The novel portrays the alienation experienced by the protagonist, who embodies Shukri himself, offering thorough descriptions of his loneliness and alienation in the city.
[3] Shukri picked the internal market as the setting of the novel as it is the place of impoverished and marginalized Moroccans during that period.
[3] Critics agree that the novel depicts the state of marginalization experienced by Moroccans during that time period.
The late Spanish poet, Juan Goytsolo, said about Muhammad Shukri that he "looked at the life of his country from the bottom, and saw what those in power do not see or are unable to see."
As for Shukri, he said that his aim in the novel is to portray the ugliness that exists in his life and the lives of others, and in society in general.