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Chapter 7
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Frankenstein in Baghdad, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Truth, Lies, and Storytelling
Good vs. Evil
Power, Authority, and Social Divisions
Family, Friendship, and Home
Superstition and Religion
Summary
Analysis
At noon, Brigadier Majid receives a report from his senior astrologer that one thousand ghosts will assemble on the Imams Bridge, crossing the river Tigris. Brigadier Majid believes that these ghosts are none other than the pilgrims currently crossing the river to head to religious ceremonies. However, at the very same time the Brigadier is perusing his astrologer’s report, he sees on his television that several people have died on the bridge. A rumor about a suicide bomber caused panic in the crowds, leading some people to be trampled to death or to drown in the river after jumping from the bridge.
The contrast between the astrologer’s report and the information on the TV signals two ways of looking at reality: through the lens of superstition and imagination (the people on the bridge are “ghosts”) or through a more pragmatic approach (the “ghosts” are those who have died on the bridge). These two separate interpretations reveal different understandings of violence: as a mysterious phenomenon, orchestrated by superior forces, or as the consequence of harmful human behavior. Both interpretations try to find an inherently mysterious phenomenon: death.
Themes
Frustrated by his inability to prevent this catastrophe, Brigadier Majid realizes that his reports are never taken seriously. The criminals he identifies are rarely arrested. When they are, another member of the government takes credit for these operations. In these circumstances, Brigadier Majid has been working on a special operation that would demonstrate the high quality of his work and bring him a promotion. He is intent on solving mysterious crimes perpetrated around the city, for which he believes a single criminal is responsible. His senior astrologer calls this man “the One Who Has No Name.” The Brigadier is skeptical about this qualification. He wonders if this name suggests that this person will never be caught and sent to jail.
Although Brigadier Majid is concerned with public security, one of his primary interests is his personal success and advancement. In this sense, his frustration with his work also relates to the shifting political situation in the country: political instability leads people to defend their own interests first, in order to ensure their survival. In addition, although the Brigadier is inclined to believe in the Whatsitsname’s existence, he still retains a pragmatic approach toward this criminal, focused on sending the Whatsitsname to prison. The Brigadier’s unwillingness to give this criminal a mysterious nickname shows that he prefers to focus on a traditional understanding of justice, according to which criminals—however fascinating they might seem—should be punished for their violent deeds.
Themes
In the meantime, Brigadier Majid focuses on the Imams Bridge catastrophe. His junior astrologer tells him that the people on the bridge are ghosts temporarily inhabiting the people’s bodies, which can break loose when people become scared. This explains their name: “familiars of fear.”
The junior astrologer’s explanation is fanciful and extravagant. However, it also describes, in metaphorical terms, the way in which emotions can take control of people’s bodies: fear causes people to behave in unusual ways, as though they were possessed by ghosts.
Themes
Later in the day, after finalizing this report, the Brigadier has the impression that his thoughts are wandering around his body. They are centered on his personal version of the “familiars of fear”: his obsession with the nameless criminal. Brigadier Majid is also worried that he might one day be fired from his job, and that the Americans might thus leave him prey to the Iraqi political parties. He also wonders if his enemies are using the same tools that he is, such as astrologers and fortune-tellers, who could be able to instill such fears in him. When he tries to grab the ghost of the nameless criminal, in order to get rid of this fear, he realizes that there is no one in his office besides himself.
Brigadier Majid understands the junior astrologer’s descriptions not as supernatural phenomena, but as an ordinary feature of the human brain: in a situation of violence and insecurity, it’s normal to become overwhelmed by fear. Such fear is not irrational: it reflects the actual dangers that can affect members of the political system. At the same time, the Brigadier also realizes that such fears can become dangerous obsessions: when moved by powerful emotions, people can become their own enemies.
Themes
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In another part of the city, Hadi finishes recounting his story to Mahmoud. Mahmoud then tells the junk dealer, in exchange for this story, that he is in love with his boss Saidi’s lover, Nawal al-Wazir. However, Hadi is dissatisfied with this uninteresting secret, disproportionate to the danger of the Whatsitsname story. After reflecting a while, Mahmoud finally accepts to reveal a deeper secret: he admits that his family was not originally Arab. One of his ancestors, he believes, converted to Islam. His father recounted the story in his diaries, but his family burned it after the man’s death.
