The Thief and the dogs passage analysis

But had he managed to kill Rauf Ilwan? And who had shot at him from inside the garden? Let's hope you didn't hit some other poor innocent fellow like before. And Rauf must surely have been killed- you never miss, as you used to demonstrate in target practice out in the desert beyond the hill. Yes, now you can write a letter to the papers: “Why I killed Rauf Ilwan.” That will give back the meaning your life has lost : the bullet that killed Rauf Ilwan will at the same time have destroyed your sense of loss, of waste. A world without morals is like a universe without gravity. I want nothing, long for nothing more than to die a death that has some meaning to it.

Nur came home worn out, carrying food and drink. She kissed him as usual and smiled a greeting, but her eyes suddenly fastened on his uniform trousers. She put her parcel on the sofa, picked them up, and held them out to him.

Said noticed it for the first time, “It's just a minor wound,” showing her his leg. “I hit it on the door of a taxi.”

Analysis:

This extract is from the fourteenth chapter within the novel, throughout this chapter various important events take place that assist us in painting a much clearer picture of the protagonist, Said . During the beginning of this chapter Said had decided that he would continue his revenge plot, the best way he could do so was murdering Rauf. As Said was about to pull the trigger at Rauf he had been ambushed and was now standing in a war zone. Said manages to escape facing death, and heads to Nur's apartment. Once safe and out of harms way Said begins to reflect on the past few days events, and it is within this moment that as the readers we begin to obtain a first glimpse of Said having a conscious.

The text begins with an interior monologue where the author states “But had he managed to kill Rauf Ilwan? And who had shot at him from inside the garden?”, the author his brining up some very important questions in regards to what had occurred at Rauf's home and Said's unsuccessful attempt at committing murder. The texts jumps straight into a direct interior monologue, it is throughout the next few lines that as the audience we get the privilege of getting to slowly see Said reveal that he is consciously aware of what he has been doing the consequences that follow. This was not his first rodeo show, Said was trying to glue the pieces together of the evenings events. Whilst at the same time he was hoping that he “didn't hit some other poor innocent fellow like before” displaying that Said was well aware of what he was doing and that deep down he did care for the safety and well being of others just not the ones who had betrayed and hurt him.

Said begins to doubt himself and tries to assure himself that he had succeeded in his mission, in order to keep himself content he bring's up the past as somewhat of a coping mechanism. Said briefly mentions “ And Rauf must surely have been killed- you never miss, as you used to demonstrate in target practice out in the desert beyond the hill.” hence indicating that he is trying to persuade himself that there is no way that Rauf could have survived as he never missed during target practice. The murder of Rauf symbolized something special for Said, it symbolised that through murdering someone he used to cherish deeply and look up to, it would create a new meaning for his life. The life that he lost, the life that included him rotting away in a jail cell for four years whilst his little girl grew up with out her father, alongside his wife leaving him to be with his best friend.

Said follows up his statement through mentioning “ A world without morals is like a universe without gravity.”, this statement is quote ironic as Said does exactly the opposite of what he had said. Ever since his release from prison, Said had been committing felonies that all fell under the category of breaking moral code, at the same time not only was he breaking his moral code he was also just repeating his old habits. Said had entered prison a certain way and left without one hair out of place, he never changed, he never gave up his unhealthy ways.