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Discussion Board in English Mustafa Mudathir translation of Shawgi Badri's The Peg
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Mustafa Mudathir translation of Shawgi Badri's The Peg

06-14-2011, 01:12 PM
hassan bashir
<ahassan bashir
Registered: 02-17-2006
Total Posts: 1302





Mustafa Mudathir translation of Shawgi Badri's The Peg

    The Peg
    by Shawgi Badri
    Translated from Arabic by
    Mustafa Mudathir


    Close to Midan Elrabie square in Omdurman, there existed in an area confined between the square and
    .Elarbaeen Street, a small quarter consisting of two streets and a few lanes
    .So many blind people lived in this quarter that it was known as Fareeg Amaiyah or the blinds’ quarter
    .The houses in this quarter were simple, built with mud and some of them had Lalobe trees in their middle yards
    These blind people lived on beggary. Some kids would lead them in the early mornings to the city centre
    where they occupied strategic spots to practise their job. One kid might lead ten blind people with each of them
    .clinging to the walking stick carried by the person ahead of him
    On the south western corner of the square there lay the small building of the Rabie Sports Club which lent its
    name to the square. It was built with mud, had a low fence and a wooden gate with a faded sign over it on which was written the club’s
    .name and 1927 as its founding year
    The club had always remained in the second class rating of sports clubs, and yet its members seemed comfortable with this rating as
    .if they never found a convincing reason to ascend to the first class
    That day, despite it being a Friday, the quarter appeared quite busy even in the intense heat of midday and the stillness in the air
    .which made the trees look as though they were part of a badly painted picture
    Under one of the small Neem trees planted in the square and enclosed by bamboo canes to ward off the goats
    that wandered around in search of anything green but often ended up eating paper or rags, under that small tree stood
    .this adolescent boy whose age it was hard to guess
    He wore a not- so-clean Jalabiya and put his feet in some sponge sandals which became complimentary to the
    .current attire of people in this part of the world
    .This lean boy had a big head and intelligent unsettling eyes
    *Because of his black skin and huge head, compared to his body, he was nicknamed Dhakar Namil