Mahmoud’s family secret reveals the importance of telling stories and cultivating careful social appearances in a society marked by social and ethnic divisions. Mahmoud’s secret does not only impact his understanding of his family: it also determines how he is viewed in society—specifically, whether or not he is seen as an “outsider.” In a violent context in which religious and ethnic affiliations can lead to murder, Mahmoud’s fears of revealing this secret are entirely justified.
Themes
Mahmoud then interrogates Hadi, telling him that he cannot believe the story of the Whatsitsname is true without concrete evidence. However, Hadi refuses to let Mahmoud meet the creature. The Whatsitsname, Hadi argues, would kill him whoever tried to take his picture. Overall, Mahmoud is surprised by this turn of events. The night before, the journalist had made an appointment with the junk dealer, but he did not expect for the story to be so intricate. In between their first meeting and their appointment, the disaster on the Imams Bridge took place, and Mahmoud spent the day reporting on it. When he reached the magazine’s office, he saw that Saidi’s cell phone had seven missed calls from the number 666.
In contrast to Hadi’s storytelling for entertainment purposes, Mahmoud’s job as a journalist leads him to verify his sources carefully. Mahmoud understands that, if Hadi’s story is true, it could have serious journalistic value. However, Hadi’s fear of the Whatsitsname’s reaction suggests that Hadi is the one putting his life in danger to tell this story. Mahmoud, by contrast, is focused less on the junk dealer’s well-being than on the details of the story—a trend that will become all the more prominent in future events.
Themes
Mahmoud debated whether or not he should call the number, because he longed to tell Nawal al-Wazir how he felt for her. Finally, he decided to call. He soon heard Nawal’s voice and was frozen on the spot. Then, he heard her address Saidi himself, who was in the same room as her. Saidi picked up the phone, asking if he was talking to Abu Jouni, the janitor. Terrified by this unexpected exchange, Mahmoud hung up abruptly. Saidi had told Mahmoud he would be away at a conference, and Mahmoud is shocked to realize that his editor has lied.
This phone call is a concrete indication of Saidi’s possible unreliability. Mahmoud is shocked to realize that his editor, in whom he places so much trust, does not reciprocate this trust by telling him the truth. As in many of Saidi’s actions, it is unclear why the editor would have chosen to lie. In any case, it suggests that Saidi has an ambiguous relationship to the truth: although he promotes good journalism, he does not necessarily apply the values of truth-telling to his personal life.
Themes
Desperate to forget about this conversation, Mahmoud went to Aziz’s coffee shop. There, Hadi reminded him of their appointment. Grateful for the opportunity to forget about his day, Mahmoud eagerly listened to Hadi discuss the Whatsitsname. However, Hadi’s attitude intrigued the young journalist, who realized that the junk dealer was serious and secretive, as opposed to his usual lighthearted behavior. Hadi preferred to tell the story in his house so that no one would overhear them. Finally, after hearing the story Mahmoud stayed in silence, shocked by what he Hadi told him. He realized that Hadi could not have invented such a complicated story on his own.
Hadi’s serious tone suggests that he is not as frivolous as he may appear: he, too, understands the emotional weight of death and violence. In addition, Hadi also understands the danger of telling stories about the sources of violence in such an unstable context: he knows that possessing sensitive importance can lead to dangerous consequences for the person recounting these events. Mahmoud’s doubts about Hadi’s intelligence adds another layer of uncertainty, as it is unclear to what extent Hadi is manipulating the story.
Themes
Mahmoud decides to record Hadi’s story on his digital recorder, so that he will not forget any of the details. He bought the Panasonic recorder months ago, in order to avoid using notebooks. This led him to recall his father’s diaries, composed of 27 notebooks, which Mahmoud sometimes perused. However, after his father’s death, his mother burned all of the notebooks, baking 27 loaves of bread over the ashes.
Mahmoud’s mother’s decision to burn her husband’s diaries suggests that telling the truth—which her husband did in these notebooks—can be seen as harmful. Engaging in censorship (and, specifically, destroying these notebooks) allows Mahmoud’s mother to stay in control of her family’s narrative, instead of having to accept uncomfortable truths.
Themes
Mahmoud knows that his father told the full truth of his life in these diaries, including scenes of masturbation and his sexual fantasies concerning women in the neighborhood. These episodes contrasted with his reputation as a respectable gentleman. Mahmoud concludes that the only way his father could accept this polished external image was by documenting the truth in his diaries.
