Учебное пособие 1860
.pdfScientific Journal “Modern Linguistic and Methodical-and-Didactic Researches” Issue 1 (20), 2018 ISSN 2587-8093
References
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[7]Fomina Z.E. Jemocional'nye koncepty i ih verbal'naja reprezentacija v hudozhestvennoj kartine mira [na primere russkih, nemeckih, avstrijskihi shvejcarskih literaturnyh proizvedenij) // Nauchnyj vestnik Voronezh.gos.arh.-stroit. Un-ta. Sovre-mennye lingvisticheskie i metodiko-didakticheskie issledovanija. – 2004. – vyp. 1. – S. 46-64.
[8]Fomina Z.E. Jemocional'nye koncepty v russkoj, nemeckoj, avstrijskoj i shvejcarskoj hudozhestvennoj kartine mira [kollektivnaja monografija) // Lingvokonceptologija: perspektivnye napravlenija «Luganskij nacional'nyj universitet imeni Tarasa Shevchenko, Lugansk, Ukraina, 2013 g. – S. 247-274 [soavtory: A.Je. Levickij, O.P. Vorob'eva, V.K. Shherbin
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[9]Fomina S.E. Emotional wertende Lexik der deutschen Gegenwartssprache. W.: Istoki, 1999. – 208 S.
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[11]Novosti psihologii, URL: https://news.rambler.ru (vremja obrashhenija 12.12.17).
[12]Haumer H. Emotionales Kapital: entscheiden zwischen Vernunft und Gefühl. Wien
[u.a.] : Orac,1998. - 286 S.
[13]Hüther G. Biologie der Angst : wie aus Streß Gefühle werden. Göttingen : Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1997. - 130 S.
[14]Darvin Ch. Vyrazhenie jemocij u zhivotnyh i cheloveka. Soch. T.5. M., 1953.
[15]Simonov P.V. Jemocional'nyj mozg. M.: Izd-vo «Nauka», 1981. – S.142.
[16]Schmidt-Atzert L. Die Entstehung von Gefühlen : vom Auslöser zur Mitteilung.
Ber-lin [u.a.] : Springer, 1993. - 150 S.
[17]Muhr R. Die österreichische Literatursprache – wie entstehen die Normen einer plurizentrischen Standartsprache? // Österreichisches Deutsch / hrsg. Von R.Muhr. Wien, 1997– S.88-115
[18]Goulman D. Jemocional'nyj intellekt. M.: Izd-vo AST, - 2011. - 464 s.
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Analysed sources
[1*] Newspaper "Kleine Zeitung ", URL:http://www.kleinezeitung.at (time of the treatment, 13.08.98).
[2*] German language society news Archive, URL: http://gfds.de/aktionen (time treat- ment-20.11.17).
[3*] Newspaper Der Standard, URL: http://derstandard.at (time treatment-15.09.17). [4*] Newspaper Der Standard, URL: http://derstandard.at (circulation time-15.11.17).
[5*] Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung Newspaper, URL: http://www.faz.net (circulation time-12.12.17).
[6*] Newspaper Der Standard, URL: http://derstandard.at (circulation time-12.12.17). [7*] Magazine "Spiegel online", URL: http://www.spiegel.de (time of treatment –
12.12.17).
[8*] Magazine "Manager magazine", URL: http://www.manageрr-magazin.de (processing time-12.12.17).
[9*] Newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, URL: http://www.faz.net (time treat- ment-15.12.17).
[10*] The Website of the TV channel RT in German language, URL: https://deutsch.rt.com (time of treatment – 15.10.17).
[11*] Newspaper "Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung", URL: http://www.faz.net (time of treatment – 05.09.16).
[12*] Newspaper "Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung", URL: http://www.faz.net (time of treatment – 05.09.16).
[13*] Newspaper Der Standard, URL: http://derstandard.at (circulation time-15.11.17). [14*] Newspaper Der Standard, URL: http://derstandard.at (time treatment-10.08.15). [15*] H. Hesse Unterm Rad. In: Gesammelte Werke, 2. Bd. Frankfurt am Main: Suhr-
kamp, 1987. - S. 261.
[16*] Bernhard Th. Ein Kind. München: Residenz Verlag. 1982. - S. 49-50. [17*] H. Hesse Narziß und Goldmund. Frankfurt am M., 1975. - S. 53.
