Mohammed Al-Mekhlafi
Writer and Researcher from Yemen
The book Poetry, Self, and Homeland by Yemeni director and critic Hamid Oqabi, currently residing in France, offers a fresh perspective on the intricate dimensions explored in poetry during the postmodern era. This work delves into themes of self and homeland with an innovative approach that transcends traditional frameworks, illuminating the complexities of human existence and its intertwined relationship with a homeland whose meaning has become increasingly muddled amidst the turmoil of war.
On the occasion of World Poetry Day, Oqabi published this book through Sabri Yousef Publishing in Stockholm. Titled Reflections on Arab Poetic Experiences, the volume comprises contemplative critical studies on twenty Arab poetic expressions, spread across 298 pages of medium format.
The writer and publisher Sabri Yousef enriches the book’s introduction with depth and insight, showcasing a diverse array of poets whose works have been examined by Oqabi. This offers readers an opportunity to explore a wealth of poetic realms that reflect profound human experiences within varied contexts.
Poetic Experiences
I will present an overview of several poets whose writings illuminate these themes. Among them is Saddi Yousef, an Iraqi poet regarded as one of the foremost voices in contemporary Arab poetry. Born in 1934 in Basra, Yusuf has experienced numerous episodes of exile and estrangement, significantly influencing his poetry. In his verses, he intertwines self and homeland, reflecting his emotions toward the homeland he has lost amid challenging political circumstances and personal experiences of alienation. His style is characterized by deep sentiment and simple language imbued with rich connotations, rendering him approachable to the Arab reader. Yusuf writes:
“The spider weaves on the door of my house
Its bare garments,
So that the air may pass,
And scents may drift,
And summer,
And light,
Until it is as if the sky begins…”
In this passage, Saddi Yousef employs the image of the spider as a symbol of complexity and interconnection in life. The spider weaving at the door signifies the intricate details of daily life intertwined with memories, creating a sense of nostalgia and alienation. The air, scents, and summer evoke a feeling of freshness, yet this vibrancy sharply contrasts with the poet’s sense of loss. The text articulates an internal struggle between longing for one’s homeland and the need to reconcile with oneself in the face of estrangement, rendering it rich in meaning.
Another notable figure is Mohammed Adam, an Egyptian poet renowned for his distinctive style in addressing existential and human themes. Born in Cairo, Adam has been influenced by various poetic schools, allowing him to develop a style that blends philosophy with poetry. His works often grapple with existential questions reflecting human anxiety in our modern age. From his poem Elegy for Adam, he writes:
“How many times have I cried out to death,
O death, take me to you,
I do not want this world
Nor do I desire this life…”
This text embodies feelings of anxiety and alienation. Adam personifies death, opening the door to profound inquiries about the meaning of life. His words express a desire to escape a world filled with suffering, where death becomes an alternative to the life he rejects. The repetition in “I do not want” underscores a powerful sense of despair, prompting the reader to contemplate the issues of existence and hope in a seemingly absurd world.
Amjad Rayan: An Exploration of Experimental Poetry
Amjad Rayan, the Egyptian poet renowned for his experimental style that intertwines delirium and reality, was born in Alexandria. He is celebrated for his ability to explore profound human emotions through unconventional texts. His poetry is marked by a diversity of styles, shifting from personal reflections to vivid scenes of everyday life, creating a rich and impactful poetic experience. Rayan writes:
“An old, forgotten cinema ticket in my pocket,
Empty plastic water bottles
Lying in the street…”
In this passage, Rayan highlights the minutiae of daily life with simplicity, embodying a sense of emptiness and loss. The old ticket and the discarded bottles reflect a state of forgetfulness and disarray, where ordinary objects become symbols of void. The text addresses the notion of memory and how the past can weigh heavily upon us, leaving the reader to contemplate the meanings of life and the seemingly trivial things we often overlook.
