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Extract from Maalouf's "Leo The African"

Harun, towards the end of The year of the rebels: "I have killed only murderers, I have robbed only thieves. I gave not ceased to fear God for a moment. I have ceased only to fear the rich and the powerful. Here I am fighting the unbelievers to whom our princes are paying court, I defend the towns which they abandon. My companions in arms are the exiles, outlaws and lawbreakfers from all lands..."

Harun, the protagonist's best friend and brother in law, has all the qualities Hasan wished he had but could not seize. In previous posts, I seem to think that this character is usually the enemy, the ante, the foe. But in Leo the African, the other is on the same side. Perhaps, then, the importance is not in which side the different perspectives support, but in the difference of perspective itself.
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