{"id":36536,"date":"2025-03-21T09:53:42","date_gmt":"2025-03-21T07:53:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/?p=36536"},"modified":"2025-03-21T09:56:21","modified_gmt":"2025-03-21T07:56:21","slug":"frankenstein-in-baghdad-a-novel-for-our-present-dystopia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/frankenstein-in-baghdad-a-novel-for-our-present-dystopia\/","title":{"rendered":"Frankenstein in Baghdad<\/em>: A Novel for Our Present Dystopia"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

When I first started teaching this book in the US a few years ago, students would say things like, \u201cWell, over there, it\u2019s a war; that\u2019s what happens.\u201d But this semester, two months into Trump 2.0, the novel reads very differently than it has in the past. \u201cWhat do you think,\u201d I asked my students. \u201cShould people be allowed to come into your residence with no authorization and threaten to make you disappear unless you tell them what they want to hear?\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

 <\/p>\n

Deborah L. Williams<\/span><\/h4>\n

 <\/p>\n

There\u2019s a moment in Ahmed Saadawi\u2019s <\/span>Frankenstein in Baghdad<\/span><\/i> where two goons who purport to be from \u201cthe traffic department\u201d show up at the apartment of Hadi the junkman, who tells them he doesn\u2019t even have a car. The men come inside anyway; they ask him questions about crimes he knows nothing about, then beat him senseless in order to discover if he\u2019s \u201cThe Whatsisname\u201d \u2014 the monster that\u2019s been terrorizing Baghdad.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The men don\u2019t know that Hadi created the creature, stitching together the body parts he found scattered in the Baghdad rubble, in order to assemble an entire corpse that he could bury on behalf of all the lost souls. Like Victor Frankenstein\u2019s creature, however, Whatsisname has eluded his creator\u2019s intentions and has decided for himself that his mission is to seek \u201cvengeance for the innocent.\u201d Hadi is the only person in Baghdad who knows the truth about Whatsisname, but it\u2019s a truth he cannot reveal. Furious at Hadi\u2019s silence, the men steal the few precious things in Hadi\u2019s junk shop, as well as his small wad of cash. They leave Hadi bleeding and semi-conscious on the floor.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"Frankenstein<\/a>
Frankenstein in Baghdad<\/em> by Ahmed Saadawi is published by Penguin<\/a>.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

I regularly teach this novel as part of a first-year writing course at NYU, home to the largest international student population in the country (27,000 students across the entire university). When I first started teaching this book in the US a few years ago, students would say things like, \u201cWell, over there, it\u2019s a war, that\u2019s what happens.\u201d But this semester, two months into Trump 2.0, the novel reads very differently than it has in the past. \u201cWhat do you think,\u201d I asked my students. \u201cShould people be allowed to come into your residence with no authorization and threaten to make you disappear unless you tell them what they want to hear?\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The students \u2014 the usual mix of diffidence and energy, all wearing sneakers and baggy jeans \u2014 are pretty clear that no, that shouldn\u2019t happen. \u201cThere are supposed to be rules, and like, laws,\u201d says one optimistic soul. Another student snorts, her disdain palpable. \u201cLaws only work if there are consequences,\u201d she says. \u201cPeople have to be afraid of what happens if they break the law.\u201d General nods of agreement greet her statement. Fear, apparently, is the go-to solution.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s like Hadi doesn\u2019t matter to them as a person,\u201d says another student. And that comment unlocks the discussion. We\u2019ve already read Mary Shelley\u2019s <\/span>Frankenstein<\/span><\/i> and talked about how the novel portrays the dangers of \u201cmonsterizing\u201d the Other. The students felt overwhelming sympathy for Frankenstein\u2019s creature, who considers the ability to speak a \u201cgodlike science\u201d and educates himself by reading Milton, Goethe, and Plutarch. The creature, I tell my classes, is basically a humanities student. And Victor Frankenstein, with his desire to \u201cpenetrate the recesses of nature\u201d and single-minded pursuit of glory, is a STEM student.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Draw your own conclusions.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Creeping around the edges of our conversations, of course, are the actions of the current US president and his minions, as well as the current state of affairs on US universities. The day we discussed the attack on Hadi the junkman, <\/span>Mahmoud Khalil had just been arrested<\/span><\/a> by ICE, who are themselves skating on thin legal ice, given that Khalil \u2014 a green-card holder living in Columbia University housing and married to a US citizen \u2014 had led Palestinian protests at Columbia, thinking that he enjoyed the constitutional right to freedom of speech. But just as in Baghdad, where the American troops \u201c[operated] with considerable independence and [could not] be held to account,\u201d ordinary US citizens too seem to be living in a country where \u201cas suddenly as the wind could shift [the troops] could throw you down a dark hole.\u201d Rule of law, once regarded as the inviolate guardrail of US society, now seems fragile, a conceptual soap bubble that looks good but isn\u2019t to be relied on.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