    Dhakar Namil liked to break fights regardless of the outcome. He counted very much on this bad reputation
    for initiating fights to force
    .his opinions and demands on those he felt himself stronger than them
    .People either wanted to stay away from trouble or they knew he had never settled for just one single fight
    .Besides, they thought he might be as lucky as to hit them with his deadly big head
    Suddenly Dhakar Namil spotted Mamoun, the boy from that quarter which lay beyond the asphalt road of
    .Elarbaeen Street. Mamoun, then, was out of his territory
    .And his looks recalled the good food that he must have been fed. His clothes were clean and his complexion light as wheat
    .Mamoun was a quite boy but not a coward. He could easily fling Dhakar Namil to the ground
    But Dhakar Namil was bent on proving his existence and defending his reputation especially that he was
    .acting on his own ground, his own territory
    So he began provoking the intruder by demanding an explanation from him as to how he dared to tread on
    .Dhakar Namil’s grounds
    .He also called him a coward
    .Mamoun ignored him and turned his back on him
    . As he did so, Dhakar Namil filled his fist with dust and threw it to land on Mamoun’s hair and back
    .Mamoun swiftly turned in readiness for action and Dhakar Namil took a stance for fighting
    :Mamoun shouted his question upon deciding to reach out
    ? Are you crazy? What’s the problem? What do you want -
    And before his hand could grab his adversary by his jalabiya which had been washed that morning, Mamoun
    . froze and a great surprise showed on his face
    .Dhakar Namil had to quickly repeat what he had just uttered as Mamoun did not seem to have grasped his words
    !I need a peg. A laundry peg. A strong one -
    Relief and disbelief took turns on Mamoun’s face. He knew Dhakar Namil would not find a peg in his house
    .because people of his quarter did not have much clothes to wash and most of the time did not wait for clothes to dry
    !If they washed them, at all
    Mamoun told Dhakar Namil that he was sent in a mission by his mother who was receiving some ,
    guests, to buy two pairs of pigeons from Dhakar Namil’s relatives who sold pigeons not because they didn’t like to eat them, but because they needed the money to buy ochre to make their favourite weka! Dhakar Namil appeared to have found a solution to many of his problems.
    He offered to help buy the pigeons at a price that would allow the two of them to spare and split some of the money. He explained to Mamoun that to avoid paying fifteen piastres for a pair of the bird, they could buy single pigeons. He knew that, often times, when one of the pair died the remaining single pigeon would sell for less than seven piastres and yet was usually fatter and fleshier. He knew all the people in his quarter to deal with in this matter.
    It took them half an hour to buy two good pairs for Mamoun’s mother and save three piastres
    Dhakar Namil accepted to take only one piastre although Mamoun was ready to give him all the three piastres saved.
    Dhakar namil walked besides Mamoun in a friendly manner holding the pigeons in both hands.
    .He talked meekly to Mamoun who appeared happy with this new friendship
    Dhakar Namil didn’t mind being seen by people
    of his quarter walking side by side with someone from that other quarter behind the asphalt street whom he always called for
    .boycotting and ridiculing them and always described them as lacking in manliness
    At Mamoun’s house, he drank a glass of ice-cold water, pocketed a clothes peg of the strong type and
    .went back to his quarter with a bright lustre shining from his eyes
    .The door to Kaltoum’s house was open
    This beautiful lady who had moved here recently, sold her customers asaliya and provided them
    .with lighted cooking stoves to barbecue the meat they brought with them
    .She sometimes sat to some selected customers
    Her laughter rang like a bell and she wrapped her tobe tightly around her body but left her
    .head uncovered to show tens of tiny braids of hair
    .She had a tattoo on her cheek that resembled a letter of the English language
    Her lower lip was full of life and also had this mysterious green-colored tattoo on it that appeared to
    .have been there since childhood
    .The cart was standing in front of the house while the horse that pulled it was lazily nibbling on the fodder under the lalob tree
    .Elkhair, the cart owner, sat inside the house, sipping his asaliyah from a beautifully engraved pumpkin bowl
    .His huge moustache plunged into the drink. The other customers drank from plain non-ornamented bowls
    .The lady of the house favoured Elkhair by her laughter and by sitting beside him
    .When laughing, Elkhair flexed his strong muscles and shrugged his broad shoulders
    .He looked as if all the luck in the world had smiled at him
    .But suddenly, he dropped his drinking bowl to smash on the ground and ran outside of the house
    His horse seemed to have suddenly lost his mind. Apart from giving out those sharp neighs, the horse
    in his frenzy, pulled the cart, then paused to kick it with his hind legs then went off again storming
    .through the open square and destroying two Neem trees and their bamboo fences
    At the iron bridge overriding the broad bed of the creek.that lay flooded by the rains
    .behind ElAarda cinema house, humbly stood the horse
    .One of the wheels of the cart had come off and the dashboard where Elkhair rested his feet was broken
    .The leather collar that wrapped around the horse’s neck was torn
    .The iron hook that kept one of the wooden cranks in place was pulled away
    .The straw that stuffed the collar dangled out of the torn leather in long threads
    .Some people started to advance their theories about why the horse went crazy
    .Their most reasonable theory was that he was stung by a fly or a wasp
    !No one thought that the horse only stopped because the laundry peg had fallen off his testicles
    .Standing at one corner, Dhakar Namil proudly stuck up his body with a victorious smile on his face
    A long cigarette, for which he had paid one piastre, was burning between his fingers and his eyes were
    .sending amorous glances to Kaltoum
    The End

    ------------------------
    Translator's Notes
    :Original text is one of a collection of short stories here
    http://www.mediafire.com/?jfytz1lonhm
    (page 123)
    .Italicized words are names of places or streets()
    .Dhakar Namil (or the author"s Dhakarannamil) means literally the male ant*
                  

Arabic Forum

06-16-2011, 01:10 PM
mustafa mudathir
<amustafa mudathir
Registered: 10-11-2002
Total Posts: 3553





Re: Mustafa Mudathir translation of Shawgi Badri's The Peg (Re: hassan bashir)

    Thank you Hassan for relocating the post.
    I will come back with some comments from the author.
    He kindly helped me correct some errors in the translation.
                  

