The Shadow of Hermaphroditus - A Short Story by Badriya al-Badri -May 1, 2019 - translated from Arabic by Ghayde Ghraowi

You may read today’s story on The May 2019 Issue of Words Without Borders, focusing on Omani literature

“The Shadow of Hermaphroditus” by Badriya al-Badri is my first venture into Omani literature.  It is told from the point of view of a young person, Saud, appearing to be a woman but who  self-indenfies as male. All of her life her parents have tried to bring out her feminine side.  

The story is set in contemporary Oman.  There are two wars being fought, one is the war of terrorists against the government of Oman.  The other is that of 

Saud with her self:

"No one is able to fathom that the issue is nothing more than a congenital defect, in which I had no hand. All my mother and father’s efforts focused on physical treatments. They searched for the hidden femininity within my small body. Then they had to search for a psychological treatment for what I was suffering—that, or discover my true, concealed body from behind that of a girl. Had they done so, I wouldn’t find myself engaged in a horrific war in which I am the sole combatant—the victor and the vanquished. In reality, I’m always the losing side. I've never felt the pleasure of defeating myself even for a day. My body vanquishes me, tramples me, leaves me lifeless. I consider fleeing from it, replacing it, transforming it, subduing it."

Saud wants a wife but she fears no woman will accept her.  She tells herself she could buy a woman from war torn Yemen who would accept an way of escaping the violence of her homeland.  Still she thinks does she want a mate so desperate that she will accept any way out.  She fears no one will ever accept her.

"Maybe Yemen would be a better choice than India. She’d be an Arab woman, like me, which is already enough. We’d have no difficulty understanding each other. She isn’t likely to be demanding, the war having devastated her. She might well accept any trace of a man to escape a war that has snatched her family from her in the blink of an eye. A shadow of a man is safer than a shadow of a battered wall that may collapse and crush her at any moment. A semblance of a man is better than a bomb that explodes by surprise, blowing her to scattered pieces that can’t be put back together. It’s no matter that we exploit people’s needs to satisfy our own demands. When all is said and done, I’m just one more who doesn’t hesitate to do what he wants, following his own desires. There’s always a perpetrator and there’s always a victim. "

At midpoint we are introduced to Olivia who seems to have some sort of relationship with Saud but may not know her secret."

A terrible incident happens at the close of the story.

Bedriy al-Badri has a deep feel for how wars of terror can impact poor women.

The plotting could perhaps be a triffle better but I for sure recommend reading this story.

If you are interested in reading brand new works of short fiction in translation from lots of places, Words Without Borders is a great source.

Badriyya al-Badri is an Omani poet and novelist. She composes poetry in Classical and colloquial Arabic. She has participated in many local and regional Gulf events and competitions. Her published works include: What’s Behind Loss (2015), The Last Crossing (2017), and The Shadow of Hermaphroditus. She has two poetry collections: Narrow Valley (2018) and Closer to the Waving of a Poem (2019)..  from Words Without Borders

Ol