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anonymous_sibylExcerpt
In the long history of this conflict each group has clung to its own narrative and attempted to make their voice heard throughout the world. Israel cries out “Holocaust” while Palestine cries out “al-nekba,” and neither entity will discard the remembrances of these horrors long enough to craft new narratives. But those are the entities—be they nation-states or occupied territories—and the individuals involved can and often have chosen another way.
In the case of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and the quest for peace waged by its poets, identity-based resistance is, perhaps, the most common type of resistance. By writing poetry that can be read by everyone and that is changed by what each reader brings to it, the poets are waging a resistance concerning identity as laid out in the dominant—and divisive—narratives of the region.
Resistance is also commonly thought of as aimed at achieving change (Hollander & Einwohner, 2004). In a conflict so concerned with the validity of names—and naming as constructing memories and facts—something that uses (and changes) language the way poetry does is an ideal form of resistance. If the new narratives as put forth by certain poems become accepted, then they challenge the dominant narratives and through that challenge the balance of power in this conflict.
All the poets considered in this paper resist with their language. Many of them decry the label of political poet and merely remark that they are, in a sense, writing what they know. In a region of near-perpetual conflict these poets put words to paper with a goal of sharing their experiences and seeking common ground, and that is their resistance.
Poets Discussed
Agi Mishol
Her poem Woman Martyr
Eliaz Cohen
Snow and other poems
Aharon Shabtai
His poem Rosh HaShana
Samih al-Qasim
His poem Travel Tickets
Ghassan Zaqtan
His poem A Picture of the House at Beit Jala
Taha Muhammad Ali
His poem Revenge
Link to Full Paper Re-crafting Competing Narratives: Finding The Role of the Poet in the Palestinian-Israeli Conflict
In the long history of this conflict each group has clung to its own narrative and attempted to make their voice heard throughout the world. Israel cries out “Holocaust” while Palestine cries out “al-nekba,” and neither entity will discard the remembrances of these horrors long enough to craft new narratives. But those are the entities—be they nation-states or occupied territories—and the individuals involved can and often have chosen another way.
In the case of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and the quest for peace waged by its poets, identity-based resistance is, perhaps, the most common type of resistance. By writing poetry that can be read by everyone and that is changed by what each reader brings to it, the poets are waging a resistance concerning identity as laid out in the dominant—and divisive—narratives of the region.
Resistance is also commonly thought of as aimed at achieving change (Hollander & Einwohner, 2004). In a conflict so concerned with the validity of names—and naming as constructing memories and facts—something that uses (and changes) language the way poetry does is an ideal form of resistance. If the new narratives as put forth by certain poems become accepted, then they challenge the dominant narratives and through that challenge the balance of power in this conflict.
All the poets considered in this paper resist with their language. Many of them decry the label of political poet and merely remark that they are, in a sense, writing what they know. In a region of near-perpetual conflict these poets put words to paper with a goal of sharing their experiences and seeking common ground, and that is their resistance.
Poets Discussed
Agi Mishol
Her poem Woman Martyr
Eliaz Cohen
Snow and other poems
Aharon Shabtai
His poem Rosh HaShana
Samih al-Qasim
His poem Travel Tickets
Ghassan Zaqtan
His poem A Picture of the House at Beit Jala
Taha Muhammad Ali
His poem Revenge
Link to Full Paper Re-crafting Competing Narratives: Finding The Role of the Poet in the Palestinian-Israeli Conflict