No NYU student that I know of has yet been taken by ICE, which some of my colleagues attribute to the fact that The Trumpian Son attends NYU\u2019s Stern School of Business.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

NYU calls itself the global university, a university without walls, although as anyone in the neighborhood could tell you, the campus protests against Israel\u2019s actions have resulted in walls, stanchions, and gates sprouting up all over, like daffodil harbingers of unrest. The university has made no public statement about Khalil\u2019s detainment, leaving many to wonder what would happen if ICE took a member of the NYU community. <\/span>Frankenstein in Baghdad <\/span><\/i>illuminates the debilitating reality of living in and with perpetual uncertainty: will bombs drop on my street today, will a suicide bomber detonate himself outside my shop, will thugs show up at my door. That type of uncertainty used to seem purely theoretical to most, if not all, of my students.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I mention NYU because it\u2019s where I teach, but sadly, frighteningly, friends and acquaintances at universities across the US (and around the world) have similar stories about the measures being taken by university administrations in the name of \u201csafety,\u201d a word that, like \u201cfreedom\u201d and \u201cdemocracy\u201d gets used as a shield to prevent scrutiny. Kathy Hochul, the governor of New York State, for example, told the City University of New York (CUNY) <\/span>to remove a job listing<\/span><\/a> that advertised for a Palestinian studies professor, asking for a \u201cthorough review\u2026to ensure that antisemitic theories are not promoted in the classroom.\u201d Outrage followed her actions, and questions about how a job listing can ensure what does or doesn\u2019t get taught in the classroom \u2014 with the accompanying questions about who, exactly, will be watching what gets taught?\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Frankenstein in Baghdad<\/span><\/i> spoofs such efforts through the actions of the \u201cDepartment of Tracking and Pursuit,\u201d headed by a former Baathist, Brigadier Majid. He has hired astrologers, seers, and people who commune with spirits, in order to predict crimes before they occur, find the would-be criminals, and arrest them \u2014 all in an effort to keep Baghdadis safe.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe aim is to get control,\u201d the Brigadier says; the truth of the stories his department tells is irrelevant. What matters is that people believe what they\u2019re told. Truth, in this novel, is fungible, another casualty of war. Shelley\u2019s novel does something similar through its creation of the frame story of Robert Walton, a would-be Arctic explorer, who rescues Victor Frankenstein from an ice floe, and writes to his sister about Frankenstein\u2019s adventures, including Frankenstein\u2019s report of talking with his Creature about the Creature\u2019s misery as a result of being abandoned by his creator. Whose story has the most veracity? Whose story elicits our sympathy, and who emerges as the \u201creal\u201d monster? My students were fairly firm in their belief that Frankenstein is the monster, no matter that the Creature murdered innocent people.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIf you treat someone like they\u2019re not human, then what can you expect,\u201d one student said firmly.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

