Characteristics of ‘Mahjar’ in Arabic Poetry: A Subjective Study

Abstract

The Mahjar literature in the Americas is a new dimension in modern Arabic literature and its significant contribution was in poetry. Mikhail Noaima, an iconoclast and outstanding poet, played a major role in the development of Mahjar Literature in North America in general and modern Arabic poetry in particular. Therefore, the work is an in-depth study into the philosophy of his life, highlighting his thoughts and Ideologies in the development of Modern Arabic Poetry. Noaima was an Arab- Christian writer being nurtured and bred up in the Christian Culture. He was virtually motivated by the Russian and European literatures arid American ‘Transcendentalism’ and thereby, he was not in close contact with the ancient Arabic literary heritage and the fundamentals of Arabic language and literature. On the contrary, he was fully westernized in thoughts and belief, and his works made the Mahjar literature revitalized creating a new chapter in the development of modern Arabic literature to a great extent. This research article is consisted on Abstract, four sections, i.e: Appearance of Mahjar poets, Definition of Mahjar poets and its exponents, Reasons for Migration, Important Features of Mahjar Poetry, Conclusion and Bibliography.