The Narrator and Mustafa Saeed

On a close reading of Season of Migration to the North, one realizes that the protagonist Mustafa Saeed always has a proper conversation with the narrator in the absence of other characters. We might see other characters like the grandfather shedding light on this figure that interests the narrator but any form of conversation between the protagonist and narrator is always an isolated one. This could be one of the reasons that support the possibility of the narrator and Mustafa Saeed being the same figure; afterall, many of the conversations lead to the narrator breaking out of the illusion of his idyllic life on his return to the village.

 When Mustafa appears in front of the narrator for the first time the latter informs the reader that “My father was asleep, and my brothers had gone out on some errand or another. I was therefore alone when I heard a faint cough coming from outside the house and on getting up.” Another time in Mahjoub’s meeting at work “It was Mahjoub, the president of the Committee and a childhood of mine, who invited me. When I entered, I found that Mustafa was a member of the committee”. Here, the narrator has no one on one interaction with Mustafa because of the large crowd. However again, in the gathering at Mahjoub’s house when they all got drunk; “Mahjoub, busy laughing with the rest of the people in the gathering did not notice what occurred.” For what occurred was unseen for it was in the mind of the narrator and he alone was the one who could relate to the English War Poetry. One last time, when the narrator wanted Mustafa to tackle his identity the former stated: “I did not have long to wait, for Mustafa came to see me that very same evening. On finding my father and brother with me, he said that he wanted to speak to me alone. I got up and we walked off together.” The same goes to the clash presence with Mustafa towards the narrator, together they are always presented alone; the narrator said: “Just before sunset I went to him and found him alone, seated in front of a pot of tea.”  

 Thus, in the Narrator’s subconscious, Mustafa is a repressed phenomenon who can only talk to him when they are alone. Mustafa’s presence at the conscious level in front of other people is threatening because it stirs up in the narrator a hidden compulsion to repeat his alienating experience in England. It also explains why the narrator seeks refuge in the native villagers, and most notably his grandfather, from this “stranger’s” menacing presence.