Rhythm and community formation in Middle Eastern novels.
dc.contributor.author | Crofoot, John M. | en_US |
dc.contributor.advisor | LeGassick, Trevor | en_US |
dc.date.accessioned | 2014-02-24T16:18:09Z | |
dc.date.available | 2014-02-24T16:18:09Z | |
dc.date.issued | 1994 | en_US |
dc.identifier.other | (UMI)AAI9423167 | en_US |
dc.identifier.uri | http://gateway.proquest.com/openurl?url_ver=Z39.88-2004&rft_val_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:dissertation&res_dat=xri:pqm&rft_dat=xri:pqdiss:9423167 | en_US |
dc.identifier.uri | https://hdl.handle.net/2027.42/103926 | |
dc.description.abstract | Narrative rhythm is the process of patterning through which the reader enacts the text. In contemporary novels, rhythm involves primarily four things: (1) the cadences of words and phrases, (2) the representation of time (3) changes of perspective and (4) the thematization of "history.". Chapter Two introduces narrative rhythm in light of its similarities and differences with poetic rhythm. Meter is an insufficient means of describing rhythm, which is realized through an individual's recognition and projection of patterns through movement, physical or mental. Reference is made to poetic and musical definitions of rhythm in Arab and Turkish criticism, but contemporary usage of rhythm in Arabic with respect to narrative and the representation of time is very similar to its usage in European theory. The Third chapter analyzes the alternation of narrative tempos in Ahmet Mithat's Felatun Bey ile Rakim Efendi (Istanbul 1876). Chapter Four shows how alternation of language styles and repetition in cadenced phrasing promote a community of storytelling in short stories from the collection Alaysa kadhalik? (Isn't it So? Cairo 1957) by the Egyptian author Yusuf Idri s. Chapter Five, which focuses on Kateb's francophone novel Nedjma, (Paris 1956) examines further the notion of an interpretive community and its implications for the collective remembering of a culture's past. The final chapter discusses the polyrhythms among conflicting attitudes toward space and time in Naji b Mahfuz's Bayn al-Qasrayn (Palace Walk Cairo 1956). While definitions of rhythm are slippery, the effect associated with rhythm is a sense of patterned movement. Rhythm draws attention to the social nature of reading and narrative enactment, because the recognition of patterns of alternation and repetition assumes a rapport among readers. Language is necessarily social, but rhythm in texts reminds us of the collective nature of text production. | en_US |
dc.format.extent | 245 p. | en_US |
dc.subject | Literature, Comparative | en_US |
dc.subject | Literature, Middle Eastern | en_US |
dc.title | Rhythm and community formation in Middle Eastern novels. | en_US |
dc.type | Thesis | en_US |
dc.description.thesisdegreename | PhD | en_US |
dc.description.thesisdegreediscipline | Comparative Literature | en_US |
dc.description.thesisdegreegrantor | University of Michigan, Horace H. Rackham School of Graduate Studies | en_US |
dc.description.bitstreamurl | http://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/103926/1/9423167.pdf | |
dc.description.filedescription | Description of 9423167.pdf : Restricted to UM users only. | en_US |
dc.owningcollname | Dissertations and Theses (Ph.D. and Master's) |
Files in this item
Remediation of Harmful Language
The University of Michigan Library aims to describe library materials in a way that respects the people and communities who create, use, and are represented in our collections. Report harmful or offensive language in catalog records, finding aids, or elsewhere in our collections anonymously through our metadata feedback form. More information at Remediation of Harmful Language.
Accessibility
If you are unable to use this file in its current format, please select the Contact Us link and we can modify it to make it more accessible to you.