Because the Seigneur was a customary, devout Muslim, everyone expected him to write a will on paper. “We thought he [the solicitor] was going to his safe to put back the tape that the devil must have left there to tempt him, and would produce a sensible old envelope sealed in the traditional manner and according to Koranic custom.” (Chraibi, 69) The shock of hearing the Seigneur’s voice focused everyone on all of his words, and even prompted responses by family members. Many characters changed after hearing the will, including the Seigneur’s sons and wife. The feelings of the people who witnessed the reading of the will by the Seigneur were those of awe and admiration.
Nagib, one of Driss’ brothers has one of the most radical reactions to hearing the Seigneur’s voice and the reading of the will. Nagib is a very violent person who uses force rather than reason to attain his desired goal. “Nagib looked at him for a long moment as if he were a sewer rat. Then he let him drop. ‘Pay by the month, at the end of the month.’” (Chraibi, 56) Nagib is a very imposing person, but when even hearing the Seigneur’s voice, Nagib turns into a child seeking his father’s approval. “‘God bless you, Haj, and may your soul rest in peace. What should I have done without you?’ ‘Nothing,’ declared Nagib.” (Chraibi, 70) Nagib shows his reverence for the Seigneur and shows how much love he has for the man. While the Seigneur is speaking, Nagib becomes relaxed and politely asks the solicitor to sit in his seat; Nagib attempts to do nothing that would make the Seigneur think less of him while in his presence, but he still acts aggressively when he feels that it would help his family. Upon the peaceful request of the Seigneur, Nagib harshly forces everyone out of the room where the reading of the will was taking place. “And Nagib calmly sat down and watched the tape turning. And I, who knew him well, realized that he was unable to master his pain.” (Chraibi, 72) Even through all of his aggression, Driss could see that Nagib was emotionally touched when hearing his father for the last time. The effect of hearing the Seigneur again caused Nagib to calm and instead of trying to be the dominant figure in the meeting, he would try to listen and understand the Seigneur’s message. During Nagib’s part of the will, the Seigneur tells him of his greatest fault, which is when he encounters a difficult situation; he solves it without empathy or compromise, but uses force. The Seigneur tells him to restrain himself, and only use force when law has broken down and the head of the household, Madini, requests his help. Rather than fight his father, as he would do to most people, Nagib accepts his father’s advice and the decisions that he made regarding his future. Nagib greatly changes as a person and becomes a much more peaceful man than he had been in the beginning of the book. The effect of hearing the Seigneur’s voice had a great impression on Nagib, and although Nagib did not fully understand the Seigneur’s message to him, Nagib sat and listened with the hope that he would meet his father’s approval.
The greatest effect of the Seigneur’s will did not come in the form of his voice played on the tape recorder talking to Driss, but through his silence. As each of his siblings exited the room, Driss wondered what his father would have to say to him. As his father began speaking, Driss watched the reactions of his family members, but when he heard the tape, he recognized the Seigneur’s voice. “That was a voice I knew. I would have known it among the dead, from among the burial-places of civilization.” (Chraibi, 70) Driss has a connection with his father, even though he has been in France for many years, he is able to recognize his father, and gives the voice on the recorder the utmost effect. As each of his family members receive their inheritance and happily leave the room because of what they have received from the Seigneur, Driss becomes increasingly nervous. “The silence weighed heavily upon us, and I could feel Camel’s hand tightening on mine. He had short, stubby fingers, like bars.” (Chraibi, 82) Driss and Camel are anxious to see what they will receive from the will, but for different reasons. Camel, the materialist, wants money, which he receives, but Driss, an intellectual, wishes to receive understanding. By the end of the reading, the Seigneur has stayed silent regarding Driss, which leaves a very unfavorable feeling that Driss would like to repair. The personal messages by the Seigneur had an effect of giving closure to his family members that are included in his will, but Driss did not receive closure after his father’s death. The most powerful effect of hearing the Seigneur’s voice was applied on Driss after hearing the Seigneur’s voice address his family members, but only hearing silence when the Seigneur should have addressed him. The effects of hearing the Seigneur’s voice, but feeling only rejection, caused Driss to spend the rest of the book in a pursuit to understand the message that the Seigneur was trying to allow Driss to discover on his own, showing that the greatest effect of the Seigneur’s voice in the will was indeed used on Driss.
The effects of Haj Ferdi’s, or the Seigneur’s, voice upon his family members was great. He left a lasting impression on his family members along with his last wishes that he requested that they carry out. The calm and commanding tone of his voice could relieve the family of sorrow only ten days after his death, and convince them to put aside any bickering about personal matters. He helped them see the value in each other, and was able to fit what they received from the will to their personalities. Even death could not stop him from affecting the people closest to him, and offering advice that would stay with them for a long time after his death.
Works Cited
Chraibi, Driss. Heirs to the Past. Trans. Lee Ortzen. London: Heinemann Books, 1972.
