The recoil from romanticism
The general background
Romanticism in modern Arabic poetry reached its momentum between the
two world wars. Therewere obvious signs that itwasonthe wane immediately
after the Second World War. This is not at all surprising, for the war was an
important landmark in the literary no less than in the political, social and
economic history of the Arab world: the traumatic changes it had brought
about, both directly and indirectly, had a powerful impact on the poetry of the
time. Despite its distinguished contribution romanticism had by that time
developed its own conventional diction, imagery, themes, phraseology and
attitudes, thus becoming increasingly irrelevant to an Arab world that was
growing painfully aware of its harsh political and social realities. It was
criticized on the grounds of being escapist, immature, wanting in reality, as
devoid of a hard core of sense, as too vague and lacking precision, as senti-
mental, false, sugary, facile and verbose.^1 Whatever be the degree of justice in
these accusations, in the work of the best romantic poets we have noticed an
unmistakable accentuation of the subjective element in experience. In their
poetry romantic sorrow, nostalgia, vague metaphysical doubts and yearnings,
the sense of mystery in the universe, the idealization of women and the
transfiguring effect of love, became common themes. It is true that with the
exception of very few poets who like Abu Shabaka or Naji were almost ex-
clusively preoccupied with their inner personal experience, at no point do we
find in Arabic romantic poetry, whether in the Arab world itself or in
America, a complete withdrawal from the events of the external world.
Yet it cannot be denied that the centre of interest in Arabic romantic
poetry, just as it is in Romantic poetry in general, is the individual rather
than society, and its vision of society tends to be expressed in somewhat ideal-
ized terms, in a language and diction more suited to the communication