When I told my classes that <\/span>Elon Musk referred to people who opposed him as NPCs<\/span><\/a>, a phrase from video game culture that refers to \u201cnon-player characters,\u201d their response was a mix of outrage and amusement. They explained to me (a non-video game player) that NPCS have no importance; they exist only to serve the main players. \u201cThey\u2019ve got no autonomy,\u201d one girl said, and another added, \u201cthey\u2019re expendable.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cBut also,\u201d said another student, \u201cthat\u2019s how kids talk. It\u2019s like he wants to be cool. We use it like a joke, but he\u2019s way too old for that.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s just super cringe,\u201d said another, in the tones of absolute insult.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The \u201cNPCs\u201d in <\/span>Frankenstein in Baghdad<\/span><\/i> include all the people trying as best they can to live their lives in intolerable circumstances, struggling to eat and worship and keep their families together. They are aware that such government as exists is not to be trusted, but what recourse do they have? As Saadawi himself put it, in a <\/span>2018 interview<\/span><\/a>, \u201c<\/span>the belief that I will get home safe and won\u2019t be killed in an explosion is what enables me to leave home in the morning, although there is no logical calculation that supports this belief.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

And so it is beginning to feel in the US: we persevere in what we believe is important, although there is no logical calculation that says we will make a difference. Every day here, Trump has a new edict, a new way to erode bedrock principles and chip away at educational institutions. For instance, a few days ago, he released an order that would <\/span>hobble libraries<\/span><\/a> across the country, by reducing or stripping federal funding entirely.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

What else can I do but continue teaching my students that not only do they <\/span>have <\/span><\/i>a voice, but that their voices matter? I tell them that we read fiction as a way to help us find insight into ourselves and our world; I ask them to think about where or how they find empathy for lives very unlike their own. We talk about how this novel gives voice to the doubts we might have, to our anxieties \u2014 and to how we can find hope. But increasingly, talking about the power of voice, the need for imagination, creativity, and empathy, the importance of archives and history, feels disingenuous at best \u2014 hypocritical and even dangerous, at worst \u2014 given the state of the university and the country.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Towards the end of Saadawi\u2019s novel, one of the astrologers asks if they themselves weren\u2019t in part responsible for the creation of the Whatsisname, who has come to terrorize the entire city. No one wants to answer his question; no one wants to be accountable. We know that Hadi created Whatsisname with all good intentions, but now Whatsisname is a vigilante, killing those who had killed the people whose body parts comprised his own. As he avenges one body part, however, it dissolves and needs to be replaced, and then that part needs revenge, and then the next and the next, until he finds himself killing innocent people for their specific body parts. He becomes an ouroboros of vengeance and violence. Before he becomes addicted to vengeance, Whatsisname says that he is \u201cmade up of body parts of people from diverse backgrounds \u2014 ethnicities, tribes, races, and social classes \u2014 I represent the impossible mix that never was achieved in the past. I\u2019m the first true Iraqi citizen.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Frankenstein in Baghdad<\/span><\/i> responded to the disaster of Bush\u2019s war in Iraq, but it offers us a way to think about where we are now and the dangers we face. Saadawi himself <\/span>pointed ou<\/span><\/a>t the problem: \u201cfed by politicians and men of religion, people cling to pure, micro-identities, but we have to accept the diversity and pluralism in ourselves, and then accept the diversity in society.\u201d Re-reading this novel now, I had a new thought: it\u2019s not the murderousness of Whatsisname that the authorities find so frightening. It\u2019s that he is comprised of all of us, in our messy, diverse differences. Difference, for Whatsisname, creates strength, while for the Trumps and Husseins of the world, strength depends on some illusory idea of purity.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

After Hadi\u2019s beating, his neighbor finds him, and although the two men dislike each other, Abu Salim nonetheless sends his two sons to tend to Hadi\u2019s wounds. It\u2019s a small but pivotal moment: how do we resist the chaos of a violent world run by despots? We tend to each other; we care for those around us; we refuse to be afraid of the monsters.<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

