Mass market art, in this day and age, is usually produced by the most powerful members of society: businessmen, entertainment industry executives, managers, and even politicians. Those seen as ‘little people’ in society, who live and die quietly and lead ordinary lives, are often not deemed interesting enough to be featured in best-selling books and blockbuster movies by most directors and writers. Yet, some writers know that beauty is not only found in the stories of the most heroic or extraordinary characters; that the magic of life does not need to be shown through sparkle, gold and greatness, but also through the lives of ordinary people. Renowned Egyptian author, Tawfiq al-Hakim, explores the quality of beauty of an Egyptian man’s life in the Maze of Justice: Diary of a Country Prosecutor (2023), which was originally published in 1937 but then translated for a new edition by Saqi Books. The novel is a semi-autobiographical tale that tells the story of a young and ambitious prosecutor who is sent from the busy city of Cairo to a rural village in the Delta, where he is tasked to deal with major cases of…
REVIEW l Prosecutors, Peasants, and Crime in Egypt: Tawfiq al-Hakim’s Diary of a Country Prosecutor
August 17, 2023
