The English Pen Online World Atlas

Palestine

Saturday, 12 April 2008

Palestinian literature is one of numerous Arabic literatures, but its affiliation is national, rather than territorial. While Egyptian literature is that written in Egypt, Jordanian literature is that written in Jordan etc., and up until to the 1948 Arab-Israeli war, Palestinian literature was also territory-bound, since the 1948 Palestinian exodus it has become "a literature written by Palestinians" irrespective of their place of residence.

Since 1967, most critics have theorized the existence of three "branches" of Palestinian literature, loosely divided by geographic location: 1) from inside Israel, 2) from the occupied territories, 3) from among the Palestinian diaspora throughout the Middle East. Hannah Amit-Kochavi recognizes only two branches: that written by Palestinians from inside the State of Israel as distinct from that written outside. She also sees a distinction between literature produced before and after 1948. Most notable among Palestinian writers who remained in Israel was novelist and politician Emile Habibi, who represented a number of Arab Socialist parties in the Knesset and was the first writer to win -- and accept -- both the al-Quds prize (given by the PLO) and the Israel Prize.

In a 2003 article published in the Studies in the Humanities journal, Steven Salaita posits a fourth branch made up of English language works, particularly those written by Palestinians in the United States, which he defines as "writing rooted in diasporic countries but focused in theme and content on Palestine. This would include most prominently cultural historian and essayist Edward Said, who was born in Palestine, raised in Egypt and lived his adult life in the US.

Palestinian-American poet and playwright Nathalie Handal has been active in anthologizing contemporary Arabic literature and speaking out against biased representations of the Middle East in US media. US-based Palestinian academic Salma Khadra Jayyusi has worked tirelessly to bring Arabic literature, culture and current affairs to international awareness through her seminal anthologies, and by directing organisations such as the Project for the Translation of Arabic.

Contemporary Palestinian literature is often characterized by its heightened sense of irony and the exploration of existential themes and issues of identity. References to the subjects of resistance to occupation, exile, loss, and love and longing for homeland are also common.

Palestinian literature can be intensely political, as underlined by writers like novelist Liana Badr, who has mentioned the need to give expression to the Palestinian "collective identity" and the "just case" of their struggle. Writers such as Orwell Prize-winning memoirist Raja Shehadeh have brought international attention to Israeli human rights abuses in the occupied territories through creative non-fiction, as well as fiction and poetry. There is also resistance to this school of thought, whereby Palestinian artists have "rebelled" against the demand that their art be "committed". Poet Mourid Barghouti for example, has often said that "poetry is not a civil servant, it's not a soldier, it's in nobody's employ.

Palestinian poetry is flourishing, with both Barghouti and Mahmoud Darwish becoming prominent internationally, and with the support of organisations such as the House of Poetry in Ramallah, co-founded and directed by poet and playwright Ghassan Zaqatan, and the Khalil Sakakini Cultural Centre, where poet Zakaria Mohammed sits on the board of directors.

Ghassan Kanafani.