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" My wife thought I deserved it, but I always thought the Nobel a Western prize. "
Naguib Mahfouz
Nobel
Thought
Prize
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" If the urge to write should ever leave me, I want that day to be my last. "
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" At my age it is unseemly to be pessimistic. "
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" It is simply not part of my culture to preserve notes. I have never heard of a writer preserving his early drafts. "
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" In Egypt today most people are concerned with getting bread to eat. Only some of the educated understand how democracy works. "
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" I accepted the interviews and encounters that had to be held with the media, but I would have preferred to work in peace. "
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" I started writing while I was a little boy. Maybe it's because I was reading a lot of books I admired, and thought that I would like to write something like that someday. Also, my love for good writing pushed me. "
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" Without literature my life would be miserable. "
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" History is full of people who went to prison or were burned at the stake for proclaiming their ideas. Society has always defended itself. "
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" You can tell whether a man is clever by his answers. You can tell whether a man is wise by his questions. "
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" Hosni Mubarak... his constitution is not democratic, but he is democratic. We can voice our opinions now. The press is free. "
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" According to Islamic principles, when a man is accused of heresy, he is given the choice between repentance and punishment. "
Naguib Mahfouz
Punishment
He
Principles
" Insults are the business of the court. "
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" We are like a woman with a difficult pregnancy. We have to rebuild the social classes in Egypt, and we must change the way things were. "
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" The criminal is trying to solve his immediate problems. "
Naguib Mahfouz
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" As the tension eases, we must look in the direction of agriculture, industry and education as our final goals, and toward democracy under Mr Mubarak. "
Naguib Mahfouz
Goals
Democracy
Direction
" I was a government employee in the morning and a writer in the evening. "
Naguib Mahfouz
Morning
Employee
Government
" I was suffering from a peculiar and persistent sense that I was being pursued, and also the conviction that under the political order of the times, our lives had no meaning. "
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Suffering
Sense
Political
" I consider Khomeini's position dangerous. He does not have the right to pass judgment-that is not the Islamic way. "
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Position
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" One effect that the Nobel Prize seems to have had is that more Arabic literary works have been translated into other languages. "
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" We used the Western style to express our own themes and stories. But don't forget that our heritage includes The Thousand and One Nights. "
Naguib Mahfouz
Style
Own
Forget
" The Arab world also won the Nobel with me. I believe that international doors have opened, and that from now on, literate people will consider Arab literature also. We deserve that recognition. "
Naguib Mahfouz
Believe
World
People
" We are passing through a very sensitive time, and on the whole, this country is facing very big problems. "
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Big
Through
Problems
" An allegory is not meant to be taken literally. There is a great lack of comprehension on the part of some readers. "
Naguib Mahfouz
Meant To Be
Great
Lack
" I am practically in the employ of Mr. Nobel. I have to meet everyone he sends my way. "
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" My countrymen have the right to shake my hand and talk to me if they so wish. Don't forget that their support and their reading of my works is what brought me the Nobel prize. "
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" Today's interpretations of religion are often backward and contradict the needs of civilization. "
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" I was reading a lot of books I admired, and thought that I would like to write something like that someday. "
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" I reject any path which rejects life, but I can't help loving Sufism because it sounds so beautiful. It gives relief in the midst of battle. "
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Path
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Beautiful
" I love Sufism as I love beautiful poetry, but it is not the answer. Sufism is like a mirage in the desert. It says to you, come and sit, relax and enjoy yourself for a while. "
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Relax
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" I wake up early in the morning and walk for an hour. If I have something to write, I prefer to write in the morning until midday, and in the afternoon, I eat. "
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Walk