During a symposium held under the title of cultural and social dimensions in the Qatari novel within the activities of the cultural program for Qatar as a guest of honor in the 22nd Amman International Book Fair held in Jordan, a contingent of novelists reviewed the rise of Qatari novels, as well as their topics, and orientations.
The symposium featured vibrant discussions with the participation of the Qatari writer and academic Dr Ahmed Abdul Malik and Qatari Author Sheikha Al Ziyara and moderated by the Jordanian writer Dr. Alaa Al-Din Ahmad Al Gharaibeh.
In his inaugural remarks before the meeting, Al Gharaibeh said Qatari novel broadly expresses existence and deals with an idea that addresses educated mindsets.
The Qatari novel debuted in 1993 when two female novelists from Qatar, namely Shuaa Khalifa and Dalal Khalifa participated in laying the first foundation of novel which started to be morphed into novel of reality, the dreams of old seas and legend of human and lake where remote land trees exis
t, Al Gharaibeh added.
However, a big question is raised, as Al Gharaibeh wondered whether the Qatari novel with its large size and numerous models differed from the Arabic novels, in terms of topics.
Dr Ahmed Abdul Malik confirmed that Qatari novel is Arabic novel which did not veer from the patterns tethered to the Arabic novel, except for the role of environment and geographic neighborhood, pointing out Qatari novel depicts the sea and environment features as there are a plethora of novels that primarily focus on these features.
When environment role is invoked in the Qatari novel, Qatari novelists intentionally try to describe the environment components, as well as environment role in forming human thought and behavior, the offshore, for instance, was a habitat for childrens playgrounds and heart of their memories, Abdul Malik outlined. He added that the offshore is a place of bidding farewell to sailors in their mysterious and arduous voyages fraught with risks and is the location of receiving them as
well, after completion of the diving season.
Seashores were a scene for fighting and wars against Portuguese and English colonization as depicted in the Pirate novel by the writer Abdulaziz Al Mahmoud, he said.
Dr Ahmed Abdul Malik delved deep into the Qatari novel by saying that architecture pattern in houses has been stated in the Qatari novel reflecting some kind of customs and traditions, along with people’s acts and patterns of thinking with respect to public behavior, in protecting women’s chastity and defending them against any inappropriate act.
With respect to the cultural and social dimensions that were manifested in some Qatari novels, Dr. Abdul Malik pointed out that the Qatari novel focused on the period that preceded the discovery of oil in the State of Qatar, i.e., before 1940 until a first shipment of oil was exported in 1949 followed by the evolution in lifestyles with their urban and nomadic manifestations.
He outlined that the social dimension demonstrates the impact of transition from
deserts and open lands to popular houses constructed by the state for citizens, as well as schools that became spread in Doha precipitating the movement of citizens to the capital Doha to teach their sons and daughters.
Such movement has largely affected the people’s behavior, property and their cultural levels, as public schools started to operate, because the emergence of oil has positively affected the life of Qatari community and this was reflected in the Qatari novel, Abdul Malik said, adding that many depictions of novels are testament to this transition.
He outlined that the emergence of societal awareness after the spread of education and allowing girls enrollment in schools have prompted a paradigm shift in the nature of the nexus between the ambitious girl and her father’s ambition, as Qatari girls attempted to unlock the patriarchal system in order for them to venture into education and enroll in higher education abroad.
The societal awareness has contributed to rebuffing some negative social pr
actices that have been prevalent in the past, such as reserving the daughter for her cousin, refusing the sons marriage to a foreigner, or marry the Qatari girl to a foreigner, or the non-Qatari, as depicted in ‘Distant Prairie Trees” novel by Dalal Khalifa, Dr. Abdul Malik outlined.
Dr. Abdul Malik highlighted that following the technological evolution and debut of new inputs in the Qatari life, these factors have impacted the techniques of presenting the Qatari novel and its tools, such as accessing the electronic websites and e-mails which have apparently undermined the Qatari novel, resulting in the emergence of contemporary novels. (MORE)
Source: Qatar News Agency