نشریه نقد ادب معاصر عربی
پیاپی 7 (پاییز و زمستان 1393)

Thought and tale presentation patterns refer to one of the main approaches of modern stylistics which is defined based on the degree of the relation between the narrator and the narrative text. This approach concentrates on the analysis of the narrative by examining the ways the writer textualizes both language and thought. The five presentation patterns discussed in this approach are direct, indirect, free direct, free indirect and narrative report. The reader's familiarity with thought presentation styles of narrative is essential for a deeper understanding of the thoughts expressed by a writer. The present research follows a descriptive analytical approach for the study of "Assabbar" (1976) novel by Sahar Khalifeh. It also presents a complete list of statistical information on the thoughts dealt with in the story. The results of the research reveals that direct thoughts, free direct thoughts, and free indirect thoughts are the most frequent patterns (in the given order) in the novel. Employing these patterns, the writer clearly portrays themes such as people's disagreement over the issues of confrontation with occupation, armed defense vs. political negotiation, unemployment problem, working at Israeli factories for life necessities, multidimensionality of the problem of occupation, hope for the establishment of a fair society with equal rights between Arabs and Jewish people. The narrator continually influences the mind of heroes, and by using an appropriate narrative style, depicts their inner conflicts to the reader, so the addressee has an exact and effective image of the stressful conditions of fight inside the occupied territories of 70s.

The presence of colonization in the countries which are under the authority of foreigners has many consequences for the native people. These effects are gradually reflected in the life of those people as the foreign forces continue the occupation and plunder of their land. Algeria is one of the Arabic countries which had been a colony of France for many years, Colonization has strongly influenced different aspects of Algerian's lives, including social, economical, religious, political, and cultural. Mohammad Dib (1920-2003), who is one of the Algerian contemporary literary figures, has an important role in expressing the facts about the terrible situation of Algerian nation, all of which are related to colonization. In his collection of three stories, which is known as "Solasiah" (triple stories), the writer portrays the actual situation of Algeria during the occupation time.In the first part of the collection named "Al-Kar Al-Kabirah" (The Great Land) (1952), he shows the pre-war Algeria, and also reflects the poverty, ignorance, cultural drawbacks, disasters, and the lack of freedom of speech in those days. After briefly introducing the writer and his works, the present research investigates the social themes and concepts of the story "Al-Dar Al-Kabirah". Then, working within a descriptive analytical framework, the research aims at studying the way the writer reflects such themes and concepts to elaborate on the social facts of that time. Moreover, the writer's success in awakening the public and clarifying that terrible situation is discussed in detail.

The contemporary Egyptian writer, Abd Al-Hamid Judeh Al-Sahar, is amongst the fiction writers who follow a committed approach in contemporary Arabic narrative writing. The short story "Vasvasa-Al-Shaitan'"(Devil Temptation) which is included in his story collection "Hamazat-Al-Shaitan" is one of his most prominent works which reflects his commitment. Following a dramatic pattern, the writer clearly portrays the inherent challenges of a human being in this short story. Working within a descriptive analytical framework, the present research is an attempt to investigate the writer's success in employing contemporary narrative techniques. The findings of this study indicate that the writer has been quiet innovative in establishing a link between form and content. The antihero, who has a good appearance, has the role of hero in the story. This role substitution provokes the reader, and consequently, initiates critical thinking in his/her mind. To achieve this goal, the writer has successfully employed the contemporary narrative techniques like 'spacing' and 'horizon of expectations'. In addition, the writer uses appropriate Quranic intertextual elements to add to the aesthetic value of the work. The significance of this achievement is related to the fact that the writer follows the story telling pattern of Quran in narrating the story of Joseph. Instead of highlighting the immoral scenes, he tries to portray them in the form of a challenge between the two opposite forces: 'nafs-e ammare' (the tempter force) and 'nafs-e lavvameh' (the regretful force) within the atmosphere of the conscience of a human being.

