Misfortune in the Alley

Chapters in this book

1. Front Matter i
2. Contents vii
3. Preface xiii
4. Understanding People in Context 1
5. Self and Identity 11
6. From My Life 15
7. The ID Card 17
8. From Why Keep Asking Me about My Identity? 21
9. Rites of Passage 25
10. From An Egyptian Childhood 29
11. From Khul-Khaal: Five Egyptian Women Tell Their Stories 37
12. My Wedding Night 42
13. Codes of Masculinity 49
14. Choice 53
15. Sa‘id, the Searcher 55
16. Those Two Heavy Wings of Manhood: On Moustaches 58
17. Honor versus Shame 67
18. The Beards 71
19. Misfortune in the Alley 73
20. Abu Richard 77
21. Private versus Public 83
22. The Freak 87
23. From The Sheltered Quarter: A Tale of a Boyhood in Mecca 94
24. Tears for Sale 97
25. Sexual Mores 103
26. Let’s Play Doctor 107
27. A Red Spot 110
28. Caught Red-Handed 113
29. From Who’s Afraid of Meryl Streep? 121
30. Gender Relations 127
31. A Mistake in the Knitting 133
32. International Women’s Day 140
33. From Breaking Knees 144
34. She and the Dogs 146
35. Marriage and Children 153
36. From My Life 157
37. From The Seven Days of Man 163
38. The Spider’s Web 169
39. Heir Apparent 174
40. Family Dynamics 177
41. The Funfair 182
42. The One-Eyed Woman 191
43. The Newcomer 193
44. From The First Well: A Bethlehem Boyhood 196
45. From A Refugee Childhood 199
46. Religion—Official versus Popular 203
47. From A Child from the Village 209
48. From The Saint’s Lamp 214
49. The Dome with the Crescent: A Trilogy 217
50. An Old Picture 222
51. Fate and God’s Will versus Freedom of Choice 231
52. The Village Tale 235
53. Bread, Hashish and Moon 242
54. Life’s Will 245
55. Forms of Violence 247
56. Washing Off Disgrace 251
57. Blood Feud 253
58. The Martyr 260
59. Bus #99 262
60. The Ruler and the Ruled 265
61. The Chair Carrier 269
62. On the Tenth Day 274
63. From What Value Has the People Whose Tongue Is Tied? 278
64. The Moment the Barrier of Fear Broke Down 280
65. The Arab-Israeli Conflict 287
66. Innocence 291
67. Identity Card 297
68. From The Last Chapter 300
69. Legend 302
70. Perceptions of the West 305
71. From My Life 309
72. Sardines and Oranges 313
73. From The Funeral of New York 317
74. From The Crane 319
75. America 322
76. Notes 329
77. About the Authors 343
78. Permissions and Acknowledgments 357