Arabic Forum

06-16-2011, 01:27 PM
hassan bashir
<ahassan bashir
Registered: 02-17-2006
Total Posts: 1302





Re: Mustafa Mudathir translation of Shawgi Badri's The Peg (Re: mustafa mudathir)

    Dear Mustafa,

    I haven't read the original piece, but the excellent translation tells volumes about it. I'm sure the errors (or rather typos) are minor not to affect the smooth flow of the story and, therefore, I don't think I can wait for them. I am printing it out now to give it thorough reading in the evening. The best weekend indulgence ever.

    Thank you Shawgi

    Thank you Mustafa
                  

Arabic Forum

06-17-2011, 01:29 AM
mustafa mudathir
<amustafa mudathir
Registered: 10-11-2002
Total Posts: 3553





Who Is Afraid Of Anton Chekhov? (Re: hassan bashir)


    Who is afraid of Anton Chekhov?

    Critical Approach to “The peg”
    By Mustafa Mudathir.

    INTRODUCTION:

    “It's curious that we can't possibly tell what exactly will be considered great and important,
    and what will seem paltry and ridiculous.Did not the discoveries of Copernicus or Columbus, let
    us say, seem useless and ridiculous at first, while the nonsensical writings of some wiseacre
    seemed true?” Anton Chekhov.

    “The great pleasure in life is doing what people say you cannot do” Walter Bagehot.

    “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” Jesus Christ.

    End of Introduction

    Characters:

    Dhakar Namil- An adolescent boy. Typical of the poor, mischievous black residents
    of old Omdurman.
    Mamoun- A boy. Represents the prevalent class and culture. Being able, even if as
    a last resort, to restore the status qou of peace and calm.
    Kaltoum- A featureless one of them. Her house is a focus of confused (or else delayed)
    intentions. Thanks to her popular beverage! A must be in the Town of the Tired!
    Elkhair- Look at the name! Probably a hard-working guy. But he must have his drinks
    After a long working day, to pat on a vague sense of arrogance run down his spine.

    The Plot:

    An adolescent (Dhakar Namil) conjures up a vengeful act on the man (Elkhair) who, apparently,
    has won the heart of the woman (Kaltoum) who the adolescent is,silently,in love (with).
    The plan works well to draw the attention of the woman to the …new male in the block!
    Such a plan and other unheard of manoeuvres and designs were typical of this part of
    Omdurman of the sixties..and early seventies (just to include the presumptuous!)
    The energy for these schemes derived mainly from the movies. Cinema was rampant
    in those decades.
    Shawgi lays out the setting for his story in a brilliant way that points to a certain geographical
    spot with interesting description. The reader soon fits into a place with landmarks that breed
    in his mind the expectation of tension.
    Success!
    We have a short story where we are not astronauts in the weightlessness of space.
    We feel and smell the ‘red’ dust of Omdurman. And the scorching sun on a Friday.
    In his plan to annoy and discomfort almost everyone, Dhakar Namil skillfully manipulates the compromising,
    restorative tendency in his adversary..or rather his prey...Mamoun and thus obtains from him the tool of
    mass discomfort—the peg!
    Towards the end of the story which climaxes in a mad stampeding horse, Shawgi cleverly engages the reader
    in the details of the havoc wreaked by the horse. He shows us,in detail, how a means of livelihood, a source
    of a 'privileged' life in poverty is destroyed by the whim of a kid. But he also means, by this detailing of
    the destruction of the cart machine, to divert our attention from the other machine—the peg!
    Another skill in short story writing!
    The closing paragraph is pure cinema with the self-pleased super-adolescent being
    super-imposed on chaos. A cigarette between his fingers and and his eyes sending loving looks to Kaltoum
    Now we know why he asked for only one piastre from the money he shared with Mamoun!!
    And then...
    There are those bold allusions to class distinction! The pigeons and the weka! You get the whole deal!
    *****************

    I remember having a discussion with a friend I found immersed into writing a critical essay on a
    short story, any short story for a Sudanese paper. He was doing one of Anton Chekhov’s.
    I pulled Shawgi Badri’s book and said: Here, why don’t you try one of these? We may have our own Chekhov!
    He fell into deep silence. Probably trying to think what the editor would say!

    Read The Peg and other stories for free, here:
    http://www.mediafire.com/?jfytz1lonhm

    (Edited by mustafa mudathir on 06-17-2011, 01:35 AM)
    (Edited by mustafa mudathir on 06-17-2011, 05:52 AM)

                  

Arabic Forum

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