Half A Day

By: Naguib Mahfouz

• Do you remember
your first day at
school when you were
in Kinder garden or in
Grade 1?
I bet some were…
Video Presentation
 Naguib Mahfouz
• was born on December 11, 1911 and died on August 30, 2006, was an Egyptian writer. He is
the only Arab writer who won the 1988 Nobel Prize for Literature. He is regarded as one of
the first contemporary writers of Arabic literature.
• He published 34 novels, over 350 short stories, dozens of movie scripts, and five plays over
a 70-year career. Many of his works have been made into Egyptian and foreign films for
example; his novel, “Midaq Alley” (1947), was adapted into a Mexican film, of the same
title, starring Salma Hayek.
• Half a Day was published in 1989 as a part of a short story collection called, “The False
Dawn.”
Naguib Mahfouz
Midaq Alley
 Half a Day: A Summary

• The story begins with a little boy and his father. They
were walking towards the boy’s school for it was the boy’s
first day in school. He was nervous and afraid. He was
convinced that there was nothing good about going to
school. But his father urged him forward saying; “Be a
man. Today you truly begin life. You will find me waiting
for you when it is time to leave.”
 Vocabulary
• Tarboosh - a tasseled cap of cloth or felt, usually red, that is worn
by Muslim men either by itself or as the inner part of the turban.

• Unmarred = mar - to damage or spoil to a certain extent; render

less perfect, attractive, useful, etc.; impair or spoil (unmarred
would mean the opposite)
 Half a Day: A Summary

• The boy with hesitation entered the school. He met boys

and girls there whom he did not know and who didn’t
know him but where curious about him. After the gates
closed, the children started crying. Then a lady (teacher)
came in and arranged the children into classes saying,
“This is your new home. Dry your tears and face life
joyfully.”
 Half a Day: A Summary

• The children then have accepted the fact that they were
to stay there for the rest of the day. And with this
acceptance, came contentment for the boy made new
friends, he fell in love with girls, he played different
games, sang songs, learned about language, learned about
the world and religion, ate food, took a nap and woke up
to do all the same joyful things.
 Half a Day: A Summary

• But then the boy realized that the path of school was not
always happy. There were bumps on the road like pain,
hatred, fighting, heartbreak and even the teacher who
would scowl and scold then and would resort to physical
punishment. The boy learned that he and his friends
should be careful as they go on their journey through
school.
 Vocabulary

• Exertion - vigorous action or effort

• Throngs - a multitude of people crowded or assembled

together; crowd
 Half a Day: A Summary

• When the bell rang, it signaled the end of the day. He bid
farewell to his friends and sweethearts and waited for his
father to pick him up but he did not show up. So the boy
decided to go home on his own.
 Half a Day: A Summary
• After a few steps, he stopped. He was shocked because the entire
place had changed. There were cars and high buildings
everywhere. The gardens and fields have disappeared. Trucks with
security troops were crawling the area. Circus people and
conjurers were showing tricks and performing. A fire engine was
causing traffic. The boy felt like he was going crazy. He said,
“How could all this have happened in half a day, between early
morning and sunset?”
 Vocabulary

• Hordes - a large group, multitude, number, etc.; a mass or

crowd

• Conjurers - a person who conjures spirits or practices

magic; magician.
 Half a Day: A Summary

• He then decided to seek the answers from his father. So

he needed to get home but where was home? The boy
wondered. He then hurriedly made it to the crossroads.
He needed to cross Abu Khoda to get home but how
could he cross when a line of cars would not let him?
 Vocabulary

• Abu Khoda – is an actual street in Cairo located near an

elementary school.
 Half a Day: A Summary

• He was extremely irritated as he waited and wondered

when will he be able to cross. Then after a long time of
waiting, a young boy who worked at the ironing shop
from the corner came up to him and stretched his arm
and said, “Grandpa, let me take you across.”
 What can we learn from the short story?

• This short story reflects on how fast and quick time

passes. Yesterday we were little children, today we are
teenagers and tomorrow we will be old people.
Nowadays, the hours of a day seem to be moving too fast
and we do not even notice. Most of us wish for hours to
be shorter but when the day passes we wish for longer
hours.
 What can we learn from the short story?

• We are not grateful and appreciative for the minutes we

are given everyday. We are lucky that we are given time to
do things and be better because for some people, they
don’t have enough time. We want to grow up already and
be adults. But when we do reach adulthood, we long for
our childhood days.
 What can we learn from the short story?

• The lesson here is to cherish every moment, every

second, every minute, every hour, every day, every week,
every month and every year because time is not
something we can get back. It is not a file that, once
deleted, cannot be restored from the recycle bin. We need
to make each moment count. “Live for today.”
 What can we learn from the short story?

• Another reflection is school. The school is not just a

place where we learn about reading, writing and etc. It is a
place were we are being prepared for life. We are taught
to work under pressure and meet deadlines. We learn how
to deal with people. We experience pain, heartbreak,
happiness and success and many more.
 FOOD FOR THOUGHT
• We often think that LIFE is too slow. Think again. Life is
actually passing by so quick and we don’t even see it. So
live for today.

• In order for a person to learn, that person must have the

willingness to learn. Without it, a person simply just takes
education and learning for granted. Be grateful.