In The Thief and the Dogs by Naguib Mahfouz The Stranger by Albert Camus we are exposed to two very different characters, Said Mahran and Meursault. Both of these characters are alienated from their society and change radically as a result of this rejection. Using these novels as examples, we can gain insight into the minds of two contrasting characters and the extent to which alienation leads to their change. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an Original Essay To understand the change these characters undergo, it is important to understand the characters themselves. Saïd Mahran is a passionate man, but full of hatred and a need for revenge. After spending several years in prison, Saïd is unable to deal with what has changed. He feels distant from the life he led and the friends he had. Throughout the book, he searches for the purpose of his life: “I want nothing, I aspire to nothing, except to die a death that has meaning” (Mahfouz 251) and it is through violence that he intends to find meaning. He has very clear ideas about what he must accomplish and rarely deviates from what he considers his personal duty. Initially, Said appears as a rational man, with whom readers can easily sympathize, but throughout the book, his sense of rationality and reason seems to disappear. Meursault is a completely different character, emotionless and detached. He feels no significant emotions other than those related to his most basic physical desires, such as eating or sleeping. He has difficulty grasping natural human concepts like love or remorse. For example, when his friend Marie asks him to marry her, he responds that “it didn’t bother him” and “that it didn’t mean anything” (Camus 41). And during his trial, Meursault admits that he “could never really feel remorse” (100). Both of these characters are outcasts in their own way. Said's criminal ways and desire for revenge ostracize him from the rest of society, while Meursault is scorned for his apparent indifference to everything. The way Saïd evolves in The Thief and the Dogs is very different from that of Meursault. Ironically, it is Saïd, the free man, who changes for the worse, rather than Meursault, the imprisoned man. Even though Said is physically free, his need to avenge his enemies keeps him mentally imprisoned. Said's character change begins at the beginning of the book, after his first meeting with his daughter. Said foolishly expected his daughter to welcome him with open arms even though he had been in prison for most of his life. When he sees that she does not recognize him, his desire to avenge Ilish and Nabawiyya quickly outweighs his desire for his daughter. Said is unable to cope with the changes that have occurred during his stay in prison. Not only did his hatred towards Ilish and Nabawiyya increase, but also towards his former close acquaintance, Rauf Ilwan, who has prospered greatly since his imprisonment. Rather than trying to accept what happened, Said chooses revenge. Little by little, his obsession with revenge grows and Said's character begins to deteriorate. His transformation from a Robin Hood type character to a murderer happens quickly. It is through his acts of violence that we witness this transformation. Said creates a distorted self-image, seeing himself as much greater than he really is. This becomes clear after news of his attempted murder of Rauf (as well as the murder of an innocent man) spread: “Whoever kills me will kill millions. I am hope and :.