The Diver, pp. 3-18 Summary

Saufe (Softa) is a young student of the Koran in the town of Shiraz. Softa goes off into the wilderness and collects the feathers of eagles and other birds, and when he returns to Shiraz, he assembles wings with which to fly. The elders of the city become alarmed and decide to send a young woman to Softa in the disguise of an angel. The dancer Thusmu is sent to the young man in order to distract him from his work. Thusmu comes to Softa at night, and tells him that he does not need wings to fly like an angel. She sleeps with him and hides in his house during the day. Finally, Thusmu asks to see Softa's wings, but the wings have been neglected and destroyed by rats. Thusmu goes away sadly to collect her...