Marxist Utopia and Political Idealism in the Poetry of Pablo Neruda and Faiz Ahmad Faiz: a Comparative Study
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
MARXIST UTOPIA AND POLITICAL IDEALISM IN THE POETRY OF PABLO NERUDA AND FAIZ AHMAD FAIZ: A COMPARATIVE STUDY By Supervisor Mazhar Hayat Dr. Muhammad Safeer Awan 40-FLL/PHDENG/F09 Assistant Professor DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH FACULTY OF LANGUAGES AND LITERATURE INTERNATIONAL ISLAMIC UNIVERSITY ISLAMABAD 2014 i Marxist Utopia and Political Idealism in the Poetry of Pablo Neruda and Faiz Ahmad Faiz: A Comparative Study By Supervisor Mazhar Hayat Dr. Muhammad Safeer Awan 40-FLL/PHDENG/F09 Assistant Professor A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF PhD in English To DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH FACULTY OF LANGUAGES AND LITERATURE INTERNATIONAL ISLAMIC UNIVERSITY ISLAMABAD 2014 ii Dedication To my Beloved Wife and Children Without whose unflinching support it would have been impossible for me to accomplish my research iii Acceptance by the Viva Voce Committee Title of the thesis: Marxist Utopia and Political Idealism in the Poetry of Pablo Neruda and Faiz Ahmad Faiz: A Comparative Study Name of student: Mazhar Hayat Registration No: 40-FLL/PHDENG/F09 Accepted by the Department of English, Faculty of Languages & Literature, International Islamic University, Islamabad, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Doctoral degree in English with specialization in Literature. Viva Voce Committee ___________________________ Prof. Dr. Munawar Iqbal Ahmad Dean Faculty of Languages & Literature ___________________________ Prof. Dr. Munawar Iqbal Ahmad Chairman Department of English ___________________________ External Examiner Prof. Dr. Muhammad Shahbaz Arif ___________________________ External Examiner Prof. Dr. Waseema Shehzad ___________________________ Dr. Muhammad Safeer Awan Supervisor January, 2014 iv ABSTRACT Title: Marxist Utopia and Political Idealism in the Poetry of Pablo Neruda and Faiz Ahmad Faiz: A Comparative Study Comparative literature in its pure, classical form has been on a steady decline since the rise of postcolonial studies that challenged its Eurocentricity and universalist claims. Contrary to the formalistic approach of the European comparatists, postcolonial comparative literary studies focus upon the nexus between aesthetics and politics contributing to the growing multiple perspective approach in the comparative studies field. Pablo Neruda and Faiz Ahmad Faiz are the two eminent, socially-committed, poets of the post-imperial age who have committed their art to lend intellectual authority to the political struggle of the forces of resistance against hegemonic orders to effect socio- political change and to create an exploitation-free world order. The two poets have projected their Marxist futuristic vision and political ideals in the wake of bourgeois hegemony in their respective postcolonial societies. These responses are deeply embedded in the specific philosophical, cultural, religious and literary traditions of their societies. The comparative study of Marxist utopia and political idealism in the poetry of Neruda and Faiz examines similarities of counter-hegemonic content and form – a logical outcome of shared political and historical conditions of their societies and specificities arising out of the influence of particular frames of reference in which the works of the two poets are produced. The theoretical framework of the study is Marxist literary theory which affirms political and neo-historicist readings of literature. I have also benefitted from certain aspects of postcolonial theory since it complements Marxist perspective on imperialism, nationalism, history and culture and ascribes to the politics of resistance. Research questions are based upon the basic tenets of literary Marxism which also evaluate the significance of Neruda and Faiz’s poetry in this age of corporate globalisation. Keeping in view the vast oeuvre of the two poets and the limitations of research in terms of time and space, I have delimited my study to the textual analysis of Neruda’s celebrated political work Canto General (General Song) translated into English by Jack Schmitt and the thematically and formally significant poems of Faiz translated into English by Victor Kiernan in Poems by Faiz and Daud Kamal and Khalid Hasan’s O City of Lights. The comparative study endorses the thesis statement highlighting ideological and formal similarities and specificities as the ideological commitments of the two poets are contextualised in their cultural backgrounds. v DECLARATION I, Mazhar Hayat Son of Bahadar Khan Registration No.40-FLL/PHDENG/F09 Discipline English, PhD scholar at International Islamic University, Islamabad do hereby declare that the thesis “Marxist Utopia and Political Idealism in the