Fear and horror

The author uses this theme to cultivate a similar mood to that of the original version of Frankenstein written by Mary Shelley, and to highlight the environment of terror and confusion reigning in Baghdad during the post-Hussein years. Hadi's creation, the Whatsitsname, serves as the primary symbol of the terror and chaos, though in reality most of the violence was perpetrated by warring religious sects jockeying for power (and to some extent by the occupying American troops). In order to survive, the Whatsitsname must kill others and harvest their body parts. These murders, along with a host of other crimes he had nothing to do with, throw the city of Baghdad into further turmoil. Ordinary people are terrified of the dangerous criminal on the loose, and Brigadier Majid becomes obsessed with capturing him.

Saadawi's descriptions of the gruesomeness and gore develop this theme effectively...