I'jaam an iraqi rhapsody book analysis formations

Such changes may be of any nature, including, but not limited to, the elimination of the school, programs, classes or activities. Lets stop calling the invasion of iraq a blunder and call it what it is. Structurally, too, this novel is a gem despite its political overtones. New york university bulletin20102011 gallatin school of. Reading guide ijaam ijaam reading guide author bio from city lights. Jun 15, 2007 ijaam, explains iraqi expatriate antoon in a prefatory note, is the arabic word used to describe the diacritical dots added to the basic alphabet to represent different phonetic characters. It does not only illuminate reality in iraq prior to the american invasion, but also the human experience in its insistence on resisting oppression and injustice. I jaam s lucid flashbacks and hallucinatory passages written during narrator furats iraqi imprisonment reminds me of similar political or existential novels the stranger and the plague. Aug 28, 2008 in saddam husseins iraq, a prisoner is given pen and paper to write. An iraqi rhapsody on kpfas voices of the middle east and north africa. The other is in the country of men, by hisham matar. The best contemporary iraqi writing about war literary hub. I jaam is presented as a manuscript found in 1989 by the iraqi authorities in one of their prison complexes.

Iraniraq war fiction from both iranian and iraqi literary perspectives. American academy in berlin library catalog author title the pentagon papers volume i charter of the united nations vietnam documents. A manuscript found in baghdads directorate of general security recalls life under saddam husseins regime. Scribd is the worlds largest social reading and publishing site. Arabic is often written without dots, the meaning is inferred from the context. 63 amatzia baram, culture, history and ideology in the formation of bathist iraq, 196889, london. Poet and author sinan antoon discusses his book ijaam. Ijaam is the story of furat, a prisoner in an iraq reminiscent of the baathi era. A catalog record for this book is available from the library of congress. Pdf american academy in berlin library catalog free.

Format pdf introduction and first 18 pages from ijaam. As a prefatory note about i jaam explains, the title means dotting, referring to the diacritical marks dots used in arabic writing. An inventory of the general security headquarters in central baghdad reveals an obscure manuscript. Ijaam, explains iraqi expatriate antoon in a prefatory note, is the arabic word used to. In less than a hundred pages, antoon provides a moving portrait of life in saddams iraq. The policies,requirements,course offerings,schedules,activities,tuition,fees and calendar of the school and its programs set forth in this bulletin are subject to change without notice at any time at the sole discretion of the administration. Hear an interview with sinan antoon on wnycs leonard lopate show pris the world democracy now. Sinan antoon is an iraqiamerican author and his novel tells the story of an iraqi literature student under saddam hussein who is suddenly. An iraqi rhapsody by sinan antoon translated from arabic by. I jaam, an iraqi rhapsody, his first novel, was published by city lights in 2007 and reads as much like a surrealist parable as a satire.

The book of collateral damage the margellos world republic of letters. Samuel shimons an iraqi in paris a modernday odysseus on the way to hollywood samuel shimon, a londonbased iraqi author, has written a book that draws upon the rich traditions of arab storytelling, but is also rich with allusions to classic european literature. Format pdf introduction and first 18 pages from i jaam. Since the formation of the iraqi state in 1920, questions of society and political. In saddam husseins iraq, a prisoner is given pen and paper to write. An undotted text calls upon us to exercise our freedom in interpreting it and to discover its hidden. I jaam, explains iraqi expatriate antoon in a prefatory note, is the arabic word used to describe the diacritical dots added to the basic alphabet to represent different phonetic characters.

The narrator is in prison, but he has recollections of adven for such a short novel, i jaam by sinon antoon packs a powerful punch. An iraqi rhapsody by sinan antoon translated from arabic by rebecca c. Ijaam are the dots that indicate vowels in the arabic script. Ijaams lucid flashbacks and hallucinatory passages written during narrator furats iraqi imprisonment reminds me of similar political or existential novels the stranger and the plague. There is even something about ijaam to recall the less mature stephen king novella, the long walk, and the more artificially constructed, eless novel from. Since these dots can also clarify a words meaning, ijaam has come to mean. Gallatin bulletin new york university graduate school. Structurally, too, this novel is a gem despite its political overtones, however, ijaam works on an aesthetic level as well. Written by a young man in detention, the prose moves from prison life, to adolescent memories, to frightening hallucinations, and what emerges is a portrait of life in saddam husseins iraq. Within the context of contemporary fiction emerging from or about iraq, this departure parallels other recent narrative ruptures and retellings of iraqi social histories, most notably the ones we witness in sinan an. New york university bulletin gallatin school of individualized. Jan 01, 20 within the context of contemporary fiction emerging from or about iraq, this departure parallels other recent narrative ruptures and retellings of iraqi social histories, most notably the ones we witness in sinan an. Written by a young man in detention, the prose moves from prison life, to. Opinion fifteen years ago, america destroyed my country the.

A catalogue record for this book is available from the british library. Kafka and solzhenitsyn gave us the classics of living in european police states. The bulk of the book presents furats prison diaries as transcribed and dotted by the. What is your sense of the meaning of the word rhapsody. Sinan antoons ijaam is included in an article about contemporary arabic novels in the current issue of the new yorker.

Ijaam, explains iraqi expatriate antoon in a prefatory note, is the arabic word used to describe the diacritical dots added to the basic alphabet to represent different phonetic characters. Summary of ijaam from city lights an inventory of the general security headquarters in central baghdad reveals an obscure manuscript. Not only is ijaam written without dots, the narrative itself leaves much open to interpretation. In this article i provide a brief analysis of two extracts from the corpse washer. Since these dots can also clarify a words meaning, i jaam has come to mean elucidating or clarifying. Since these dots can also clarify a words meaning, ijaam has come to mean elucidating or clarifying. As an apparent gesture of mercy after a brutal regimen of torture, his captors provide him with a pen and paper to record his memoirs. An iraqi rhapsody, the novelist sinan antoon takes advantage of the orthographic ambiguities of arabic to explore themes. Dreamlike, chilling, and ironic, the story follows a student who is thrown into an abu ghraiblike prison for no reason, where he is brutalized and subjected to an irrational set of interrogations straight out of kafka, and where his nightmares and reality uncannily converge.