Prisoners of the Alley

            Imprisonment is the central theme in Naguib Mahfouz's novel, Fountain and Tomb. The setting of this novel, the Alley, is extremely confining and intentionally separated from all outside culture. Therefore the activities and customs inside these boundaries are repetitive, predictable and destructive to many characters in Mahfouz's novel. Ashur Iddenf is a victim of complete boredom which eventually imprisons him and makes him miserable. Saqr Mowazeeni, another character in Naguib Mahfouz's novel, is similarly imprisoned within the society. Dealing with the death of his father and the legacy and responsibility left to him, Saqr alienates himself from his family and becomes increasingly imprisoned within the Alley due to his unhappiness and unmotivated personality. The environment of the Alley, the traditions, customs and inhabitants, creates these character's downfalls and imprisonment. Although they are imprisoned in very different conditions, these two characters have one definite thing in common: their actions and lifestyles cause their anxiety and imprisonment within the Alley.
             The story of Ashur Iddenf describes a humble but poor man who stumbles upon what he perceives as the chance of a lifetime. This man of "immense strength, tough looks and wretched poverty" (65) meets a woman whom changes his life forever. This cunning, unreachable woman expresses her desire for poor Ashur. Ashur, blind to her initial invitations, views this woman as "untouchable, absolutely in control of herself, a prudent schemer." (65) This poor, unfortunate man does marry this wealthy widow. "Our alley starts talking about him he quits his saddlery job Then, in a new suit, new skin, and the halo of wealth, he presents himself before us." (66) This man had undergone a conversion from a poor humble man, to a rich man with new found wealth, high standing and happiness. "And so Ashur Iddenf lives the world he"d always dreamed of, happy and replete.