Arab American Poetry 1967-Present: Songs of Defiance and Hope in the Face of Arab-U.S. Political Tension

Abstract

This study examines Arab American poetry 1967-Present in light of the political tension between the United States and the Arab World. It explores the ways in which the Arab American community has been greatly impacted by such frequent political pressures as the Arab-Israeli conflict, violent events in the Middle East, and America's foreign policy in the region. The poems discussed in this dissertation reveal the community's collective anxieties, alienation, and fears due to hostility, anti-Arab racism, and media misrepresentation that often escalate during every crisis involving the U.S. and the Middle East. Analysis of these poems demonstrates a defiant response to a tense situation coupled with glimpses of hope for a better future. It also reveals the complexities of Arab American identity evident in the constantly ambivalent relationship between Arab and American contexts that is exacerbated by frequent political crises. Arab American poets address themes of war, violence, injustice, and hegemony, simultaneously touching upon deeper issues of belonging, hybridity, interrogation of identity, and reconciliation.

My dissertation aims at emphasizing the role of politics in the Arab American experience since 1967, as well as the role of Arab American poetry in articulating post-1967 Arab America. This study traces political events chronologically, and each of its chapters begins with a major political crisis in order to reflect the persistence of a strained Arab-U.S. relationship throughout the past decades. Thus, Chapter One begins with the 1967 Arab-Israeli War, Chapter Two with the First Gulf War of 1991, and Chapter Three with 9/11. As seen throughout the three chapters, Arab American poets seem to be singing songs of defiance and hope, critiquing the chaotic political realities both in the Middle East and domestically within the U.S., while holding onto their aspirations for a better Arab America. Between Arab homelands and the United States resides the collective tension of Arab Americans whose poetry discussed in this work tells the stories of strong Arab American voices against injustices and discrimination. The Conclusion of my dissertation sheds light on the current and future challenges that Arab Americans in general, and individual poets in particular, confront, as well as their constantly renewed responsibility to define and defend their community, especially during times of political turmoil.