Poetry of Pablo Neruda and Faiz Ahmad Faiz: A Comparative Study” submitted by me in partial fulfilment of PhD Degree, is my original work, and has not been submitted or published earlier. I also solemnly declare that it shall not in future, be submitted by me for obtaining any other degree from this or any other university or institution. I also understand that if evidence of plagiarism is found in my thesis at any stage, even after the award of the degree, the work may be cancelled and the degree revoked. ____________________ Signatures of Deponent Dated: January, 2014 MAZHAR HAYAT vi ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS All praise be to Allah Who blessed me with health and energy to carry out my research work. I owe the debt of gratitude to my parents whose love and extraordinary vision brought me into the realm of light and knowledge. I am deeply indebted to my honourable teachers Dr. Naseem Akhtar Raja, Dr. Ayaz Afsar, Dr. Muhammad Safeer Awan, and Dr. Fauzia Janjua whose knowledge and sympathy during my coursework at International Islamic University Islamabad (IIUI) provided me the required intellectual impetus to step into the demanding realm of academic research. My deep and eternal sense of gratitude for my supervisor Dr. Muhammad Safeer Awan who imparted to me not only his vast understanding of this subject but also helped me develop the basics of a fluent, coherent and well-knit write-up, leaving a lasting impression on me with his outstanding teaching strategies and research insights. I am also indebted to Prof. Dr. Munawar Iqbal Ahmad Gondal, Dean, FLL and Chairman, Department of English, for his kind patronage. Gratitude is also due to my colleagues at the department of English Literature, Govt. College University, Faisalabad. My fellowship with Muhammad Saleem Dogar has been a constant source of inspiration and fun. I am also thankful to my student and colleague Ms. Saira Akhtar, Lecturer in English, Govt. College University, Faisalabad for extending cooperation in helping me in searching material from various sources and in typing my thesis. Mazhar Hayat vii TABLE OF CONTENTS Title Page No Acceptance by the Viva Voce Committee iv Abstract v Declaration vi Acknowledgements vii Table of Contents viii Chapter 1 INTRODUCTION 1 1.1 General Background of the Study 1 1.2 Thesis Statement 17 1.3 Research Questions 17 1.4 Critical Framework and Research Method 18 1.5 Significance of the Comparative Study 23 1.6 Delimitation of the Study 26 Chapter 2 LITERATURE REVIEW 30 2.1 Review of Literature on Comparative Studies 30 2.1.1 The Aims of Comparative Literature 31 2.1.2 European and American Comparative Models 32 2.1.3 Postcolonial Comparative Approach 34 2.1.4 Comparative Literature and the Multiple Perspectives 35 2.1.5 Comparative Literature and Multiculturalism 36 2.1.6 Cultural Significance of Translation Studies 40 2.1.7 Comparativism and the Tension between the Local and the Universal 40 Elements in Literature 2.2 Pablo Neruda’s Poetry 42 2.2.1 Latin American Culture and the Literary Tradition of Socially- 43 Committed Literature 2.2.2 Disputation over the Political Role of Literature 49 2.2.3 Transformation of Neruda from a Romanticist to a Marxist 50 2.2.3.1 Pablo Neruda in Temuco – Detestation for Oppression 50 2.2.3.2 Santiago Experience – A Period of Ambivalence 52 2.2.3.3 Spanish Experience – A Turning Point 55 2.2.3.4 New Intellectual Orientation 57 2.2.3.5 Controversy Regarding Isla Negra 58 2.2.4 Canto General (General Song) 59 2.2.4.1 Circumstantial Political Poems of Neruda 60 2.2.4.2 Socio-political and Historical Context of Canto General and the Theme 62 of Betrayal 2.2.4.3 The Poetics of Prophesy in Canto General 63 2.2.4.4 Neruda – A Programmatic Optimist or a Poet of Multiple Identities 67 2.2.4.5 The Critique of Global Capitalism in Canto General 68 viii 2.2.4.6 Harmony between Natural and Social Praxis in Canto General 70 2.2.4.7 Historical Account of the Adamic Tradition in Canto General 73 2.2.4.8 Structural and Thematic Significance of the Epic Pattern of Canto 77 General 2.2.4.9 Political Significance of Erotic (Romantic) Imagery in Canto General 78 2.2.4.10 Repudiation of Canonised Linguistic Practices in Canto General 79 2.2.4.11 Ekphrastic Experience in Canto General 81 2.2.4.12 Future and Past Utopias in Canto General: A Dream or Praxis 83 2.3 Poetry of Faiz Ahmad Faiz 86 2.3.1 Ideological and Intellectual Development of Faiz in Pre-partition 86 British India 2.3.2 Progressives’ Pro-British Stance in Second World War – A 90 Contradiction or Necessity 2.3.3 Faiz’s Ideological and Artistic Stance in Post-Independence Era 91 (Pakistan) 2.3.4 Faiz’s Perspective on Politics, Culture and the Role of the Artist 96 2.3.4.1 Bourgeois Politics and its Impact on the Indigenous Cultures 96 2.3.4.2 Faiz’s Vision of Literature and the Artist 100 2.3.5 Marxism of Faiz 105 2.3.5.1 Faiz’s Scientific