The plot of the short story is explicitly set in ancient Egypt, in a reign of an unspecified king Ramses, most likely modelled on the figure of Ramesses II. The old king is portrayed as a ruthless tyrant who does not hesitate to sentence his own daughter Zefora to be buried among slaves just because she was kind to them. This is in stark contrast to his grandson and intended successor Horus, who is presented as an educated and compassionate young man, eager to reform his country and reluctant to follow in his grandfather’s footsteps. In both cases the portrayal of the Egyptian king is deeply rooted in orientalism: the pharaoh is depicted as an indisputable ruler and supreme judge who does whatever he pleases (whether it is good or evil). It has been long observed that the story was inspired by the fates of the German emperors Wilhelm I and Friedrich III. Among other sources of inspiration we may enumerate the biblical account of the Exodus reflected in the overall portrayal of the old king as a hard-hearted tyrant and in the figures of Jetron and Zefora, the teacher and mother of Horus, respectively, whose names recall those of the father-in-law and wife of Moses.

Author: Filip Taterka