Zainab Al-Awaj: A Voice of Longing
Zainab Al-Awaj, an Algerian poet, is considered one of the prominent voices in contemporary Arab literature. Born in Algeria, her life experiences in Paris have significantly influenced her writing. Her poems are imbued with a profound longing for her homeland, reflecting feelings of love and anxiety toward her native country, which positions her as a notable poet of exile. Zainab expresses:
“I gather my slips,
And spill like a woman full
Of longing…”
These words reveal the depth of emotional connection the poet carries. The interplay between “my slips” and “a woman full of longing” encapsulates her sense of nostalgia and loss, where the homeland becomes a symbol of vivid memories. The text conveys a universal human experience, as the poet invokes her personal feelings to address a collective theme of homeland and identity.
Maryam Jinjlo: The Essence of Identity
Lebanese poet Maryam Jinjlo stands out as one of the recognized voices in contemporary Arab poetry. Her writings are characterized by depth and the ability to explore the emotions of self and homeland. Her poems reflect her personal experiences and delve into the details of daily life, making them relatable to the reader. Maryam writes:
“She says that her father cast her aside
And rose abruptly;
He did not kiss her mother; she was born lame.”
These lines illustrate how personal identity intertwines with cultural and social questions. Maryam’s use of simple yet evocative language transforms the text into a beautiful poetic experience. “Lame” serves as a symbol of flaws and differences, reflecting the human experience in the quest for identity in a world filled with challenges.
Abdulghani Al-Mekhlafi: Hope Amidst Despair
Yemeni poet Abdulghani Al-Mekhlafi, hailing from the city of Taiz, was born and raised in its picturesque countryside. He left his homeland in search of a better life. After twenty-two years of exile, he was compelled to return to a war-torn country, only to find that everything had changed.
Having endured painful experiences, he expresses both hope and despair in his poetry. His verses radiate optimism despite suffering, as he seeks to paint a realistic picture of his homeland. He writes:
“I sip tea and exhale the past,
The distant memories.
I listen with utmost reverence
To the sound of thunder.
There is a solitary star
Practicing its faint flicker against my heart.”
This text reflects a state of contemplation and nostalgia. Tea, as a daily ritual, serves as a symbol of memories interwoven with the present. The poet’s inner voice reveals a struggle between the desire to forget the past and the attachment to it, illustrating how memories shape identity.
The sound of thunder, echoing in the background, symbolizes strength and conflicting emotions, enhancing the state of anxiety he experiences. The solitary star flickering in the sky adds a touch of hope, suggesting the presence of beauty even in difficult times. This contrast between thunder and the star encapsulates an internal struggle, highlighting how memories can be both painful and a source of hope.
Jamil Hajeb: The Essence of Humanity
Jamil Hajeb, a Yemeni poet, conveys through his writings a voice that expresses the essence of humanity. Born in Yemen, he articulates his dreams and aspirations in the face of a complex reality. His texts are characterized by vivid imagery and intricate details, bringing them close to the reader’s experience. Hajeb writes:
“I turn yellow in my mouth like a child
Whenever I find solace in the embrace of a tree…”
In this passage, the words convey the simplicity of childhood and the beauty of nature. The tree serves as a symbol of tenderness and security, reflecting the poet’s desire to return to innocence. The text expresses hope for life despite challenges, making it a piece filled with optimism.
Muad Hamid Al-Sumaihi: The Weight of Exile
The Yemeni poet Muad Hamid Al-Sumaihi, who grew up in one of the villages of Demnat Khadeer south of Taiz. During his childhood, he received education from his grandfather and father, studying the Quran, Hadith, wisdom, and traditional poetry.
As he matured, he chose to emigrate, leaving his homeland in search of a better livelihood. However, he soon found himself compelled to return, believing that exile brings nothing but pain. His thoughts overflow with anxiety, and his poems reveal the pains and challenges of life. He writes in one of his texts:
“With a worn-out shoe…
You sketch a moon from desolation
And embed the dreams of nails in the feet of passersby.
Fingers and miracles…!
Knead their dusk
With the colors of fields preserved in the memory of windmills.”
This imagery captures the essence of struggle and resilience, highlighting the poet’s reflections on existence amidst hardship.
The poet expresses feelings of fracture and longing in this text, using the image of “a worn-out shoe” to symbolize lost hope and shattered identity. The moon, drawn from desolation, represents beauty interwoven with pain, while the “dreams of nails” signify the suffering from daily challenges faced by people.
