Hi Rame2000sat,
These are just my two cents. Feel free to toss them. I'd summarize the story in present tense, if I were you.
Cheers.
The Answer Is No
Naguib Mahfouz
Naguib Mahfouz made the reader understand the suffering of the (use of article) women in our society. He tried to show us the tragic position that the young girl had (girl didn't have a position; she was in a position) in the short story "The Answer Is No". Also he succeeded in analyzing the psychology of the young girl, and how she could overcome the trap that the man put her in. The short story is entitled "The Answer Is No" because the young girl revolted against the male-dominated society, her weakness, and also to the future love and the past (awk) that she had by saying "NO".
When she was raped, she didn't understand what had happened to her, and she was shocked and every inch of her body was trembling. In fact, it was as if her whole body screamed "No". We can figure out from what Maguib Mahfouz wrote," How, then, had it happened? Without love or desire on her part the thing had happened. She had asked in terror about what had occurred." In fact, the word "No" grew up with the young girl from the beginning when the man raped her.
In the short story "The Answer Is No" there were two choices that the young girl had to choose from. The two choices that she had in the end were miserable and sad. Naguib Mahfouz wrote "she had either to accept marriage, or close the door for ever", which means either to live with a man who abused her innocence, took her virginity, and tried always (wrong place to put the word) to build a wall around her, or to accept to live alone without love. With very few choices left, she was able to say "No" and reject the man who destroyed her life.
The word "No" related to the events that had happened to the young girl with male-dominated society (awk) too. The reader from the beginning sympathizes with the young girl in the story. The man made (doesn't go with hostage) the young girl hostage to him (redun.) when he raped her. Badran Badrawi said, "Don't be frightened or sad. Keep it to yourself and I'll come and propose to you the day you come of age", which means he put her in his prison and only he has (tense consistency) the key to open the door for her. The rapist kept his promise and came back to ask for her hand. Did he come back because he feels regret or is (tense consistency) there some other reasons? He was an old, ugly (ugly old sounds better) man, but she was a young and beautiful, and her family was rich which means it's (tense) likely that he came back because of his evil thought (be specific), which means that he didn't come back because his conscience bothered him. He came to get the beautiful young rich girl, but he was shocked when she said "No" to him. He said, "How can you refuse? Don't you realize the outcome?" In short, the male-dominated society was the main point that the writer would like to make the reader understand it (redundant and awk.).
Naguib Mahfouz sent a message through the story "The Answer Is No" to the women in our society that they shouldn't give in to their weakness . For example, even though the young girl was weak, she said "No". The narrator said, "Just as she had hated his strength, so too did she hate her own weakness." From here we can understand that the young girl stands (tense) up to the man with what few choices are left her. In short, the writer's massage (sp) was "No" to weakness.
In conclusion, the young girl revolted against the male -dominated society, her own weakness, also future love and the past. The women in our society must struggle to get their rights; they shouldn't wait for help from the others.