Naguib Mahfouz's "Al-Karnak" is a powerful novella set in a Cairo café during the politically charged 1970s, after the 1967 Six-Day War. It chronicles the lives of intellectuals, students, and artists who frequent the titular café, which serves as a microcosm of Egyptian society under authoritarian rule. As these characters engage in discussions about art, politics, and philosophy, they gradually find themselves ensnared by the regime's oppressive machinery, facing arbitrary arrests, torture, and betrayal. Mahfouz masterfully portrays the psychological toll of political repression, the erosion of trust, and the desperate quest for truth and dignity amidst pervasive fear, offering a profound commentary on individual freedom versus state power.