[18*] Newspaper "Kleine Zeitung ", URL: http://www.kleinezeitung.at/ (time of treatment – 18.07.98).
[19*] Bernhard Th. Ein Kind. München: Residenz Verlag. 1982. - S. 64. [20*] Bernhard Th. Ein Kind. München: Residenz Verlag. 1982. - S. 130.
[21*] Newspaper Der Standard, URL: http://derstandard.at (time treatment-19.06.98). [22*] Newspaper "Der Standard", URL: http://www.derstandard.at (time of treatment –
14.06.98).
[23*] Freund J. "Österreich erzählt". S. 170
[24*] Newspaper Der Standard, URL: http://www Oh. derstandard.at (time of treatment – 15.11.17).
[25*] Newspaper Der Standard, URL: http://www.derstandard.at (time treatment20.05.98).
[26*] Erschowa M. Honnigland – Bitterland. 1999.- S. 31. [27*] Erschowa M. Honnigland – Bitterland. 1999.- S. 102.
[28*] Newspaper Der Standard, URL: http: / / www.derstandard.at (circulation time21.08.12).
[29*] Newspaper Der Standard, URL: http://www.derstandard.at (time of treatment – 04.01.98).
[30*] Newspaper Der Standard, URL: http: / / www. derstandard.at (time of treatment – 20.06.13).
[31*] Newspaper Der Standard, URL: http: / / www.derstandard.at (circulation time – 05.09.17).
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[32*] H. G. Konsalik Das gestohlene Glück. - 4. Aufl. -Bayreuth: Hestia Verl., 1986.- S.
253.
[33*] Newspaper Der Standard, URL: http: / / www. derstandard.at (time of treatment – 20.06.14).
[34*] Newspaper "Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung", URL: http://www.faz.net (time of treatment – 05.09.16).
[35*] Newspaper "Kleine Zeitung", URL: http: / / www.kleinezeitung.at (access time – 20.06.15).
[36*] Petz E. Flucht in den Tod. - S. 162.
[37*] Newspaper "Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung", URL: http://www.faz.net (time of treatment – 05.09.16).
[38*] Autengruber E. Neuestes Kleines Bezirkgericht. - S. 189. [39*] B. Frischmuth Die Ferienfamilie. S. 15
[40*] Newspaper "Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung", URL: http://www.faz.net (time of treatment – 05.09.16).
[41*] Magazine "Spiegel online", URL: http://www.spiegel.de (time of treatment – 05.12.17).
[42*] Newspaper "Kleine Zeitung", URL: http: / / www.kleinezeitung.at (access time – 20.06.13).
[43*] Magazine "Manager Magazin", URL:http://www.mapperg-magazin.de (time of treatment – 15.11.17).
[44*] Magazine "Spiegel online", URL: http: / / www.spiegel.de (circulation time – 15.11.17).
[45*] Newspaper "Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung", URL: http://www.faz.net (time of treatment – 05.09.16).
[46*] Newspaper Der Standard, URL: http://derstandard.at (circulation time-15.11.17). [47*] Newspaper "Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung", URL: http://www.faz.net (time of
treatment – 05.09.16).
[48*] Newspaper "Der Standard ", URL: http://derstandard.at (time of treatment – 15.11.17).
[49*] Newspaper Der Standard, URL: http://derstandard.at (circulation time-15.11.17).
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UDC 821.41
SYMBOLS IN MODERN ARABIC LITERATURE
N.A. Uspenskaya
____________________________________________________________________________
Moscow State Institute
of International Relations (University).
Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation. Moscow, Russia. Candidate of Philological Sciences,
Associate Professor of the Department of Middle East Languages Nina A. Uspenskaya
e-mail: n.uspenskaya@mail.ru
____________________________________________________________________________
Statement of the problem. The objective of this article is to analyse the role and place of such artistic devices as symbols in modern Arabic Literature. These artistic devices have been widely used by many Arabic writers. However, the role of symbols in realism differs greatly from that which they have in modernism. The author's intent is to show this difference by means of examples from the works or renowned Arabic writers.
Results. The article shows the difference between symbols used by writers working in different literary schools and genres, i.e. realism and existential modernism, to be more precise. The author comes to a conclusion that despite the frequent use of symbols, the analysed works of Yahya Haqqy should be attributed to realism. The article specifies the typical traits of symbols used by literary realists and modernists. The former makes their symbols evolve in the real world and use them to depict this world. The latter, however, use symbols to sophisticate the emotional and subjective sides of their characters.
