Isaac's inability to find a permanent home or identity in either Jaffa (with Sonya) or Jerusalem (represented by the fate of Balak).
A "modern" and liberated woman living in Jaffa during the Second Aliyah. She represents the secular, European-influenced lifestyle that challenges the traditional upbringing of the protagonist, Isaac Kumer. Sonya and the dog
The tension between Sonya’s modernity and the ancient weight of Jerusalem, which eventually consumes the protagonist through the literal and metaphorical "madness" of the dog. Isaac's inability to find a permanent home or
The relationship between Sonya and the dog is primarily linked through the protagonist, , as they represent the two distinct worlds he inhabits: Sonya and the dog