al-Madhahib al-Adabiya fi al-Shi'r al-Hadith li-Janub al-Mamlaka al-Arabiya al-Saudiya
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- Tihama
al-Madhahib al-Adabiya fi al-Shi'r al-Hadith li-Janub al-Mamlaka al-Arabiya al-Saudiya (Literary Trends in Modern Poetry of Southern Saudi Arabia) is a critical and analytical study by the Egyptian scholar Ali Ali Subh, published by Dar Tihama in Jeddah . The book examines the development of modern Arabic poetry in the southern region of Saudi Arabia, classifying its literary currents into distinct schools and examining the artistic characteristics and prominent poets of each trend .
Background and Scope
The author situates the poetic movement of southern Saudi Arabia within the broader context of modern Arabic literary developments, noting that local poetry was shaped by multiple historical, cultural, and environmental factors . These influences include the religious and intellectual impact of the reform movement of Shaykh Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab, national educational and cultural modernization, and interaction with major Arab literary schools such as the Diwan, Mahjar, and Apollo movements, alongside the prevailing influence of Islamic values . Subh also highlights the role played by the distinctive natural landscape of southern regions such as Abha, Asir, and Tihama, as well as the founding of modern university branches and cultural institutions, notably the Abha Literary Club established in 1400 AH .
Subh categorizes the literary trends of southern Saudi poetry into four principal directions derived directly from the regional poetic corpus: rigid imitation (al-taqlid al-mutaḥajjir), literal traditionalism (al-muḥāfiẓūn al-ḥirafiyyūn), conservative renewal (al-tajdīd al-muḥāfiẓ), and liberated renewal (al-taḥarrur fī al-tajdīd) .
Structure and Contents
Following an introduction and a historical and geographical preamble, the work is organized into three main parts:
- Part One: The Conservative School (Madrasat al-Muhafizin): Analyzes traditionalist and imitative poetry. It begins with the characteristics and exponents of imitation, including Sulayman ibn Sahman, his son Salih ibn Sulayman, Ali al-Sanusi, and Hafiz ibn Ahmad al-Hakami . It then explores the technical features of the conservative school and its representative poets, such as Muhammad Surur al-Sabban and Muayyid ibn Ali al-Bakhtiyan, followed by a dedicated chapter on the poets of the Al al-Hifzi family, their imagery, and their poetic themes .
- Part Two: The School of Conservative Renewal (Madrasat al-Tajdid al-Muhafiz): Details the blend between adherence to classical poetic norms (amud al-shi'r) and modern thematic renewal . Individual chapters analyze the lives, themes, diction, imagery, and artistic unity in the poetry of Muhammad ibn Ali al-Sanusi, Muhammad ibn Ahmad al-Uqayli, Zahir Awwad al-Alma'i, and Yahya Ibrahim al-Alma'i, concluding with a chapter on additional poets including Ali Khudran al-Qarni, Ali Abd Allah Mahdi, and Jubran Muhammad Hasan Qahal .
- Part Three: The School of Liberated Renewal (Madrasat al-Taharrur fi al-Tajdid): Examines the factors underlying modern poetic liberation and contrasts it with Western Romanticism . It includes detailed critical analyses of the poetic output, imagery, language, and rhythm of Ahmad al-Asiri and Ahmad Bahkali .
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