Conclusion. The evolution of realism brought about a whole arsenal of various artistic devices, and thus the application of symbols became more narrow and specific, i.e. to convey a multifaceted universal idea. Having a wide range of artistic devices and their disposal, artists use symbols when they need to solve complex creative problems which cannot be resolved otherwise. This is the case in the literary works of Egyptian writers Yahya Haqqy and Abu Al-Muata Abu An-Naga. Their symbols a clear, nonfictional and they match the realistic nature of their stories. However, the picture is totally different in the modernistic works of a Syrian writer Ghadah As-Samman. Here symbols depict an unknown substance which is unfathomable and unimaginable. The symbols in her stories are as vague and strange as is insufficient the understanding of their inner worlds by her characters. Here her symbols are extremely complex and vague.
Key words: Arabic, literature, development, realism, symbol, symbols, modernism, slice of life, psychologism.
For citation: Uspenskaya N.A. Symbols in modern Arabic literature / N.A. Uspenskaya // Scientific
Journal “Modern Linguistic and Methodical-and-didactic Researches”. – 2018. - №1 (20). – P. 57 - 66.
Introduction.
In the last two centuries the history of Arabic literature as a whole has been characterised by the emergence of modern national literatures and their evolution in the context of the global literary process. Modern Arabic literature is the result of the transformation of the Late Middle Ages literature. For example, Egypt pioneered the new system of literary genres which emerged there in the early 20th century. The genres evolved along the lines of literary realism and reached their zenith in the middle of the 20th century [1, p. 6]. It is noteworthy that at first young writers took cues from Western literature and thus boldly used various artistic devices, including symbols.
Research Methodology.
The use of such artistic device as symbols depends on the nature of the literary work in ques
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© Uspenskaya N.A., 2018
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tion, i.e. whether it belongs to realism or modernism. The author of this article aims to analyse and demonstrate this difference on specific examples from the works of modern Arabic prosaists. The author believes the comparative method to be the best way to achieve this, as it allows identifying the characteristic differences in the works of authors representing different artistic schools by means of collating the artistic devices they use. When analysing the works of an Arabic poet Yahya Haqqy and those of a great Russian poet Nikolay Nekrasov, the author had to resort, to a degree, to the method of literary comparativism, which made it possible to identify the commonalities in the use of symbols in different national literatures and across different historical periods. In a way this also helped define the place of Yahya Haqqy in world literature. In addition to this the article also benefits from the use of the psychological method which allows showing the character of the writer as well as his protagonist, their evolution and ethical choices in order to take a look at the writer's creative laboratory.
The role of indirect allegorical artistic devices and, to be more precise, symbols in realism can be understood from the following quote of Georgiy Fridlender, a scholar of the 19th century Russian literature: "In the art and literature of the pre-realism period s y m b o l s were often the only artistic device to express an idea. At that time art, while dealing with and addressing many aspects of reality out of necessity, used only indirect and symbolic devices to express them – any other means of depicting the same phenomena were unavailable" [2, p. 121].
The role of symbols changed as realism evolved. It turned from an indispensable and only mode of expression into just one of many. Now an author could choose to use symbols from a plethora of other artistic devices because they suited his creative vision best. At the same time the role of the so-called "direct" modes of expression in realism became more prominent, while the indirect, allegorical, fantastic and symbolic artistic devices, e.g. those characteristic of mythology, fairy tales, classic Arabic literature and Arabic epic poems, diminished.
Writers, who frequently used metaphoric symbols, were often labelled symbolists. This is especially true for Egyptian literary critics. For example, Ali Ar-Rai [3, p. 155] attributed the works of Yahya Haqqy, a renowned writer of the mid-20th century, to symbolism, basing his conclusions on the fact that symbols were one of Haqqy's favorite artistic devices. However, one should not limit oneself to the characterization of a writer's artistic devices alone while analysing the evolution of his art. It is the extent of an author's impartiality while depicting the main traits of the evolution of a person's social and private life that should be the main focus.
In our understanding, the most concise yet to-the-point definition of a symbol can be found in the Lermontov Encyclopedia: "A s y m b o l is such a kind of allusion that allows conveying a multifaceted universal idea that is impossible to express by any other abstract and logical means; this is considered to be the main difference between a symbol and an allegory, i.e. a relative and arbitrary illustration of an unambiguous message" [1**, p. 503].
