Shift Navratire in Euologies of Ab_TuaaibAL_Huthali

Abstract

This study examines the narrative transformations in the elegies of Abū Dhuʾayb al-Hudhalī, drawing upon his celebrated elegy composed in mourning for his sons in order to explore the mechanisms of narrative construction in poetry and the extent to which poetic discourse is capable of accommodating and employing such mechanisms to generate meaning. The study is founded on the premise that Abū Dhuʾayb's elegy is not merely based on lyrical expression and the articulation of grief; rather, it establishes an integrated narrative structure in which characters, events, time, space, dialogue, and description interact, rendering the poem akin to a narrative text imbued with an existential vision.

Adopting a descriptive-analytical approach, the study employs the tools of modern narrative criticism to analyze the textual structure, focusing on the narrator, characters, plot, narrative time, rhythm, and forms of focalization, while relating these elements to the poem's poetic architecture. The findings reveal that Abū Dhuʾayb successfully transforms the personal experience of mourning his sons into a comprehensive human vision through a sequence of narrative transformations that begins with the mourning self (the narrator), proceeds through a series of symbolic narratives, and culminates in affirming the existential truth embodied in the inevitability of death and the unity of the human destiny. Furthermore, the study demonstrates that the stories embedded within the elegy are not merely ornamental narrative digressions; rather, they constitute coherent and interconnected narrative units that serve the overall structure of the text and contribute to consolidating its intellectual and aesthetic dimensions.