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ARA 101 Midterm II Literature ARA 101 Midterm II Literature Adab Original meaning: good manners and behaviour Specialized meaning: literature/various styles of writing prose or verse creatively Arabic literature is generally divided into 7 periods: 1. Pre-Islamic 2. Early Islamic 3. Ummayad 4. Abbasid 5. Muslim Spain 6. Mamluk 7. Modern Arabic The Arabic language is most notable for its regularity – the same/nearly the same pattern of variations is applied to large groups of triconsonantal roots. [uniform families of words] [analogical derivation] Triconsonantal roots : KTB – kataba, kitab, kutubi, etc Rich usage of rhyme and rhythm. Three most important characteristics: Clarity, Eloquence, and Concision Great emphasis on formal perfection makes it among the least translatable languages in the world The birthplace of Arabic literature is in central and north-eastern Arabia. Inhabitants were nomads, who moved about in search of water and sustenance. The religion in pre-Islamic times was polytheistic. Arabian poet The Arabian poet was the chief spokesman of his tribe. He acted as the propagandist, journalist, preacher, entertainer, and political leader of his people. He would defend the rights and honour of his tribe by immortalizing its deeds and defaming its enemies. He performed locally and at famous poetic tournaments [Suq U’kkaz]. The earliest forms of Pre-Islamic poetry may have consisted of fountain songs, war chants, and hymns to idols. Around 5oo A.D., a large number of accomplished poets emerged, reciting qitáhs [short pieces] and qasidahs [long odes – 70-80 half lines]. Each half line [hemistich] in Arabian poetry is equivalent to one line in European poetry. [1/2 A = 1 E] Qasidahs can include incidents from the poets life and tribe, as well as eulogy, satire, and elegy. Rawis: professional reciters/transmitters who would follow the poets and memorize their poems. [singular = rawi] At the root of each meter [wazn] / feet [tafíla] are three strokes/beats that were traditionally used to form eight basic rhythmic units. [3 beats = 8 rhythmic units] By repeating a definite number of identical units or by altering different ones, lines of verses equally divided into half lines are produced within a given meter. There are 16 different metrical schemes. A monorhyme [qafiya] is one rhyming sound in poetry which occurs at the last syllable of each pair of half lines throughout the poem. Saj’ is rhyming in prose. Most of ancient poems were sung. Arabic literature has accumulated over a period of 1400 years after the adoption of the language of the Quran as the fixed standard. Main themes of Arabic literature (6) 1) Eulogy – Madh [praise] 2) Sattire – Hija’[abusive poems] 3) Elegy – Ritha’ [praising the dead] 4) Love poetry – Ghazal 5) Descriptive poetry – Wasf [ex: animals, weather, etc] 6) Self praise/boasting - Fakhr 1) Pre-Islamic Period/Jahiliyya [500 – 622] also known as the Jahiliyya or Age of Darkness/Ignorance [due to the non-Islamic spirit] covers a period of at least two centuries famous for its courageous heroes and deeds [Heroic Age] Four main sources of information during this period 1) Poetry 2) Sermons and epistles [public speeches and letters] 3) Proverbs [amthal] 4) Legends and traditions [folktales, stories, etc] Most of the literature was handed down orally [until the end of the 7th century – beginning of the 8th century] Muaállaqat: hanging poem – winning poem written in golden ink and hung on the walls of the Kaábah for the coming years. All Muállaqat are qasidas, but not all qasidas are Muállaqat. Muállaqat: authors of the famous Golden Odes (7) 1) Imru’al Qays : the wandering king 2) Tarafah : the playboy, loved wine, self-sacrifice, love 3) Zuhayr : the moralist 4) Ántarah : the black knight and Arab hero 5) Labid: the centenarian 6) Ámr bin Kulthum : the regicide 7) al-Harith bin Hillizah : the leper Other poets include an-Nabighah, al-Hutayáh, ash-Shanfara [rebel], and the poetess al-Khansa’ [could not be a mullaqa poet due to social reasons, not enough experience]. The important thing was not what was said, but how it was said. Qasida has three main parts 1) Nasib : love prelude. Can be a true experience or fiction – to attract attention Imru’al Qays was known for his amorous adventures in this section Oh yes, many a fine day I’ve dallied with the white ladies, and especially I call to mind a day at Dara Juljul A’bid bin al-Abras also said my eyes seep sorrow, waterskins with holes 2) Rihla : journey. includes details of the horse/camel and the hard search and travelling, always connected to the nasib – searching for girl etc. Imru’ al Qays mentions my horse short haired, outstripping the wild game, huge-bodied It is in this section that the poem shows its concision through precise words 3) Main theme : poet can devote this to highlighting his own virtues [honour, loyalty, courage, justice, etc], glorifying his tribe, or defaming his enemies. Mostly madh. In the journey section, a female camel or a male horse would be used. Ash-Shanfara was a poet who left his tribe and became a rebel. He mentioned And somewhere the noble find a refuge afar from scathe, the outlaw a lonely spot where no kin with hatred burn Tarafah tried to pursue his own happiness through wine, love, and self-sacrifice Ántarah was a warrior poet and Arab folk hero. He had a black slave mother and was rejected by his father in his youth. He loved his cousin passionately but was forbidden by his uncle to marry her. However, after he displayed his skills on the field of battle fighting for Ábs against Dhubyan, he achieved the status of a pure blooded Arab and was celebrated in the popular Sirat Ántar. 2) Early Islamic Period [622 – 661] Period in which the Prophet Mohammed and the four rightly guided caliphs lived [period lasted over the last 10 years of Prophet’s life] Abu Bakr Umr Ibn-Al Khattab : introduced the Islamic Hijra calendar and the Shurah system [consulting electoral system – 5 leaders appointed to elect a leader if he died] Uthman Ibn Áffan : got 3 votes compared to 2 of Ali’s [although they voted for each other]. Ruled for 12 years and did not employ a Shurah system. Killed while praying before he could decide his successor. ‘Ali Ibn Abi Talib : Mua’wiyah Ibn Abi Sufyan [Uthman’s nephew] disapproved of Ali’s rule as Ali did not avenge Uthman’s murder – reason the Shiites evolved. Prophet discouraged poetry as most of the poets were liars and wrote pieces against Islamic beliefs Hijra happened in 622 from Makkah to Madinah Caliph is an anglicized word - successor Literature then was centred in Madinah, Mecca, Taif, and Najd. Islamic Literature : includes the texts that serve to propagate, teach, and promote an understanding of the message of Islam. (6) 1) Quran 2) Hadith 3) Poetry of the Early Islamic period – praised, supported, and encouraged Muslim beliefs and practices 4) Tafsir : explanation of the Quran 5) Sirah : biography of Prophet Muhammed 6) Fiqh : Islamic jurisprudence The Quran was revealed and then writers started to produce the beginnings of Islamic literature. The Quran was inimitable in its style and content, but its ideas, language, and rhythms had an influence on the development of Arabic literature. Arabs had conquered the Sassanian empire, Syria, Egypt, North Africa, and most of southern Spain. During this age, political poetry and love lyrics were most evident. Quranic disciplines include: Lexicography, biography, theology, philology, and law. Famous Islamic poets for the theme of Madh [praise] for the Prophet and the Quran Hasan bin Thabit : spokesman of the Prophet Ka’b bin Zuhayr : was an enemy of the Prophet then converted and asked for forgiveness through reading a poem [Suad has departed] to the Prophet. Muhammed then gave him his Burda as a gift. [his father – Zuhayr was a mullaqat poet, but not one himself] Mukhadramun were the poets who witnessed two periods [Jahiliyya and Early Islamic] – were pagan poets who later converted to Islam. Hasan bin Thabit, Ka’b bin Zuhayr, Al Khansa [famous poetess of Pre-Islamic period] 3) Ummayad Period [661 – 750] Umayyad dynasty was started by Muáwiya Ibn Abi Sufyan he was the governor of Syria during the rule of Caliph Úmar Ibn al-Khattab became the 5th Caliph of Islam [after Ali’s death in 661] but he was not rightly guided shifted Islamic power from Madinah to Damascus [Syria] Mua’waiya appointed his son Yazid as his successor [therefore, caliphate turned into a hereditary system] Life began to change in the early Islamic and Umayyad period from the nomadic lifestyle to a more sophisticated urban lifestyle. Literature flourished in Syria, Arabia, Iraq, and wherever Islam spread to in the first half of the 8th century [from India to Morocco] One of the greatest supporters of literature in this era was by Caliph Abdul Malik Ibn Marwan Wealth increased, and so music and dancing became associated with poetry. Women would sing poetry in the Greek and Persian ways of that time. Difference between Pre-Islamic and Ummayad poetry: In the Umayyad period, poetry became simplified, with shorter and freer meters being used in order to adapt to music. More conversational language was used with the Umayyads. Kitab al Aghani was created as music and poetry became inseparable. Naqaíd: poetical slanders - situation whereby rival poets exchange verbal attacks in their poetry. Three most famous political Iraqi poets who used naqai’d : 1) Al Akhtal : Christian Arab from the Taghlib tribe, supporter of the Ummayads [especially Caliph Ábd al-Malik bin Marwan – dedicated a famous poem to him] 2) Jarir : belonged to a branch of al-Farazdaq’s tribe [Bani Kulayb] therefore they were rivals, court poet of al-Hajjaj [Ummayad governor of Iraq].
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