The written works of a renowned Egyptian writer Yahya Haqqy are a vivid example of the accuracy of this definition.
Results.
He wrote a number of truly remarkable realistic works. It is noteworthy that he was frequently reproached for his excessive attention to mundane details and experiences, commonly referred to as "the slice of life". Haqqy's short story “A Bed of Copper” (As-Sariru AnNukhasiy) is one such work. It tells the story of a regular everyday normal Egyptian family. His protagonist Mrs. Adilya marries off her one and only beloved daughter Zeynab. She buys a bed made of copper and some other furniture as part of her daughter's dowry. Thusly all the events of the novel happen in the vicinity of this bed of copper. The author is truthful and extremely meticulous in depicting the lives of his characters. One can find detailed descriptions of food and gifts that Mrs. Adilya brings to her children and grandchildren. The simple scenes of everyday life provide the reader with an opportunity to trace and explore the relations between the
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individual members of the family. Thus the utmost clarity of description in the story makes it possible to call it realistic.
So by means of meticulously detailed and truthful depiction of the lives of his characters and their living conditions Haqqy managed to put a finger on and describe the typical generalities and patterns of social life. However, none of the characters was granted as much attention as the bed. Its detailed, impressive and sometimes even exalted description points to the fact that this bed is not just some functional and secondary item. For example:
"The bed's headboard was decorated with an ornament or interlacing circumferences, big and small, attached to one another by tiny nails with shiny heads. In fact, this headboard resembled a relic attracting pilgrims. Such a bed is impossible to miss, it is the witness of former glorious days, and there is absolutely no doubt in one's mind that no other bed will grant a well-deserved rest in full" [1*, p. 39].
It may seem at first that the comparison of the bed's headboard to a relic attracting pilgrims is over-the-top. At the same time, it is apparent that the writer attaches special significance to this object. Here is another example:
"This bed is Zeynab's comfort and joy, it is her sanctuary that grants her solace at the end of a busy day... She cannot imagine her life if this bed were taken away from her. While visiting her mother in Damanhur she is dreaming of her bed for parting with which even her mother's embrace is not a fair trade" [1*, p. 40].
This description is yet another proof of the significance of this item.
Certain traits which can only be found in a living person are attributed to this inanimate object: it is as if the bed is approving of the actions of the characters, pities them, harbingers misfortune. Sometimes it even acquires certain features of higher powers and beings:
"...for reasons unknown there was this almost palpable feeling in the room that the bed was ready to accomplish its new mission, i.e. to accommodate Azrael and actually witness the departure of a soul, while the body would be cooling down gradually until it grew completely stiff" [1*, p. 43].
This bed is imbued with the aura of the nobleness of Mrs. Adilya who embodies the best of middle class traits and qualities: piety, virtue, self-sacrifice and devotion. The image of the bed is not static like that of an inanimate object, on the contrary it is in constant evolution. At first the bed is new and beautiful with those shiny spheres adorning its headboard. But then the reader sees how it ages and loses its gloss and luster while still retaining its solidity and sublimity.
Thus, the role of the bed in this short novel is that of an important symbol with the help of which the writer depicts the lifestyle and modus vivendi of Egyptian middle class.
“Winding Stair” (Sullamun Laulabiy), a short story by the same author, can serve as yet another example. Here readers find the description of black stairs used by the servants of the rich:
"These black iron stairs, winding and twisting along the walls of grandiose mansions like some parasitic worms, resemble gigantic drill bits. They can be easily compared to any of the most devious and sophisticated instruments of torture devised by the Spanish Inquisition" [4, p. 2].
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Haqqy simultaneously describes the grand staircases of those luxurious mansions. These staircases are glittering and shining with squeaky cleanness. A servant guides guests to a comfortable elevator. Thus, these two types of stairs symbolize the drastic contrast between the lifestyle of the poor, forced throughout their whole lives to climb those terrible steep black stairs (compared by the author to the implements of torture of the Spanish Inquisition) to the upper floors, and that of the rich and famous enjoying clean and comfortable elevators.