In the verses, meanings of creativity and nostalgia manifest through “fingers and miracles,” where the poet blends art with everyday life. The preserved colors reflect painful memories tied to his past, adding emotional depth to the text and highlighting how challenges shape human experiences.
It is difficult to summarize the book or provide a comprehensive overview; I will instead mention the main titles of the remaining poets included in the volume: the poetic experience of Adnan Al-Saigh: Whispers from Exile to Home; the poems of Namik Sultan: Small Desires and Simple Happiness; the poetic experience of Palestinian poet Nada Mohammad Abu Shawish: The Chaos of Small Dreams; the poetic experience of Egyptian poet Mohammad Nasr: Filled with Dreams and Flowing with Imagery; the poetic experience of Egyptian poet Azza Riyad: The Poetry Collection “Ail to Silence” and Attempts to Escape the Noise of Pain; the poetic experience of Algerian poet Abdullah Al-Hamel: Embraces with Infinite Labyrinths; “How Exhausting You Are, O Sea” by Tunisian poet Samir Bey, a text that echoes the cyclical impact of war; Egyptian poet Amina Abdullah: The Sanctification of Femininity; a reflective reading of the opening of the poem “For Jafra, the Eye is a Gaze” by Lebanese-Palestinian poet Doris Khoury; Algerian poet Salima Al-Masoudi: Texts Embracing Multiple Worlds; and the poem “To Your Southern Shadow / To the Soles of Your Feet” by Lebanese poet Lodi Shamseddine.
The Importance of the Book in Documenting Contemporary Poetic Voices
The significance of this book lies in its endeavor to present multiple approaches by gathering twenty poetic voices from Iraq, Egypt, Yemen, Lebanon, and Algeria, representing experiences from diverse generations. Hamid Oqabi’s reflections, as is customary, adopt a cinematic and theatrical lens that seeks out and highlights the small details of everyday life, especially concerning themes of self and homeland.
These voices express their fragmented identities, burdened by the implications of violations suffered by many Arab nations as a result of wars and conflicts that have corrupted life and stripped people of their dignity and happiness. They reflect the conditions faced by their homelands and the world, where some feel exiled even while living within their own countries, always searching for a glimmer of life and hope.
Academic critical studies often overlook experiences that lack media visibility, leading to the neglect of isolated creative voices, such as those of artists from Yemen. There may also be a lack of enthusiasm for poets who do not receive invitations to festivals and events. Oqabi presents a blend of various experiences, some of which have been extensively analyzed, while others remain seldom heard.
The critic in the book’s introduction calls for justice in critique and reflection on new poetic writings that strive to forge their own unique atmosphere, free from theoretical constraints.
This book deserves to be read and discussed for its analyses and reflections by Hamid Oqabi. It offers more than mere information or a rigid academic study; it presents models and texts that remain open to interpretation. It is challenging for any critic to provide a comprehensive explanation, which is the allure of these texts—they evade and conceal their meanings, inviting the reader to participate in their exploration. These reflections open avenues for imagination and push boundaries, benefiting any dramaturg or theater practitioner in dramatizing these models, as they carry within them hidden drama and vivid imagery.
Contributions of Hamid Oqabi to Literature and Visual Arts
The book Poetry, Self, and Homeland: Reflections on Arab Poetic Experiences is one of five books published by Hamid Oqabi with the support of the publisher and writer Sabri Yousef.
Hamid Oqabi is a filmmaker and playwright known for his diverse creative activities, participating in the fields of visual arts and poetry, in addition to writing novels and short stories. He has directed ten short films and published 17 novels across 15 books through various publishing houses in Germany, the Maghreb, and Egypt. In the past three years, he has released six poetry works, short story collections, and theatrical texts, and some of his works have been translated into English, German, French, and Italian.
Additionally, Oqabi has written 11 books on film criticism and four books on literary criticism. He has held 11 visual art exhibitions and a photography exhibition in France. A cultural activist, he manages the Arab-European Forum for Cinema and Theater in Paris, where he has organized critical, literary, and artistic seminars since 2018.
