MOST people, especially younger ones, rarely spend time thinking about what life was like 40 or 50 years ago. People are far more focused on their daily routines and tasks to give such a topic much thought. In his book, “Whatever Happened to the Egyptians?” Galal Amin gives much thought to life in the past, as he takes a look at the social changes that occurred in Egypt from the 1950s up to the 1990s. Amin examines Egyptian life in the middle of the 20th century with a nonscientific method which is mostly based on his own observations, thoughts and experiences.
The book is a collection of essays written by Amin over a period of time. Each essay focuses on a different aspect of Egyptian society; a variety of topics are covered such as weddings, public and private sectors, religious fanaticism, private cars, Egyptian economists, and so on.
Amin begins with the assertion that Egypt is witnessing a decline politically, socially, intellectually and economically. He then identifies the cause of the decline to be social mobility. Social mobility, according to Amin, has been made possible by the spread of education, higher rates of inflation and emigration to oil-rich countries, all during a time of great contact with the West. In his view, the increase in social mobility has caused Egyptians to forget, or ignore, tradition as well as national and ideological issues which he sees as important. Unfortunately, the author presents few facts or hard evidence to support his point. After realizing this, readers are more likely to enjoy the book for what it is: One man’s opinions and experiences about a time of change in Egypt. Once a person begins reading the book with this in mind, he or she will find the book enjoyable and fun to read.
Amin does indeed make some interesting observations on the changes which have occurred in Egypt. In the Westernization chapter, he points out that today’s upper class businessmen would never wear a galabiya (the traditional dress of an Egyptian peasant) to work or to any business meeting. Today’s businessmen would consider the galabiya embarrassing while a suit is the proper dress. In the 1950s, on the other hand, the pashas proudly wore their galabiyas and rarely, if ever, considered wearing a suit which they saw as western and untraditional.
The Arabic language is another area of focus for Amin. Those who earlier had excellent command of classical Arabic were looked up to and respected. As noted by Amin, today people are far more impressed with a person’s ability to speak a foreign language.
The author makes this point by his observations of people’s changes in speech, the media, journalists, and education. This was a great opportunity to conduct a detailed study on how language was truly influenced during this time but unfortunately, he does not do this. Instead he comes to the unfounded, though possibly correct, conclusion that the change has been caused by a decline in standards, specifically the standard of language teaching and a lack of care and increase in educational levels.
Another interesting observation made by Amin is his view of the spread of the hijab in Egyptian society. He sees the increase as proof of women extending themselves further in public society, specifically the job sector, and not as a kind of confinement. I find this to be quite true. The number of women moving about in the public sphere in Egypt is quite high, probably one of the highest in the Arab world. Many do see the hijab as a means through which they can present themselves as serious, professional and modest women, capable of managing for themselves.
I found the chapter, The Position of Women, to be the most interesting. The information presented was not necessarily new, but Amin’s stories of his mother, sisters, and daughter made the chapter pleasant to read. His ability to relate personal stories to present a point was quiet effective. For Amin’s mother, life revolved around the kitchen and family duties. Unlike the women of today, Amin’s mother was economically dependent on her husband and affection was rare and came “like the sun’s rays shining through a heavily clouded sky.” It is funny to think woman in the 50s had to “clip her husband’s wings” by bearing him as many children as possible. Of course women today also have to clip those wings but I doubt many would be happy at the idea of bearing six or seven children.
The other chapters in the book are along the same lines — good insights on the changes, backed with personal experiences. However, using social mobility as the explanation for every change in Egyptian society gets tiring and without any evidence to backup these claims, the reader begins to get skeptical. The book would have been much more powerful if the author had been able to present data and studies to support his points. Amin obviously holds strong feelings about what life was like in the past, and the nostalgic tone of the book does at times affect the reader. Overall, the author presents a negative image of the changes which have occurred in Egypt and at times fails to see some of the benefits these changes have presented. Nevertheless, this book is a good light read which many will find entertaining.
