This chapter consists of diabolic imagery, present when Said declares that “there was hellfire for [Ilish and Nabawiyya] both…” (p. 201). Then, when he kills ‘Ilish’, a simile is used as the shot of the gun “roared like a demon in the night” (p. 202). Said then repetitively proclaims, “I’m the devil himself!” (p. 203). As you can see, the diction used (i.e. “devil” and “demon”) emphasizes a sinister element to Said.
Dark imagery is also abundant. Several times, Said describes his surroundings as “pitch-dark” or having “darkness”. This chapter finishes with Said’s interior monologue when he decrees with a powerful conviction: “Darkness must extend from now on to all eternity.” (p. 203). The ‘darkness extending’ emulates the revenge that possesses him. Moreover, the use of dark imagery can also be seen as a foreshadowing. Darkness, more often than not, clouds the senses of a person; whereas light usually represents warmth, life, and birth, darkness symbolizes chaos and blindness. The latter being particularly interesting as it could suggest an error when Said exacted his revenge.
Animal imagery is evident in this chapter but not as a major element. During one of his interior monologues, Said states, “you can scale an apartment building in seconds, jump unhurt from a third-floor window—even fly if you wish!” (p. 201). There are some similarities between this extract and in chapter one when Said describes himself as, “a man who can dive like a fish, fly like a hawk, scale walls like a rat…” (p. 152). Even without a direct mention of the animals in the first quote, it triggers the notion of the second excerpt. As both phrases are not direct repetitions of one other, the quote from page 201 is considered an echo. This particular employment of animal imagery reminds the reader of Said’s arrogance and tendency to placing himself on a pedestal. His conceit is exemplified when, in page 201, he negatively portrays the population of the community as ignorant, rodent-like creatures, “…and no one seemed to be looking for him…every creature took shelter, blind and unsuspecting, in his hole.”
Tags: Animal, Darkness, Diabolical, Imagery/Symbolism
March 4, 2009 at 1:17 pm
You mentioned that dark imagery is used throughout the chapter. Do you think that you it could be considered to be a symbol? In this chapter it can refer to Said’s situation. In this case, his loss of security as his life is enveloped in darkness because “nowhere is safe for [him] now” (pg 204). In the context of the whole novel darkness could be referring to Said’s inability to separate his need for vengeance from morality. This reinforces what you said about how darkness is associated with blindness as Said’s intentions overpower and in a way control his actions, making him act purely on impulse.