An NYU professor who has frequently taught this Iraqi novel finds that two months into Trump 2.0, its significance has shifted considerably.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":163,"featured_media":36546,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[6,2656,12,51],"tags":[2292,4323,692,2434,885,4322,1718],"coauthors":[1928],"class_list":["post-36536","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-book-review","category-books","category-essay","category-tmr-weekly","tag-ahmed-saadawi","tag-frankenstein-in-baghdad","tag-freedom-of-expression","tag-individual-freedom","tag-iraq","tag-mahmoud-khalil","tag-trump-era","entry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nFrankenstein in Baghdad: A Novel for Our Present Dystopia - The Markaz Review<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"An NYU professor who has frequently taught this Iraqi novel finds that two months into Trump 2.0, its significance has shifted considerably.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/frankenstein-in-baghdad-a-novel-for-our-present-dystopia\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Frankenstein in Baghdad: A Novel for Our Present Dystopia\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"An NYU professor who has frequently taught this Iraqi novel finds that two months into Trump 2.0, its significance has shifted considerably.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/frankenstein-in-baghdad-a-novel-for-our-present-dystopia\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"The Markaz Review\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-03-21T07:53:42+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-03-21T07:56:21+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Al-Zaeem-Ahmed-Painting-Oil-on-Canvas-40-x-40cm-courtesy-picasso-gallery.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1276\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1280\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Deborah Williams\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Deborah Williams\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"9 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/themarkaz.org\\\/oldsite\\\/frankenstein-in-baghdad-a-novel-for-our-present-dystopia\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/themarkaz.org\\\/oldsite\\\/frankenstein-in-baghdad-a-novel-for-our-present-dystopia\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Deborah Williams\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/themarkaz.org\\\/oldsite\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/31ef3b42073bbaaaca85d0b74a9a301c\"},\"headline\":\"Frankenstein in Baghdad: A Novel for Our Present Dystopia\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-03-21T07:53:42+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-03-21T07:56:21+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/themarkaz.org\\\/oldsite\\\/frankenstein-in-baghdad-a-novel-for-our-present-dystopia\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":2059,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/themarkaz.org\\\/oldsite\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/themarkaz.org\\\/oldsite\\\/frankenstein-in-baghdad-a-novel-for-our-present-dystopia\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/themarkaz.org\\\/oldsite\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/03\\\/Al-Zaeem-Ahmed-Painting-Oil-on-Canvas-40-x-40cm-courtesy-picasso-gallery.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Ahmed Saadawi\",\"Frankenstein in Baghdad\",\"freedom of expression\",\"individual freedom\",\"Iraq\",\"Mahmoud Khalil\",\"Trump era\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Book Reviews\",\"Books\",\"Essays\",\"TMR Weekly\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/themarkaz.org\\\/oldsite\\\/frankenstein-in-baghdad-a-novel-for-our-present-dystopia\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/themarkaz.org\\\/oldsite\\\/frankenstein-in-baghdad-a-novel-for-our-present-dystopia\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/themarkaz.org\\\/oldsite\\\/frankenstein-in-baghdad-a-novel-for-our-present-dystopia\\\/\",\"name\":\"Frankenstein in Baghdad: A Novel for Our Present Dystopia - The Markaz Review\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/themarkaz.org\\\/oldsite\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/themarkaz.org\\\/oldsite\\\/frankenstein-in-baghdad-a-novel-for-our-present-dystopia\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/themarkaz.org\\\/oldsite\\\/frankenstein-in-baghdad-a-novel-for-our-present-dystopia\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/themarkaz.org\\\/oldsite\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/03\\\/Al-Zaeem-Ahmed-Painting-Oil-on-Canvas-40-x-40cm-courtesy-picasso-gallery.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-03-21T07:53:42+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-03-21T07:56:21+00:00\",\"description\":\"An NYU professor who has frequently taught this Iraqi novel finds that two months into Trump 2.0, its significance has shifted considerably.