The protagonist of this short story is Fargalah, a small boy who delivers food for a living and gets into trouble when he is bitten by a dog of a wealthy client. The story of Fargalah is told with utmost realism. It is just an episode in the life of a nobody doomed to serve his entire life. The dog's mistress, afraid that the boy would call the police, displayed kindness, gave him a lot of sweets and promised to help him, if he got into any trouble. However, when the boy really came seeking help, he was chased away. The writer shows here Fargalah's naiveté, the callousness of rich people and the chasm between different social classes. The antithesis of the winding stares to the grand staircases symbolizes the contrast in the lifestyles of the disadvantaged, who are restricted to using the black backdoor stairs only, and the wealthy who not only use the grand stairs but enjoy all the comforts of life. These symbols are extremely vivid, almost palpable, and they make an integral part of the story which is told in a realistic manner.
In a way the work of this Arabic author reminds of a poem by Nikolay Nekrasov Musings at the Front Door [3*, p. 47], in which the genre assessment triggers the contemplation about the fate of the Russian people and society as a whole. The description of the front door is the centerpiece of the poem written in the realistic genre and spiced up with satire and generalization. Nekrasov uses this background to show the lazy and indifferent nobility and the poor, and thus the poem gains a generalized symbolic meaning, while the town depicted in it becomes the symbol of Russian life, and the characters attain symbolic universality. Yahya Haqqy lamented the hardships of all the debased and disempowered Egyptians [6, p. 75] just as Nekrasov, as Dostoevsky had rightly put it, had "grieved over the suffering of the Russian people" [5, p. 73].
Metaphoric symbols play an important role in Yahya Haqqy's novel “The Saint’s lamp”(Qandeel Om Hashem). He received the Gamal Abdel Nasser National Literary Award [7, p. 95] for this novel, which has been one of the Egyptians' favorites ever since. This short novel tells a story of a young Egyptian doctor, who received his education abroad and returned to Egypt to serve his people with his newly acquired knowledge and skills. Upon his return he faces a lot of difficulties, as at first the Western treatment methods do not seem to have any effect. The protagonist experiences many disappointments and even conflicts with his family. All the events are described realistically, all the characters are pretty much real people representing various classes of Egyptian and Western societies. Metaphoric symbols make up the second layer in the novel. It is quite possible that regular everyday normal readers (which accounted for the bulk of Haqqy's audience, i.e. peasants and workers to whom his works were addressed, first and foremost) may completely miss them. Here I am taking the liberty to argue that such a large-scale symbolic generalization had never been his intent. Maybe this was the result of the masterfully depicted typical characters, typical setting and the topical issue of East-West relations. Debates between the proponents of the Western path of development and the zealots of traditional national development have been ongoing since the Napoleonic Wars and have not lost any of their topicality. The image of the West in the works of Arabic writers and philosophers has been extremely contradictory, for some it is an example to follow, while for others - an eternal oppressor, exploiter and robber.
At the same time, it is noteworthy that the critics and the literary community immediately grasped the symbolic element of the novel, and many of them (e.g. Ali Ar-Rai and Naim Atiya [8, p. 149] tried to attribute it to symbolism. In their opinion the protagonist Ismail symbolizes a young Egypt standing at a crossroads about to choose its path of development in the middle of the 20th century. One of the arguments the critics use to substantiate their position is the fact that the protagonist's name is Ismail, the same as the son born to Abraham and Hagar, the fore-
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father of all Egyptians. However, Ismail is one of the most common names in Egypt, and thus it is difficult to say whether the author attributed such a meaning to this character or not.
These critics, however, think that every character in this novel is symbolic.
Ismail's father Sheikh Rajab symbolizes traditional Egypt with its ancient way of life. Islam is the expression of higher law, jus divinum and communal conscience for Egyptians. In their eyes there is no sin greater than blasphemy. If a commoner is not engaged in some kind of activity, it is very likely that he will be saying his prayers. Such are the observations of A.V. Vasilyev, a renowned Russian orientalist [9, p. 186]. And such is also this character. His only instruction to his son when sending the latter abroad was to stay true to his faith.
Mary, a young British doctor, embodies Western science and civilization. Her main traits are rationality and practicality. She is talented and disciplined and achieves much in her career, however she considers the notions of pity, compassion and conscience harmful and unacceptable for both her profession and science in general.
Madam Iftaliya symbolizes foreign bourgeoisie in Egypt which is also characterized by rationality and practicality together with the absence of any moral compass and human decency. Its representatives rip off their clients with the same cold cynicism for which the British were notoriously known during their predatory colonial rule over Egypt.
