happiness and sanity//

In the novel The Thief and The Dogs, Said’s sanity depended on his daughter. His desire to seek revenge and anger stemmed from his daughter’s reaction when she saw him. If only Sana had reacted the way he wanted her to, Said probably wouldn’t end up insane and killing people. With that being said, Sana was basically his hope and his happiness after being released from prison. She was the first person Said wanted to see showing how much happiness it would bring him just by seeing her. Another person who affected Said’s downfall would be Rauf Ilwan. Said used to look up on him and he was basically idolized by him. Seeing how much he has changed after being in prison shocked and hurt him. This worsens his situation because it made him feel like he had no one to trust anymore. Also, considering that his ex-wife and ex-friend betrayed him, it limited his positive perspective in life. That was the main thing that affected his happiness and sanity in the first place. Another character in the story which affected him greatly would be Nur. When she was around, Said never really took notice of her that much. He never learned to value her not until she disappeared. He felt more hopeless and helpless after because she was the only one he had and he realized that he had feelings for her too.

All in all, I’d say that Mahfouz used the characters in the novel to shape Said’s fate which affected his happiness in life. The characters’ actions towards him greatly affected his way of thinking which lead to his downfall.