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Writing and Reading Contemporary Arab American Women's Literature

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Writing and Reading Contemporary Arab American Women's Literature The Politics of Legibility: Writing and Reading Contemporary Arab American Women’s Literature by Dana M. Olwan A thesis submitted to the Department of English In conformity with the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Queen’s University Kingston, Ontario, Canada (September, 2009) Copyright © Dana M. Olwan, 2009 Abstract This dissertation focuses on contemporary literature produced by Arab American women authors. My study utilizes the works of Diana Abu-Jaber, Mohja Kahf, Suheir Hammad, Naomi Shihab Nye, and Laila Halaby, to raise questions about the processes, methods, and practices of writing, publishing, and reading Arab American women’s literature. Influenced by developments in contemporary Arab American studies, postcolonial, and reception theories, this dissertation examines, from an interdisciplinary perspective, novels, poetry, prose, and online articles that these authors produced in the aftermath of the First Gulf War until today (1993-2007). A study of this literature, I argue, facilitates a more comprehensive understanding of the history of Arab American literature, its recent trends, and possible futures. Chapter Two focuses on the work of Diana Abu-Jaber, one of the most important Arab American women authors today. Tracing literary developments, shifts, and alterations in the author’s work, I argue that Abu-Jaber uses her writing to humanize Arab Americans for her predominantly western audiences. Focusing on what I see as shifts in the author’s political commitments and ideals, I analyze her large body of works in order to understand how they are influenced by the western publication industry, marketing strategies, reader demand, and literary fame. Chapter Three deals explicitly with the works of Mohja Kahf as I examine the author’s attempt to reconfigure Islam’s negative status in the United States by defying the politics of literary representation and challenging the restrictive cultural, racial, and religious boundaries of the Muslim ummah or community. I argue that the author’s work ii challenges both the mythologies of representations surrounding the figure of the Muslim woman in the West and the gendered and sometimes exclusionary parameters of the Muslim ummah in the United States. In Chapter Four, I shift my focus to the writings of Naomi Shihab Nye, Suheir Hammad, and Laila Halaby. I examine how these authors negotiate the national trauma of September 11, 2001 and state of emergency ensuing in the wake of the attacks. I assess how these authors render legible Arab American and Muslim American encounters of 9/11 and its aftermath. iii Acknowledgements I am indebted to so many people for my completion of this dissertation project. To my supervisors, Professors Christopher Bongie and Rosemary Jolly, I am forever thankful. Professor Bongie’s constant support and unwavering commitment has made me a better scholar and thinker. Professor Jolly’s encouragement in the early and later stages of this dissertation pushed me in helpful and important directions. I am so very thankful to my external examiner, Professor Gillian Whitlock, whose insights were invaluable. I am grateful also for Professors Maggie Berg, Dorit Naaman, Margaret Aziza Pappano, and Ariel Salzmann who served on my examining committee and posed many interesting and engaging questions. I owe a great, big thanks to Kathy Goodfriend who mailed me my admission papers to Jordan and was my first contact with the Department of English at Queen’s six years ago. Her patience in printing, year after year, my verification of enrolment letters will never be forgotten. The support I have received from all members of my home department, the Department of Women’s Studies of Queen’s University, has made the lonely writing process appear less so. I am so thankful for their constant support of both my intellectual and political endeavors. Many thanks to Professor Bev Baines, my Department Head, who always watches over me. Professors Janice Helland’s, Margaret Little’s, and Katherine McKittrick’s advice and encouragement got me through many tough days. Terrie Easter Sheen and Autmn Rymal make the Department of Women’s Studies the great and hospitable place that it truly is. I am thankful to all my students who make me a iv better thinker, teacher, and human being. Our intelligent and challenging classroom conversations and engagements are always with me and inspire many pages in this work. This dissertation would never have been completed without the great friendships and amazing communities of support and solidarity I have been fortunate to have in Canada. To Breanne Oryschak, I owe much love, happiness, and laughter. Kingston would never have been the same without you and your unwavering friendship is one I will forever count on. I am thankful to Carla Taunton for her amazing heart and constant support. To Vee Blackbourn, I owe many engaging conversations and delicious meals. Without the friendship of Jennifer Esmail, I would likely not have been able