transgression. Both Adnnls and al-Baymtlare experts in this arena, as I have
explained elsewhere.^64
3 Exilic engagement Although seemingly an outcome of modern
civilization, with its wars and disruptions, the literature of exile, in its
metaphors of dislocation and loss, is deeply established in Arabic culture.
Indeed, the classical literature of exile could lend itself so easily to memory
that poets may at times borrow spontaneously from its repository.
Al-Mutanabbl’s well-known lamentation after leaving Sayf al-Dawlah behind
could sum up many concerns and sighs. “With what shall I console myself,
being without my people and home, having neither boon-fellow, nor cup, nor
any to comfort me.”^65 Al-Baymtl’s Mutanabblis this person of no settled
abode, who is restless as if riding the wind.^66 However, if al-Mutanabbloffers
this line of exile, al-Macarrloffers the other line of spiritual dislocation and
ontological disappointment. Exile becomes a poetic incentive and dynamic,
however, as poets search for textual homelands that accommodate forebears
and contemporaries from every other culture.
4 Textual apprenticeship One of the most intricate stratagems of
maturation is textual apprenticeship, which has its prototype in al-Macarrl’s
poetic career, as he outgrew his early attachment to his strong predecessor,
al-Mutanabbl, while simultaneously deviating from the hegemonic discourse
of “adornments and lies.” Re-defining tradition in terms of morality and
reason, the prototype, al-Macarrlin this case, also sets the tone for relentless
experimentation within the broad prospects of tradition. It should not be
surprising that the modernists agreed on him as a precursor, to be emulated
and cited as the exemplar, not in innovation alone, but also mainly in the
dynamics of textual transgression and deviation. Enhancing reasoning and
morality, he also offers them in practice enough justifications to veer away
from servile imitation. His mannerism evolves as one of defiance, deviation,
and transgression, rather than a mere exercise in virtuosity. Thus we find that
questioning mode, which overrules al-Baymtl’s early proclamations of victory,
for the human condition is more complicated, and national issues may lead to
no less than the precursor’s decision for self-seclusion. It should be logical
that for the ephebe to reconsider his career and readdress the precursor’s poetic
experience anew. Al-Baymtl’s emanating texts, especially “Sujnn Ablal-cAlm’”
(Prisons of Ablal-cAlm’ al-Macarrl) offer this textual reconsideration, with a
stylistic intricacy that matches his precursor’s mannerism, while manipulating
intertextuality for further identifications of cultural and social ruptures.
Textual apprenticeship proves to be more enduring, for the precursor takes
over, even in a later stage in the ephebe’s career. Nevertheless, this stance
should not delude us into thinking of it as mere allegiance, for it is also an
act of filiation, as the modern poet aspires to locate his personal record within
a specific lineage. While manifesting enlightened understanding of the
precursor, a poem like “Sujnn” comes as a seal to an established apprentice-
ship. It is the modern poet’s proclamation of achievement and maturity. It is
POETIC STRATEGIES