeping the relation on track including respect, containment, frankness and sacrifices; and the end that marks a fresh start.
In dissecting each phase, the young author is at pains to stave off boredom on the reader’s part. To this end, he adopts a fast-paced and suspenseful approach. And he has done well.
This deftness may be seen in the following section:
“Character A looked at his watch. It’s 11pm. He kept looking at the floor. Will she appear to him again? Or will she disappear and never return again? No. He won’t allow her not to appear again. He felt long-missing energy. Something outside logic made him head to the door of his apartment and go downstairs running despite availability of an elevator and his severe pains. But he went downstairs quickly in a proof of feelings in his heart. Something motivated him. Personally, he did not know what he would do. Does he expect to find her on the roof of that building? What would he tell her by going to her at such a late time? The killer question, which made him move so briskly, is: Does she exist in the first place?
“He opened the door of his apartment block quickly and started running in the street. His running gave away his light limp, a defect he knew it was there, but struggled to keep it concealed. But he did not give a damn. He kept running until he reached the building where he once saw her on its roof. He went upstairs too. Despite his yearning, he was struggling with fears that he would not see her. He treaded the longest path. His life experience taught him that this magic does not exist — that thing lying outside boundaries of logic. If this were written in a novel or for a film, the writer would be accused of wild imagination, with critics uttering that dead phrase: This will never happen in real life. They have been taught death and learnt it by heart. They would proudly convince you of it. The fleeing feelings of foolhardiness and rashness are just magic.
“Reaching the roof, he found its door open. A brick was laid in front to stop its sudden closure as strong air blew everything around in a cold that he had never felt before. He walked in very slowly and gazed at the spacious surface, spontaneity of which was disfigured by the wide dishes that receive broadcasting and relay it to people to learn that sweet death. His eyes surveyed the rooftop slowly and yearningly. His heartbeats pounded despite himself. That quietness. The night he adored. The cold that tickles each hair in his body. It would not be fine if this perfect moment ends without her existence. She must be there. ‘I start liking your craziness!’ she said. He turned to her in that far corner overlooking his building and found her looking at him in all smiles.”
“Hepta” is packed with epigrams as the young author waxes philosophically on issues such as life choices, friendship and of course love. Quotes abound.
“Every second, you are offered a simple choice that may make your entire life different.”
“Every second, you opt to delay a decision out of fear, you remain stuck.”
“Feelings of humans like us are like a full box. To put in new things, it is necessary to dispose of the old. The challenge is for you to know which you choose to put in and which to take out so that the box would not break down or become too heavy for you to carry and thus lose everything.”
On the key theme of the novel, the author argues:
“True love is the one that life has been preparing you for since the moment you were born with the good and bad, with messy relationships and unforgettable wounds. Love truly starts when the heart asks a basic question: ‘Am I not going to eventually rest?’ love is a psychological preparation. That’s why the beginning is the most important stage with all its confusion because it’s the stage when a certain moment comes and we can give in because we can feel anguished again.”
Fans of standard Arabic are in for a disappointment in “Hepta”.
With his story apparently targeting the young people, the author uses a style favouring the colloquial and sometimes spices it up with jargon that only youngsters can appreciate.
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