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/themarkaz.org\\\/oldsite\\\/frankenstein-in-baghdad-a-novel-for-our-present-dystopia\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/themarkaz.org\\\/oldsite\\\/frankenstein-in-baghdad-a-novel-for-our-present-dystopia\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/themarkaz.org\\\/oldsite\\\/frankenstein-in-baghdad-a-novel-for-our-present-dystopia\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/themarkaz.org\\\/oldsite\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/03\\\/Al-Zaeem-Ahmed-Painting-Oil-on-Canvas-40-x-40cm-courtesy-picasso-gallery.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/themarkaz.org\\\/oldsite\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/03\\\/Al-Zaeem-Ahmed-Painting-Oil-on-Canvas-40-x-40cm-courtesy-picasso-gallery.jpg\",\"width\":1276,\"height\":1280,\"caption\":\"Ahmed Al-Zaeem , Untitled, oil on canvas, 40x40cm, 2010 (courtesy Picasso Art Gallery Cairo).\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/themarkaz.org\\\/oldsite\\\/frankenstein-in-baghdad-a-novel-for-our-present-dystopia\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/themarkaz.org\\\/oldsite\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Frankenstein in Baghdad: A Novel for Our Present Dystopia\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/themarkaz.org\\\/oldsite\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/themarkaz.org\\\/oldsite\\\/\",\"name\":\"The Markaz Review\",\"description\":\"Literature and Arts from the Center of the World\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/themarkaz.org\\\/oldsite\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/themarkaz.org\\\/oldsite\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/themarkaz.org\\\/oldsite\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"The Markaz Review\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/themarkaz.org\\\/oldsite\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/themarkaz.org\\\/oldsite\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/themarkaz.org\\\/oldsite\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2023\\\/08\\\/cropped-New-2023-TMR-Logo-500-pix.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/themarkaz.org\\\/oldsite\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2023\\\/08\\\/cropped-New-2023-TMR-Logo-500-pix.jpg\",\"width\":473,\"height\":191,\"caption\":\"The Markaz Review\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/themarkaz.org\\\/oldsite\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"}},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/themarkaz.org\\\/oldsite\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/31ef3b42073bbaaaca85d0b74a9a301c\",\"name\":\"Deborah Williams\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/7458d3d6cd5d40733e071b579fbe3f0a2749229dc6444e64209eaf9449873157?s=96&d=mm&r=g938650b82d6ef3f26d25891665adfeda\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/7458d3d6cd5d40733e071b579fbe3f0a2749229dc6444e64209eaf9449873157?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/7458d3d6cd5d40733e071b579fbe3f0a2749229dc6444e64209eaf9449873157?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Deborah Williams\"},\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/themarkaz.org\\\/oldsite\\\/author\\\/deborahwilliams\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Frankenstein in Baghdad: A Novel for Our Present Dystopia - The Markaz Review","description":"An NYU professor who has frequently taught this Iraqi novel finds that two months into Trump 2.0, its significance has shifted considerably.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/frankenstein-in-baghdad-a-novel-for-our-present-dystopia\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Frankenstein in Baghdad: A Novel for Our Present Dystopia","og_description":"An NYU professor who has frequently taught this Iraqi novel finds that two months into Trump 2.0, its significance has shifted considerably.","og_url":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/frankenstein-in-baghdad-a-novel-for-our-present-dystopia\/","og_site_name":"The Markaz Review","article_published_time":"2025-03-21T07:53:42+00:00","article_modified_time":"2025-03-21T07:56:21+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1276,"height":1280,"url":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Al-Zaeem-Ahmed-Painting-Oil-on-Canvas-40-x-40cm-courtesy-picasso-gallery.