One of the basic features of contemporary Arabic poetry is its extensive interaction with human consciousness which makes it a full-length mirror for many of the new findings specially in the field of humanities. Amongst these new findings, the Sartre's philosophical perspective, which is the one which represents a new look at human being and life, has had a significant influence on literary works from the time it was first proposed. The traces of this influence can be found in Arabic literature, particularly in the works of the contemporary poet, "Khalil Havi". The present research is an attempt to investigate one of his poems, "Al-Bahar va Al-Darwish", in order to analyze the concepts and situations presented in the poem based on the Sartre's existentialistic perspective. Elements such as responsibility, freedom, will power, disappointment, and obedience along with their philosophical sub-categories are the most prominent philosophical concepts that Alhavi discuses in his ode "Al-Bahar va Al-Darwish", while preserving the artistic principles in the work.

A micro story (also known as micro fiction or mini fiction) or a very short story is one of the story genres which has recently attracted contemporary writers. This type of narrative is rooted in minimalism of modern era. Minimalism is an approach which eliminates unnecessary and extra elements and is based on simplicity and brevity. In the present study, the researcher first presents the minimalistic theoretical framework and describes its essential elements, and then, following a descriptive analytical method, tries to analyze those elements in "Altaeh" micro stories by focusing on narrative, literal, and thematic dimensions of the writings. The results of the analysis reveal that "Altaeh" stories are micro stories and follow the principles of minimalism as they are characterized by a limited number of characters, a very short length, a high amount of dialog, and the writer's attempt to employ words, sentences and paragraphs which are as short as possible.

Jamil Sedghi Zahawi, is an Iraqi Kurd poet who isconsidered as one of the prominent figures in the contemporary Arab literary movement. He is known foremost with his philosophical ideas and views. The present research aims to investigate Zahawi's works in order to explore the roots ofexistentialism in his poems, examine his alignment with European existentialist philosophers, and depict those aspects of his works which have been influenced by their existential views. The study begins with a brief introduction to existentialism and its historical background, and then continues with an exploration in Zahawi's works. Working within a descriptive analytical framework, and basing the study on library references, the present research attempts to analyze his poems in order to highlight his influence from existentialist philosophers. The results of the study indicate that Zahawi has been strongly affected by the western existentialism principles. This influence is rooted in the ideas of both atheist and theist groups of existentialist philosophers. His influence from the atheist group, including Sartre, can be observed in his ideas about pre-existence, existence and non-existence, transformation and instability of human existence, death, and literature and commitment. His influence from the theist and faithful group, on the other hand, can be observed in his ideas about fall and excellence of human being, the existence of God, and fate and destiny. It was also found that he follows existentialist principles in his beliefs about the equality of woman to man. Moreover, Zahawi was also found to be interested in Mulla Sadra's existentialist philosophy and his discussions on tashkik al-wujud (uncertainty or hesitation about existence) issue.

As different Arab countries have different sociopolitical conditions, the contemporary Arabic poetry clearly reflects their different perspectives on Imam Hossein and Ashura. This is particularly evident where man is put close to the first century ambience; Ashura shown in various manifestations creates differences in the literature of every nation. Working within a descriptive analytical framework, the present research aims to investigate Ashura poetry in different geographical frames by suggesting a comprehensive review on the poets and their perspectives on Imam Hossein and the event of Ashura. Considering the regional divisions, it also endeavors to clarify the effect of regional differences in dealing with the subject. Given the extent of Arab lands and Arab countries differences in terms of their social and political conditions, three countries of Iraq, Egypt, and Lebanon, as the major centers of Arabic literature have been selected. The results of the study reveal that contemporary Iraqi and Lebanese poets use prominent Ashura concepts and themes to demonstrate contemporary challenges in the Arab world. Their poems are also characterized by explicitness and symbolism. It was also found that the Lebanese poetry displays a heroic and revolutionary look at Ashura event. The Egyptian poetry, on the other hand, was found to have a rather minor and symbolic role in reflecting the current challenging situations.