Such are these symbols in the opinion of the Egyptian critics. And while this argument is debatable, the significance of other symbols, i.e. the Al-Sayeda Zainab Square and the lantern inside the Al-Sayeda Zainab Mosque is evident beyond any shadow of doubt.
Om Hashem is another name of Sayyida Zaynab bint Ali, a saint and daughter of Ali and the foremother of the Hashemite dynasty. One of Cairo's lower-class neighborhoods, where the Al-Sayeda Zainab Mosque is, is named after the saint.1 In daytime the square is always filled with people, trade is lively and agitated. It also attracts many beggars. One can find quite a few blind, lame and crippled among those offering prayers. They come not only to pray and ask for Om Hashem's blessing, but to buy a phial of oil from the lantern hanging above the saint's tomb. Legend has it that this oil is imbued with healing power and cures the ailments of true believers. In the evening, when the square grows empty, men gather in coffee shops along its perimeter. Those of these shops which are bathed in the light of the sacred lantern are the most popular.
It is in this square where the plot of the novel develops. All of the events of the story take place nearby. It is to this square and to the mosque that Ismail comes in the hardest moments of his life. It is not coincidence that Haqqy uses the name of Om Hashem so frequently. Nor is it by chance that it became the title of the abovementioned novel. This name is a very important symbol in Egypt. It symbolizes the unity of the Egyptian nation, its identity, unshakable, staunch and proven faith. And this is exactly what the Al-Sayeda Zainab Square and the lantern hanging inside the mosque built in Zainab's honor mean in Haqqy's novel. These symbols come about several times as the plot develops, however their role changes over time rather than remains static. The square is visited by the novel's protagonist Ismail as well as some other characters looking for answers to their questions. At first the protagonist is greatly disappointed in his people and country to which he intended to dedicate his life.
"Ismail felt like a bird caught in a net and then put in a cage. He felt bound in his own home he could not stand and chained to the square he loathed" [4*, P. 31].
Ismail storms into the mosque and shatters the lantern which he currently perceives as the symbol of bigotry. However, he used to regard it differently when he was a child:
"It was here like a kind and calm all-seeing and all-forgiving gaze. Its light shone gently over the saint's tomb and resembled a face of a mother feeding her child about to fall
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asleep in her arms. The flickering of the flame was like the beat of a heart overflowing with love and adoration" [4*, p. 12].
At the novel's end Ismail approaches the mosque on the Night of Destiny which has special significance for Muslims (legend has it that it is on this night that the Quran was revealed). Ismail is overwhelmed with doubt when he suddenly sees the light engulfing the mosque's dome. It glows from within, and the protagonist perceives this as a sign of divine power.
"Having lifted his head up, Ismail saw the lantern that brought about the sensation of beautiful all-seeing and all-understanding eyes looking at him. It seemed they were winking and smiling at him. Oh Light! Where have you been hiding all these years? Now I see what has been hidden from me, there can be no science without faith!" [4*, p. 36].
Thus, the symbols of the square and the lantern change together with the mindset of the protagonist. They stay with Ismail throughout the novel and reach their climax at its end when a crisis situation he faces is resolved [10, p. 181].
The story told in this novel is largely, if not in its entirety, inspired by the life of its author. It lays his feelings bare in the most accurate manner. There are many regular everyday realia here which leave no doubt as to the realistic nature of this work. The description of another character, the mosque's sheikh, proves this point:
"Ismail smiled every time he saw sheikh Dardiri, who served at the mosque, amidst women. He resembled a cock in a henhouse. He knew every single one of them and always asked about those absent. He took a candle from one and helped another to approach the donation box" [4*, p. 9].
Sheikh Dardiri slyly sells the oil from the lantern hanging above the tomb of saint Om Hashem to believers:
"This was a great source of income for sheikh Dardiri, however one could not say that he lived a carefree life of plenty. Well, in this case, what was he doing with that money? Did he hide it under floor boards? Rumour was that he was a hashish addict, hence his constant coughing and inclination to various jokes. However, the reason was totally different. The sheikh was a polygamist and married a new bride almost every year" [4*, p. 9].
Not only does this description attest to the realistic nature of the novel, but to its author's rather liberal approach to depicting such realia as the activities of the ministers of religion. At the same time, it is noteworthy that Haqqy's psychology together with his strict Islamic upbringing have influenced all of his works. They always underline the need to reinforce one's belief and faith's positive influence on moral education [11, p. 79].
