THE LAWSUIT by Naguib Mahfouz

Who is the main character or protagonist of the story?
The protagonist of this story is the man being sued by his father's widow. The widow is demanding maintenance from the son because she has apparently become economically challenged since seemingly robbing the son and the rest of his family from their father's inheritance.

Make a quick list of the character's physical, mental, moral, or behavioral traits.Which seem especially significant to the action of the story?
To surmise the protagonist with a few quick adjectives: inquisitive, independent, neutral, reserved, observant, decent, curious, mindful. The traits that are important to the development of the story might be his curiosity, his reserved nature, his being not dependent on his father's inheritance by the quote, "I was the one least affected by the disaster, partly because of my youth and partly because I was the only one in the family who wanted to study..." (77). He maintained a level head and in the end didn't mind helping out the poor widow. He has those traits of a man who has a clear conscience and can think things out in his mind thoroughly.

Does the main character have an antagonist in the story? How do they differ? 
The antagonist of this story is the widow begging for maintenance. She differs tremendously from the protagonist because she is like a parasite; depending on others to sustain herself. The son on the other hand, is a self-focused man who achieved some success through his studies. Seemingly her bad fortune in the end seems to make both the protagonist and her similar by the lawyer saying: "... but she's as much a victim as you are. Even the fortune she made off with brought her to disaster" (79).

Does the way the protagonist speaks reveal anything about his or her personality?
Yes it does. When the son tells his lawyer, "It's as though you know something about her" (79), he is displaying his personality traits of curiosity and inquisitiveness. Throughout the story he plays personal discussions inside his mind that show that he is constantly trying to understand many issues.

If the story is told in the first person, what is revealed about how the protagonist views his or her surroundings?
This story is in fact told in first person. A lot is revealed on how the protagonist views his environment by the narration. Throughout the story the prevailing notion I get is that the protagonist is level-headed and does not readily show his emotions or true feelings about his family's misfortune due to being of a reserved nature. We can infer this conclusion from this quote: "I shared his fears but affected outwardly what I did not feel inwardly" (77).

What is the character's primary motivation? Does this motivation seem reasonable to you?
The son's primary motivation at first is to defy the widow and not help her out in her time of need due to her causing a lot of distress to his family before. He does not want to be taken by a fool. "This woman robbed us and deprived us of our legal rights" (76), he claims. This type of motivation is reasonable to me for the son to be curious to see how the widow has changed and confront her.

Does the protagonist fully understand his or her motivations?
Yes he does. It seems to me, at least. The protagonist is portrayed as a mentally developed character who knows fully well that the widow has cheated his family before. He is appalled at the fact that the widow is throwing a lawsuit at him and is determined not to give her a single cent.

In what ways is the protagonist changed or tested by the events of the story?
The protagonist (the son) has a change of heart at the end of the story. "I forgot what I wanted to say. In fact words failed me, and I felt an inner peace" (80). He was determined not to help out the widow because of the wound she left him and his family. But he was still remembering the young, beautiful image he had of the widow. He thought to himself maybe that with her beauty and persuasion she can get along fine without him. Once he saw the fat, old lady that once was his father's bride he saw all the classic traits of a fragile woman that has suffered terribly at the hands of time. She couldn't rely on her looks anymore and she never knew how to work for her living, so she could only fall back upon the son who sees this and doesn't mind helping her out.