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" Inter-ethnic relations in contemporary fiction of the Arab diaspora in *Canada, Germany, and the United States "
Ruba Turjman
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Latin Dissertation
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| Language of Document
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English
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| Record Number
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55274
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| Doc. No
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TL25228
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| Call number
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NR18555
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| Main Entry
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Ruba Turjman
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| Title & Author
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Inter-ethnic relations in contemporary fiction of the Arab diaspora in *Canada, Germany, and the United States\ Ruba Turjman
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| College
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Queen's University (Canada)
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| Date
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2006
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| Degree
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Ph.D.
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| student score
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2006
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| Page No
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184
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| Abstract
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This thesis examines inter-ethnic relations in contemporary Arab fiction in three national contexts: Germany, Canada, and the United States. The following texts are included in this study: Die Sehnsucht fährt schwarz: Geschichten aus der Fremde (1988), Erzähler der Nacht (1989), and Reise zwischen Nacht and Morgen (1995) by Rafik Schami; The Confusion of Stones: Two Novellas (1989) by Marwan Hassan; Through and Through: Toledo Stories (1989) by Joseph Geha and Arabian Jazz (1993) and Crescent (2003) by Diana Abu-Jaber. I argue that despite the differences of nationality, culture, generation, immigration history, and gender that affect the portrayal of inter-ethnic relations, the texts have themes and narrative strategies in common. They emphasize the importance of dialogue between the Arab world and the West. As well, they all also stress the importance for Arab communities to negotiate a place for themselves within their respective societies and for mainstream society to educate itself and let go of the fear of the Arab Other. Although Arab literature has received little or no critical attention in the three national contexts, Schami, Hassan, Geha, and Abu-Jaber have succeeded in reaching a relatively wide readership and getting the attention of literary critics. I argue that the reason for this success is their emphasis on dialogue between the Arab world and the West through their portrayal of relationships between Arabs and non-Arabs. The fusion of the two worlds is depicted metaphorically through marriages and friendships between protagonists of Arabic background and other members of society. The texts can be regarded as bridges between the Arab world and the West. The works that I discuss not only reflect the multicultural reality of Canada, Germany, and the United States, but they also provide a deeper understanding of Arab culture.
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| Subject
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Language, literature and linguistics; Abu-Jaber, Diana; Arab; Canada; Diana Abu-Jaber; Diaspora; Fiction; Geha, Joseph; Germany; Hassan, Marwan; Interethnic relations; Joseph Geha; Marwan Hassan; Rafuk Schami; Schami, Rafik; United States; Literature; Germanic literature; Middle Eastern literature; Canadian literature; American literature; 0311:Germanic literature; 0298:Literature; 0591:American literature; 0315:Middle Eastern literature; 0352:Canadian literature
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Queen's University (Canada)
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