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WORLD SUMMARIES

The Library of Babel

Author: Jorge Luis Borges

Time period: 1941

Language: Spanish

 

  • An unnamed narrator, a librarian, describes the universe as a vast Library made of identical hexagonal galleries

  • Each gallery contains:

    • Bookshelves on four walls

    • Two open sides that lead to adjacent galleries

  • Galleries are connected by vestibules, with each vestibule containing:

    • A room for sleeping while standing

    • A bathroom

  • Spiral staircases connect each floor and extend infinitely upward and downward

  • The narrator explains that he has traveled extensively through the Library

  • He is now old and nearing death

  • When he dies, another librarian will throw his body into the abyss, where it will fall endlessly and decay

  • The narrator outlines the basic rules governing the Library

  • The Library has always existed

  • It contains books written using 25 orthographic symbols

  • Because of this limited alphabet, the Library contains every possible combination of those symbols

  • As a result, the Library includes:

    • Every possible book

    • No two identical books

  • When librarians first realized this, they felt great joy

  • They believed that every question could be answered

  • Many librarians began searching for books that:

    • Explained the Library

    • Justified their lives

    • Predicted the future

  • Over time, librarians realized that:

    • Most books consist of meaningless strings of letters

    • Useful books are extremely rare

  • Some librarians became despairing

  • Many committed suicide

  • Others went mad during their searches

  • Some librarians tried to combine fragments from different books to form coherent texts

  • Others decided to destroy books they believed were useless

  • The narrator continues searching for meaning

  • He believes there exists a book that explains the Library

  • He also believes that someone has already read that book

  • He rejects claims that the Library lacks order or meaning

  • He insists that any text that seems meaningless must be explained by another book somewhere in the Library

  • The narrator states that this very account of the Library exists somewhere within it

  • He also states that its refutation exists as well

  • He argues that the existence of all texts prevents the dismissal of meaning

  • The narrator concludes by observing that humanity suffers from knowing everything has already been written, and the extinction of the human species seems inevitable

  • He clarifies that although the Library appears infinite:

    • The total number of books is finite

  • He ends by imagining an immortal being

    • Who would eventually witness the repetition of the Library

    • And thereby perceive its true structure

​

Other Works / Information About Borges:

  • Argentinian writer

  • “Tlön, Uqbar, Orbis Tertius” (fictional world invented through an encyclopedia)

  • “The Aleph” (point in space containing all other points)

  • “Funes the Memorious” (man cursed with perfect memory)

  • “Pierre Menard, Author of the Quixote” (rewriting Don Quixote word-for-word as a new work)

  • “The Garden of Forking Paths” (novel structured as branching time)

  • “The Circular Ruins” (man dreams another man into existence)

  • “Death and the Compass” (detective misled by mystical patterns)

  • “The Zahir” (object that consumes all thought)

  • “The Lottery in Babylon” (society governed by chance)

  • “The Immortal” (man discovers the curse of eternal life)

Cairo Trilogy

Author: Naguib Mahfouz

Time period: 1956-1957

Language: Arabic

 

  • The Cairo Trilogy consists of three novels, each named after a real street in Cairo

  • The novels are:

    • Bayn al-Qasrayn (Palace Walk)

    • Qasr al-Shawq (Palace of Desire)

    • Al-Sukkariyya (Sugar Street)

  • The trilogy follows the life of Ahmad ‘Abd al-Jawad, a wealthy Cairo merchant, and his family

  • The narrative spans 1919 to 1944

  • The story begins during the Egyptian Revolution of 1919 against British rule

  • The novels collectively depict three generations of the ‘Abd al-Jawad family

​

Palace Walk

  • Set primarily in the family home on Bayn al-Qasrayn

  • Ahmad ‘Abd al-Jawad rules his household with strict authority

  • His wife Amina lives in obedience and seclusion

  • The children grow up under rigid rules

  • Political unrest and demonstrations occur outside the home

  • Family life continues with marriages, births, and deaths

  • Kamal, the youngest son, is portrayed as a child

Palace of Desire

  • Focuses on the next stage of the family’s life

  • Yasin, Ahmad’s eldest son, lives on Qasr al-Shawq

  • The children enter adulthood

  • Kamal becomes a university student

  • Kamal falls in love with Aida, an educated woman

  • The younger generation encounters new social ideas and personal conflicts

  • Time moves more quickly than in the first novel

Sugar Street

  • Centers on the third generation of the family

  • Khadijah, Ahmad’s daughter, lives on Al-Sukkariyya

  • Kamal is now a teacher

  • He remains unmarried and increasingly isolated

  • Family members become involved in political movements

  • Women pursue education and political engagement

  • Years pass rapidly as the family ages

  • Across all three novels:

    • Daily routines mark the passage of time

    • The call to prayer structures daily life

    • Childhood gives way to adulthood and old age

​

Other Works and Overview of Mahfouz:

  • Egyptian writer, from Cairo

  • Wrote primarily in Arabic

  • First Arab writer to win the Nobel Prize in Literature (1988)

  • The Cairo Trilogy (Palace Walk, Palace of Desire, Sugar Street) (three-generation Cairo family from 1919–1944)

  • Children of the Alley (allegorical retelling of religious history set in a Cairo alley)

  • Midaq Alley (lives of residents in a poor Cairo neighborhood)

  • Miramar (political conflicts told through multiple narrators in an Alexandria boardinghouse)

  • The Thief and the Dogs (disillusioned revolutionary seeks revenge after prison)

  • Autumn Quail (former regime official faces political downfall)

  • The Beggar(existential crisis of a successful lawyer)

  • Adrift on the Nile (group of intellectuals numbed by drugs and apathy)

The Trials of Brother Jero

Author: Wole Soyinka

Time period: 1960

Language: Arabic

 

Characters:

  • Brother Jeroboam (Brother Jero): elf-proclaimed evangelical prophet who preaches on a Lagos beach

  • Exploits followers’ fears and ambitions for money, status, and power

  • Constantly schemes to avoid creditors and rivals

  • Struggles with lust and ambition despite public claims of holiness

  • Uses religion as a performance and a tool of control

  • The Old Prophet: Jero’s former mentor, confronts Jero for stealing his prime preaching spot

  • Chume: Jero’s most devoted follower, a civil servant trapped in an unhappy marriage

  • Seeks Jero’s permission and guidance in all aspects of life

  • Becomes violent and confrontational after discovering the truth

  • Amope: Chume’s wife, a tax collector with a strong, aggressive personality

  • Seeks to collect a debt Jero owes her

  • Openly despises Jero and challenges his authority

  • Exposes Jero’s lies and cowardice

​

Summary:

Opens with Brother Jero addressing the audience directly on a Lagos beach

  • He openly admits his hypocrisy, explaining how he manipulates followers by exploiting their desires and insecurities

  • Jero describes his struggles: competition from rival prophets, avoiding people to whom he owes money, and declining religious enthusiasm due to distractions like television

  • Scene One: Jero is confronted by the Old Prophet

  • The Old Prophet accuses Jero of stealing his preaching space and being ungrateful

  • Jero dismisses him, showing arrogance and lack of remorse

  • Scene Two: Chume, Jero’s loyal follower, appears with his wife Amope

  • Amope is secretly trying to collect a debt Jero owes her

  • Jero panics and flees his house to avoid confrontation

  • The encounter exposes Jero’s cowardice and dishonesty

  • Jero retreats to his beach church

  • He boasts about his rise as a prophet while privately admitting:

  • His weakness for women

  • His fear of losing control over followers

  • Chume asks Jero for permission to beat his wife

  • Jero initially refuses to maintain his image

  • Later grants permission when it benefits him

  • This manipulation keeps Chume dependent on him

  • Jero adopts an exaggerated title: “The Immaculate Jero, Articulate Hero of Christ’s Crusade”

  • He attracts new followers, including two government workers

  • He falsely prophesies promotions and success to secure their loyalty

  • Chume begins to realize Jero’s deception

  • He learns that Jero deliberately manipulated him and withheld guidance for selfish reasons

  • Enraged, Chume decides to confront Jero violently

  • Jero encounters a young politician practicing a speech

  • Jero convinces him that divine approval is essential for political success

  • Chume appears, armed with a dull sword, accompanied by Amope

  • Chaos ensues as Chume attempts to attack Jero

  • Jero narrowly escapes

  • The young politician misinterprets the chaos as a miraculous spiritual event

  • Jero plans his next scheme:

  • He intends to brand Chume as a madman and an agent of Satan

  • He aims to have Chume institutionalized

​

Overview and Other Works by Soyinka:

  • Nigerian writer, writes primarily in English

  • First African writer to win the Nobel Prize in Literature (1986)

  • The Trials of Brother Jero (satire of religious hypocrisy and manipulation)

  • A Dance of the Forests (critique of Nigeria’s past and present at independence)

  • The Lion and the Jewel (tradition vs. modernity in a Yoruba village)

  • Death and the King’s Horseman (clash between ritual duty and colonial authority)

  • Madmen and Specialists(brutality and moral collapse during civil war)

  • The Interpreters (disillusioned Nigerian intellectuals after independence)

  • Season of Anomy (revolutionary violence and political decay)

  • Poetry:

  • Idanre and Other Poems (mythic and historical meditations)

  • Ogun Abibiman (pan-African and political poetry)

  • Memoirs/essays: Ake: The Years of Childhood (autobiographical childhood in colonial Nigeria)

  • The Man Died (prison memoir under military rule)

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