Mahmoud’s father’s diaries reveal an additional purpose of writing: to reveal truths that cannot easily be communicated in social life. Such writing serves a private purpose—for example, to remain true to one’s secret emotions—but also highlights the constraints of society, which forces people to behave in a way that does not necessarily reflect their sincere thoughts and desires.
Themes
Before the notebooks were burned, Mahmoud heard his family members discuss events concerning the family’s origins and religious conversion. Although he only gathered bits of information, he understood that his father invented their last name, Sawadi, to replace their original tribal name. After their father’s death, Mahmoud’s brothers reverted to their tribal name. However, indignant about the family’s brutal treatment of his father’s life narrative, Mahmoud decided to keep the Sawadi name and to become known as a journalist with it.
Mahmoud’s family’s debates about their last name and tribal affiliation shows how social divisions impact people’s personal lives. Belonging to a given ethnic and religious group impacts one’s sense of personal and social identity. In Iraq, the tribal system can clash with the notion of a centralized government: it suggests that people can feel more strongly affiliated to their tribal origins than to the current way in which the political system is organized.
Themes
After talking with Hadi, Mahmoud tells him that he will only believe the junk dealer’s story if he interviews the Whatsitsname. He hands Hadi his digital recorder and explains to him how to use it, noting that the batteries die out fast. After leaving, he wonders if he would actually believe any evidence that Hadi was able to provide.
Mahmoud’s request for the junk dealer to record the Whatsitsname’s story demonstrates the journalist’s interest in Hadi’s story, but also suggests that Hadi will be the one taking risks—specifically, facing the creature—to prove that he is telling the truth.
Themes
Mahmoud returns to his hotel. There, he sees the hotel guests watching television, where his friend Farid Shawwaf, elegantly dressed, is discussing the events of the day. A government representative appears on TV, cheerfully saying that the government has succeeded in preventing a suicide bombing on the bridge, although the criminal escaped.
Throughout the novel, it is unclear whether the government is telling the truth or simply attempting to reassure the population and pretend to be in control of a violent situation. The representative’s mention of a suicide bomber is doubtful: from what Brigadier Majid had heard, people died only because the rumor of a suicide bomber was spread around, regardless of whether there actually was a criminal on the bridge.
Themes
Farid Shawwaf is later interviewed. He argues that the government is responsible for this disaster, because it did not search anyone who entered the bridge and allowed the bridge to become too crowded. Another man on the show argues that al-Qaeda is responsible for this. Even if the terrorist group is not personally involved in this tragedy, he argues, the fear they have instilled in people is responsible for that day’s death toll.
These speakers’ debates about the root causes of this tragic event mirror the Whatsitsname’s interrogations about justice. Who is truly responsible for the violence affecting people’s lives? Is it the armed groups intent on murdering others, or the government—which, because of possible incompetence, is incapable of protecting its own citizens?
Themes
Finally, Farid concludes that everyone is responsible, because everyone in the country is constantly terrified. It is the fear of dying that led people on the bridge to jump to their death. Similarly, people who fear armed groups support al-Qaeda. This, in turn, only leads to more insecurity, as new militias are created, to protect themselves from al-Qaeda. This vicious cycle of violence leads everyone to be afraid of “the Other.” Farid concludes that the government and the occupation forces must put an end to fear if they want to avoid more deaths in the future.
In line with Brigadier Majid’s previous confrontation of his “familiars of fear,” Farid suggests that people’s intense emotions of fear can have devastating consequences. Fear, he argues, leads people to engage in more violence, because armed groups can be both a threat and a promise of protection. People’s fear leads them to trust only in a narrow set of familiar social contacts and to reject people outside of their social group, who can be perceived as threats. This generates a vicious cycle: violence based on social divisions leads to even greater violence and divisions.
Themes
In another part of Baghdad, Brigadier Majid watches the talk show but is not convinced by any of the interventions, because he believes that the true criminal has not yet been caught. He has planned his “big coup” to take place that night, in order to catch “the One Who Has No Name.” He trusts that the success of this operation will finally bring him public recognition. At the same time, he wonders what this horrific criminal looks like. He has heard that the man cannot be harmed by bullets and that he has unique powers, such as breathing fire and flying with wings.
It remains unclear whether the Whatsitsname was ever implicated in the events on the Imams Bridge or if people’s deaths were simply the result of a movement of panic, independent of a criminal’s actual presence on the bridge. The novel also highlights how rumors can spread and blur the boundaries between truth and fiction: although the Whatsitsname certainly has some superhuman powers, he has no wings and cannot fly away.
Themes
