Messianic and Anti-Messianic Figurations in Mohamed Mbougar Sarr’s The Brotherhood

This paper examines the archetypal construction of a messianic-cum-anti-messianic image in Mohamed Mboughar Sarr’s The Brotherhood. It is a character study of Abdel Karim Konate, the Chief of the Islamic Police, who believes he is the saviour sent by God to bring sinners to salvation, a good shepherd in search of lost sheep. Using Northrop Frye’s theory of archetype, this paper explores the similarities between Abdel and the messiah, as well as his anti-messianic role in the religious conflict between moderate Islam and radical Islam and the implication of his anti-messianic role on the Kalep people at personal and collective levels. I argue that Abdel Karim Konate is an anti-messianic figure insofar as his claim of messiahship is undermined by certain acts that negate the qualities ascribable to the Archetypal Messiah, Christ Jesus.