Irony is a fraught business when it comes to Arabic literature.
The negative connotations inherent within the literary tool make it one of the trickiest to master for regional novelists.
The topic was discussed at length on Thursday as part of an Abu Dhabi International Book Fair panel featuring acclaimed Sudanese novelists Hammour Ziada and Amir Taj Al-Sir.
Short-story writer, novelists and journalist Ziada, who won the Naguib Mahfouz Medal for Literature in 2014 and last year had his second novel, The Longing of the Dervish, shortlisted for the 2015 International Prize for Arabic Fiction and translated into English, stated that irony has a long way to go before it is accepted in Arabic literature.
“It is recent that irony appears more in the Arabic novel,” says Ziada. “It is used as a tool in opinion writing and in commentary articles or in political analysis as a way to undermine authority or comment on the political status quo or as a form of protest,” he says. “Using irony in this political way relates it as something insulting or belittling in the Arab mind, rather than an effective literary tool.”
Al-Sir, a 2011 Ipaf nominee whose latest work 366 won the Katara Prize for Arabic Novel last year, agrees. "In our Arab novels, no matter what these novels set out to do, they cannot seem to use irony like a western novel, where it is an established literary device," he says. "We are still working on that in the Arab world."
The reason, Zaida points out, is that irony is often mistaken for sarcasm, and sometimes, even mistaken for an insult.
“Irony is based on playing with the measurement of things, so making big of the small or belittling something big might be taken as an insult in Arabic culture,” he says.
Zaida cites Egyptian political satirist Bassem Youssef, often referred to as the Arab Jon Stewart, as an example. “When [Youssef] uses sarcasm and irony to comment on a situation, he is often criticised heavily by religious and political figures and described as insulting”.
When it comes to his own craft, Al-Sir says he doesn’t set out to consciously weave irony into his work, instead he prefers to “writes what he feels”.
“There is so much irony in life, and a writer writes from life and about life,” says Al-Sir. “When I meet a poor, old government worker, for example, who has been sitting behind the same booth day in and day out for 40 years, processing people’s papers every single day, and then dies without ever getting his own papers processed, that’s an ironic situation that I want to write about.”
His biggest tip for young writers is to be sensitive to the irony in life around you. “Writers need to be observant, noticing things not everyone might see. Train your memory to store it all. Everyone and everything can become material to use in writing,” says Al-Sir. “Take from life around you, and since life is already so ironic, you will have no problems writing with irony.”
• The Abu Dhabi International Book Fair runs until Tuesday, May 3, at Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre. For details, visit www.adbookfair.com
artslife@thenational.ae
The UN General Assembly President in quotes:
YEMEN: “The developments we have seen are promising. We really hope that the parties are going to respect the agreed ceasefire. I think that the sense of really having the political will to have a peace process is vital. There is a little bit of hope and the role that the UN has played is very important.”
PALESTINE: “There is no easy fix. We need to find the political will and comply with the resolutions that we have agreed upon.”
OMAN: “It is a very important country in our system. They have a very important role to play in terms of the balance and peace process of that particular part of the world, in that their position is neutral. That is why it is very important to have a dialogue with the Omani authorities.”
REFORM OF THE SECURITY COUNCIL: “This is complicated and it requires time. It is dependent on the effort that members want to put into the process. It is a process that has been going on for 25 years. That process is slow but the issue is huge. I really hope we will see some progress during my tenure.”
Brief scoreline:
Liverpool 5
Keita 1', Mane 23', 66', Salah 45' 1, 83'
Huddersfield 0
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
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Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
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Company Profile
Name: Thndr
Started: 2019
Co-founders: Ahmad Hammouda and Seif Amr
Sector: FinTech
Headquarters: Egypt
UAE base: Hub71, Abu Dhabi
Current number of staff: More than 150
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Some of Darwish's last words
"They see their tomorrows slipping out of their reach. And though it seems to them that everything outside this reality is heaven, yet they do not want to go to that heaven. They stay, because they are afflicted with hope." - Mahmoud Darwish, to attendees of the Palestine Festival of Literature, 2008
His life in brief: Born in a village near Galilee, he lived in exile for most of his life and started writing poetry after high school. He was arrested several times by Israel for what were deemed to be inciteful poems. Most of his work focused on the love and yearning for his homeland, and he was regarded the Palestinian poet of resistance. Over the course of his life, he published more than 30 poetry collections and books of prose, with his work translated into more than 20 languages. Many of his poems were set to music by Arab composers, most significantly Marcel Khalife. Darwish died on August 9, 2008 after undergoing heart surgery in the United States. He was later buried in Ramallah where a shrine was erected in his honour.
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Kashima Antlers 3 (Nagaki 49’, Serginho 69’, Abe 84’)
Guadalajara 2 (Zaldivar 03’, Pulido 90')
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Friday: First practice - 1pm; Second practice - 5pm
Saturday: Final practice - 2pm; Qualifying - 5pm
Sunday: Etihad Airways Abu Dhabi Grand Prix (55 laps) - 5.10pm
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Israel Palestine on Swedish TV 1958-1989
Director: Goran Hugo Olsson
Rating: 5/5
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Breast cancer in men: the facts
1) Breast cancer is men is rare but can develop rapidly. It usually occurs in those over the ages of 60, but can occasionally affect younger men.
2) Symptoms can include a lump, discharge, swollen glands or a rash.
3) People with a history of cancer in the family can be more susceptible.
4) Treatments include surgery and chemotherapy but early diagnosis is the key.
5) Anyone concerned is urged to contact their doctor
The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre turbo
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Drishyam 2
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TWISTERS
Director: Lee Isaac Chung
Starring: Glen Powell, Daisy Edgar-Jones, Anthony Ramos
Rating: 2.5/5
The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre 4-cylinder petrol
Power: 154bhp
Torque: 250Nm
Transmission: 7-speed automatic with 8-speed sports option
Price: From Dh79,600
On sale: Now
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UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
The Beach Bum
Director: Harmony Korine
Stars: Matthew McConaughey, Isla Fisher, Snoop Dogg
Two stars