to survive my first winter in Canada. Raji Singh Soni’s unflinching support has gotten me through many difficult times. To Emilie Cameron, I owe the title of this dissertation and many great discussions on political activism and solidarity. Mohamed Abdo has given me so much care and love and I am thankful for his friendship. Andrew Stevens made my writing days less difficult. Toby Moorsom’s constant encouragement and support have made the completion of this project a reality. From him, I have learned so much. To members of Solidarity for Palestinian Human Rights, both past and present, you have made Kingston a home for me and taught me so much about working with others. Each one of you embodies the ideals of political activism and humanitarian concern I wish to emulate. Solidarity for Palestinian Human Rights was my first community in Kingston and it is the one place to which I know I can always return. Without Saleem Haddad, Yazan Al Saadi, Eliane Mazzawi, Nastaran Roushan, Jamie Whelan, and Dalia Abdullah my first two years in Kingston would have been unbearable. And without Laith v Marouf, who pushed me to take firmer and firmer stands on injustice and occupation, I would be politically bereft. To Christine M. Abbott, who has supported me since my undergraduate days in Pittsburgh, I am thankful for the love, friendship, and intellectual commitment. Finally, I am thankful to each and every member of my family. To Rami, Rana, Mohamed, and Omar, without you my life would be meaningless. To my nephew, Omar Chaaban, I am thankful for being reminded of the little joys and laughter a pair of glasses can bring a three year old. To my mother and father, I am thankful for the constant love. To my father, my model for ethics, justice, and scholarship, I owe everything. vi Table of Contents Abstract ii Acknowledgements iv Table of Contents vii List of Figures viii Chapter 1. Introduction: Contextualizing Arab American Women’s Literature 1 Chapter 2. The Politics of the Machine: Diana Abu-Jaber and the Limits of Liberal 25 Representations of Arabness Chapter 3. The Politics of Racializing Islam: Mohja Kahf 101 and the Reconstituting of the Muslim Ummah Chapter 4. The Politics of Writing 9/11: Mapping Arab American Literary Responses 179 Conclusion 243 Works Cited 251 vii List of Figures Figure 1. Cover of the Penguin edition of Nisanit (p. 9). Figure 2. Cartoon by Catherine Beaunez (p. 151). Figure 3. Suheir Hammad performing “First Writing Since” on September 21, 2001 (p. 193). Figure 4. Poet and Audience at an event for the DEF Jam Poetry Collective (p. 194). viii Chapter 1 Introduction: Contextualizing Arab American Women’s Literature In 2007, the Radius of Arab American Writers (RAWI)1 issued a call for a conference entitled, “Writing While Arab: Politics, Hyphens, and Homelands.” The conference, comprised of Arab American writers, bloggers, performance artists, and academics who study their works, sought to address the challenges facing Arab American writers in the post 9/11 climate. Held in Detroit, Michigan, one of the largest Arab communities in North America and home to the Arab American National Museum, conference organizers solicited papers that examined the relationship between national and international politics and contemporary Arab American literature. Panelists were asked to address, among other things, two central questions in their submissions: “Are some Arab American writers benefiting from self-commodification and perpetuating Arab stereotypes? What kinds of narratives receive wide circulation and which do not?” The conference aimed to develop a theoretical understanding of the political, economic, and social factors guiding the rising interest in Arab American literature after the September 11, 2001 attacks. While a focus on gender was not directly stated, panel presentations predominantly 1 The Radius of Arab American Writers was developed largely out of the perceived need for Arab American writers to connect with one another. Frustrated with American media’s coverage of the Gulf War, Arab American writers discussed how they could use their craft to support one another’s literary careers. Mohja Kahf was among the first writers to join the collective in the early1990s and is credited with the naming of the group. Interestingly, the acronym RAWI also denotes storyteller in the Arabic language. Today, the organization represents more than 250 established and aspiring Arab American artists, providing professional and literary resources for its members. See “About Us” at http://rawi.org/CMS/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=27&Itemid=51 1 examined the works of Arab women writers and discussed their rise in literary fame and recognition. A salient feature in the discussion was an implicit understanding of the connection between the writing of Arab American literature and the political environment in which this literature is written, published, and consumed. Influenced by developments in contemporary postcolonial and reception theories, and ethnic studies, the conference generated fruitful discussions about the history of Arab American literature, its recent trends, and possible futures.
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