Copyright by Holly Renee Brining 2016 The Dissertation Committee for Holly Renee Brining Certifies that this is the approved version of the following dissertation: Spouses, Lovers, and Other Strangers: Men, Women, and Relationships in the Works of Rafik Schami Committee: Kirsten Belgum, Supervisor Kirkland Fulk Barbara Harlow Peter Hess Sandra Straubhaar Spouses, Lovers, and Other Strangers: Men, Women, and Relationships in the Works of Rafik Schami by Holly Renee Brining, B.S., M.A. Dissertation Presented to the Faculty of the Graduate School of The University of Texas at Austin in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy The University of Texas at Austin May 2016 Dedication For my parents, Robert and M. Judith Brining, my grandparents, Arthur and Doris Hancock, and my husband, Scott Stuhlmann. Spouses, Lovers, and Other Strangers: Men, Women, and Relationships in the Works of Rafik Schami Holly Renee Brining, Ph.D. The University of Texas at Austin, 2016 Supervisor: Kirsten Belgum Syrian-German author Rafik Schami has a literary career spanning approximately thirty years. Although his native Syria often forms the backdrop for his stories, Schami’s intended audience is clearly German-speaking because he composes his works in German. As most of the discourse on minority literature in Germany focuses on Turkish- German literature, an examination of Schami’s texts would offer another perspective on this phenomenon. This dissertation project focuses on several novels from Rafik Schami, including Reise zwischen Nacht und Morgen, Die dunkle Seite der Liebe, Die Sehnsucht der Schwalbe, and Das Geheimnis des Kalligraphen, all of which thematize various types of interpersonal relationships, including familial and romantic. With few exceptions, men and women inhabit different worlds, and this complicates their ability to maintain a connection to one another. The world of women is frequently depicted as exotic or secretive, whereas the world of men is one of brutality. This separation of men and women is imposed by political and cultural means. In his characterization of the v relationships between men and women, the author draws attention to their respective situations and criticizes the forces that draw them apart. Most of the scholarship on Rafik Schami’s texts has focused upon intercultural communication, migration, and exoticism. Very little attention has been paid to issues of gender, although relationships and differences between men and women inhabit a significant portion of his novels. This project employs a close reading of thematic as well as structural elements in order to examine the respective worlds of men and women and the author’s critique of the factors which led to this division. The project will also examine the reception of the author’s works in order to characterize their position within contemporary German literature. vi Table of Contents Introduction ..............................................................................................................1 Arab-German Authors and Literary Production .............................................2 Schami’s Use of Exoticism .............................................................................8 Schami’s Multiculturalism ............................................................................14 Schami: Exile and Migration ........................................................................26 Syrian History in Schami’s Novels ...............................................................30 Postcolonial Theory and Gender ...................................................................44 Methodology .................................................................................................57 Genesis of the Project ...................................................................................57 Organization of Dissertation .........................................................................60 Chapter One: Beyond the Storyteller: Evolution of an Author..............................64 Introduction ...................................................................................................64 Damascene Beginnings .................................................................................65 Flight to Germany and Linguistic Challenges ..............................................75 Gaining Recognition .....................................................................................78 Challenging A Reading And Labels .............................................................96 Conclusion ..................................................................................................108 Chapter Two: Under the Influence: Men and their female mentors ....................113 Introduction .................................................................................................113 Memories of Personal Development ...........................................................114 The Function of Female Mentors ................................................................124 The Women .................................................................................................128 Protection from Abuse ................................................................................130 The Power of Inspiration ............................................................................138 vii Healing ........................................................................................................143 Education and Initiation ..............................................................................148 Conclusion ..................................................................................................158 Chapter Three: Fluid Identities: Changes in name, religion, and location ..........163 Schami and His chameleons .......................................................................163 Intersections of Family, Religion, and Politics ...........................................166 Metamorphoses Within Schami’s Novels ...................................................170 Love, Syrian Style .......................................................................................171 The Empowering and Repressive Potential of Identity ..............................191 Conclusion ..................................................................................................205 Chapter Four: Room for a Secret: Secrecy and space ..........................................211 Introduction .................................................................................................211 Secrecy: Theoretical Considerations ...........................................................213 Secrecy and Schami’s Syria ........................................................................222 Secret Romances .........................................................................................228 Crossing Religious and Marital Boundaries ...............................................230 Homosexuality and Secrecy ........................................................................234 A Brother/Sisterhood of Secrets .................................................................238 Women and Men in Crisis ..........................................................................243 Conclusion ..................................................................................................249 Chapter Five: Creativity and its Consequences: The Experience and Purpose of Writing ........................................................................................................254 Introduction .................................................................................................254 Theoretical Considerations .........................................................................256 Creativity and Writing in Schami’s Novels ................................................264 Nura’s Confidante: Writing as Refuge and Discovery ...............................267 Text Within Text: The Form and Function of Nura’s Diary ......................272 Love Story: The Text as Inspiration ...........................................................276 Writing the Past: Promise of a Better Future ..............................................281 viii Misused Talent: The Calligrapher’s Blunder ..............................................284 The Price of Mistakes: Hamid Faces the Consequences ............................286 Conclusion ..................................................................................................289 Conclusion ...........................................................................................................294 Coda ……...…….……………………………………………………………….302 Bibliography ........................................................................................................308 ix Introduction Minority literature produced in Germany raises two interesting issues. First, it poses problems in terms of classification. How should these works be categorized? Do they belong in the canon? Should the idea of a national canon be completely discarded in light of such literary productions? The heritage of the author, the subject matter, and language of the texts problematize categorization efforts. The second issue has to do with Western understanding of the East.1 Much of the minority literature is produced by authors from a non-Western cultural system for a readership that may or may not share that same background. In other words,