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ID: 161092

Arabic poetry and terrorism: the dictator perishes and the poet remains / Athamneh, Waed

Athamneh, Waed	Journal Article
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Summary/Abstract

Abd al-Wahhab al-Bayati is one of the most prominent twentieth-century Arab poets. His poetry makes a drastic shift from politically committed in the 1950s and 1960s to metapoetic in the 1970s onward. In his post-Nasserist works, al-Bayati interrogates the role of poets and the function of their poetry. This article explores some of the main metapoetic themes in al-Bayati's poem “Meditations on the Other Face of Love,” which was published in 1979. The article argues that al-Bayati consciously uses reflexive poetry as a platform to blur the line between poetry and literary criticism and to declare his discontent with the literary scene and the political status quo in the Arab world. The article also examines some of the poetry by Nizar Qabbani and Muzaffar al-Nawab, in relation to that of al-Bayati. These three poets provide a poetic discussion of “terrorism” against the hegemony of political discourse, and demand that Arab citizens reject their undignified lives by adopting resistance and rejecting terrorism.

Key Words

Terrorism ; Arabic Language ; Metapoetry ; Al-Bayati ; Qabbani ; Al-Nawwab

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ID: 112611

Islam and Arabic as the rhetoric of insurgency: the case of the Caucasus Emirate / Knysh, Alexander

Knysh, Alexander	Journal Article
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2012.

Summary/Abstract

Interpretations and uses of Islam are legion today. Some call for improving or preserving the morals and dignity of a certain local Muslim community or of the global Muslim community (umma) in its entirety. Others are eager to demonstrate that Islam is fully compatible and, in fact, conducive to modernity, democratic governance, and technological advancement of humankind. Still others posit Islam as a powerful means of liberation from occupation and domination/exploitation of Muslims around the world by non-Muslim powers. 1 This article addresses one concrete example of how some Muslim insurgents of the Northern Caucasus use Islam to unite the diverse and occasionally mutually hostile ethnic groups of the area in the face of Russian domination with the goal of establishing an independent Islamic state based on the Muslim Divine Law (Sharia). After providing a general overview of the history and ideology of this Islamic/Islamist movement, the article focuses on the ways in which its leadership uses the Internet to disseminate its understanding of Islam and to rally young Muslims round the idea of the trans-ethnic Sharia state that they promise to institute after defeating and expelling "the Russian occupiers" and their local backers. Special attention will be given to the role of Islamic concepts and taxonomies as well as the Arabic language in framing the political grammar of the insurgency movement known as "The Caucasus Emirate.

Key Words

Modernity ; Islamist Movement ; Muslims ; Muslim Community ; Democratic Governance ; Muslim Divine Law ;
Arabic Language ; Islam

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