Another modern Egyptian writer Abu Al-Muaty Abu An-Naga uses just one symbol – the stench of burning and smoke as if from burning trash – throughout his story “That Face and That Smell” (Thalika-l-Wajh wa Tilka-r-Raikha) [12, p. 47]. It appears at the very beginning of the story when at first it is only the protagonist (who is also the narrator) who notices it. The stench symbolizes rotten and amoral relations in a society which at first glance seems to be well-to-do. It is only the protagonist who understands that that well-being is superficial. The story ends with its characters finding themselves in a casino on the seashore. It is there that everyone becomes aware of the stench. A rather popular show is on at the casino – when the night falls a ship is set on fire off shore. The members of the hired crowd run in panic across the deck and then jump off the burning ship with screams of despair. The audience, having forgotten food and drinks, enjoys the show observing it from a terrace while listening to music.
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Scientific Journal “Modern Linguistic and Methodical-and-Didactic Researches” Issue 1 (20), 2018 ISSN 2587-8093
The authors of all of the abovementioned literary works use symbols to achieve the desired scale of description and depth of the events, while keeping the realistic nature of their stories intact. What makes this possible is the fact that these symbols are in line with the authors' key objective, i.e. to depict real life. This could serve to support A.F. Losev's idea that: "any art, even the most realistic, cannot do without complex symbolic imagery" [13, p.190].
Based upon the abovementioned examples one can come to the conclusion that in no way does the presence of symbols in realistic literary works contradict realism as a genre. On the contrary, it reinforces it. It is quite often that objects or characters depicted with meticulous realism are turned into symbols which become vessels capable of accommodating the full depth of an author's vision and intent.
However, the symbols used in literary modernism, which also convey the ideas of existentialism, are very different. A story titled The Fangs of a Lonely Man by Ghadah AsSamman, a Syrian and Lebanese writer, is a good example. The researcher of her works N.M. Shuyskaya points out in her study “The Poetess of Short Stories” the presence of the key ideas of Arabic existentialist writers in G. As-Samman's artistic method from the very onset of her literary career. Those, in their turn, "were congruent with the main philosophical and aesthetic provisions of Western existentialism (its atheistic branch), - at that time modernism permeated the very air they breathed" [14, p.10].
For the sake of clarity, I would like to specify my understanding of modernism as an ideological literary school of which the purpose is to leave the classical canon behind and seek new and often radical forms of expression. Usually this genre depicts life in a fragmented and chaotic manner. As far as existentialism goes, it is a literary school which evolved as part of existential philosophy for which human existence and perception of society are the main areas of attention. Thus, it is through this perception that the events and characters are depicted in existential literary works. This genre can be often characterized by pessimism, anxiety and the meaninglessness of existence.
The works of Ghadah As-Samman are an outstanding example of these genres. The following extract from her story “The Fangs of a Lonely Man” attests to this:
"The white light on his desk burns clear and bright so that he can see the letters: he spent all nights long trying to figure out their mystery. This white light used to be his only friend which held a lot of meaning for him. But now he regards it with hatred. He puts another lamp next to it, this one in the shape of a snake which burns with red light. He turns both the white and the red lights on. And he sees that the white light lamp is in dire straits, because the snake advances bearing the red curse on its fangs. It seems to him that his old friend, the white light lamp, regards him with reproach and asks for his help. With the hatred which Satan himself would envy, he grabs it from the desk and throws it out of the window. And the room becomes trapped in weak red glow" [14, p. 208].
This complex symbol reflects the disposition of the character whose impending death has been foretold. In this example the white light lamp, the white light itself, the snake shaped lamp and its red light acquire mystical hues which enable them to advance, suppress, ask for help and act as friends just like people. These inanimate symbols and their specific traits are equalized with those of humans, thus creating the impression, that they themselves are about to speak.
In “There's No Sea in Beirut”, another story by the same author, it is the sea that becomes the symbol of the protagonist's emotional stress:
"The sea has always been submissive and tamed by the scorching heat of the August sun. Never has she seen a fish breach its surface, nor heard the soft murmur of the waves, nor the creak of oars or the songs of those pulling them. She started to doubt if that sea over there was real. It seemed to her that it was just a bleak grey painting on a hard board
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