Year: 2024
Type: article
Abstract: This article explores the stylistic features of Mustafa Selim’s prose, focusing on his short story collection Secret Tunnel. The analysis centers on the author’s style, characterized by a synthesis of laconic form and deep metaphorical content. The study aims to identify and systematize the key stylistic means Selim uses to create a multi-layered narrative space within the short prose form. The paper employs a comprehensive approach, combining methods of literary, linguo-stylistic, and structural-semiotic analysis when studying Selim’s metaphors, his experiments with the composition of the story, the role of intertextuality and surreal elements. Based on the juxtaposition of prose oeuvres, Selim’s style is compared to that of Naguib Mahfouz, Yusuf Idris, and Ahmad al-Qarmalawi, whose works echo Mustafa Selim’s prose in terms of style and genre. The relevance of the study is determined by the need for a deeper understanding of the latest trends in contemporary Arabic literature based on an analysis of the individual style of one of its prominent representatives. The article reveals how Selim, through a unique combination of stylistic means, creates prose that is simultaneously deeply rooted in Arabic cultural tradition and open to global literary influences. The research results demonstrate that Selim’s style is characterized by a masterful combination of minimalist form with rich metaphorical content, allowing the author to explore complex philosophical concepts and delve into the depths of the human psyche within a limited textual space. The analysis of Selim’s stylistic techniques reveals the features of his individual author’s manner, which reflects trends in the evolution of modern Arabic prose.
Source: The World of the Orient
Author: Serhii Rybalkin
Institution: Kyiv National Linguistic University
Language: English
Subfield: Literature and Literary Theory
Field: Arts and Humanities
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: diamond
OpenAlex ID: W4406500368