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Deborah Williams","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Deborah Williams","Est. reading time":"9 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/frankenstein-in-baghdad-a-novel-for-our-present-dystopia\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/frankenstein-in-baghdad-a-novel-for-our-present-dystopia\/"},"author":{"name":"Deborah Williams","@id":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/#\/schema\/person\/31ef3b42073bbaaaca85d0b74a9a301c"},"headline":"Frankenstein in Baghdad: A Novel for Our Present Dystopia","datePublished":"2025-03-21T07:53:42+00:00","dateModified":"2025-03-21T07:56:21+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/frankenstein-in-baghdad-a-novel-for-our-present-dystopia\/"},"wordCount":2059,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/frankenstein-in-baghdad-a-novel-for-our-present-dystopia\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Al-Zaeem-Ahmed-Painting-Oil-on-Canvas-40-x-40cm-courtesy-picasso-gallery.jpg","keywords":["Ahmed Saadawi","Frankenstein in Baghdad","freedom of expression","individual freedom","Iraq","Mahmoud Khalil","Trump era"],"articleSection":["Book Reviews","Books","Essays","TMR Weekly"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/frankenstein-in-baghdad-a-novel-for-our-present-dystopia\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/frankenstein-in-baghdad-a-novel-for-our-present-dystopia\/","url":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/frankenstein-in-baghdad-a-novel-for-our-present-dystopia\/","name":"Frankenstein in Baghdad: A Novel for Our Present Dystopia - The Markaz Review","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/frankenstein-in-baghdad-a-novel-for-our-present-dystopia\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/frankenstein-in-baghdad-a-novel-for-our-present-dystopia\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Al-Zaeem-Ahmed-Painting-Oil-on-Canvas-40-x-40cm-courtesy-picasso-gallery.jpg","datePublished":"2025-03-21T07:53:42+00:00","dateModified":"2025-03-21T07:56:21+00:00","description":"An NYU professor who has frequently taught this Iraqi novel finds that two months into Trump 2.0, its significance has shifted considerably.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/frankenstein-in-baghdad-a-novel-for-our-present-dystopia\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/frankenstein-in-baghdad-a-novel-for-our-present-dystopia\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/frankenstein-in-baghdad-a-novel-for-our-present-dystopia\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Al-Zaeem-Ahmed-Painting-Oil-on-Canvas-40-x-40cm-courtesy-picasso-gallery.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Al-Zaeem-Ahmed-Painting-Oil-on-Canvas-40-x-40cm-courtesy-picasso-gallery.jpg","width":1276,"height":1280,"caption":"Ahmed Al-Zaeem , Untitled, oil on canvas, 40x40cm, 2010 (courtesy Picasso Art Gallery Cairo)."},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/frankenstein-in-baghdad-a-novel-for-our-present-dystopia\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Frankenstein in Baghdad: A Novel for Our Present Dystopia"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/#website","url":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/","name":"The Markaz Review","description":"Literature and Arts from the Center of the World","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/#organization","name":"The Markaz Review","url":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/cropped-New-2023-TMR-Logo-500-pix.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/cropped-New-2023-TMR-Logo-500-pix.jpg","width":473,"height":191,"caption":"The Markaz Review"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/#\/schema\/person\/31ef3b42073bbaaaca85d0b74a9a301c","name":"Deborah Williams","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7458d3d6cd5d40733e071b579fbe3f0a2749229dc6444e64209eaf9449873157?s=96&d=mm&r=g938650b82d6ef3f26d25891665adfeda","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7458d3d6cd5d40733e071b579fbe3f0a2749229dc6444e64209eaf9449873157?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/7458d3d6cd5d40733e071b579fbe3f0a2749229dc6444e64209eaf9449873157?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Deborah Williams"},"url":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/author\/deborahwilliams\/"}]}},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Al-Zaeem-Ahmed-Painting-Oil-on-Canvas-40-x-40cm-courtesy-picasso-gallery.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36536","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/163"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=36536"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36536\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":36542,"href":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36536\/revisions\/36542"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/36546"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=36536"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=36536"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=36536"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/themarkaz.org\/oldsite\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=36536"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}