The Literature of the Arabic Novel

(A Study of Novels about the Coronavirus Pandemic)

Abstract

The world witnessed a fateful turning point with the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic. Its repercussions were not confined to social, medical, and economic spheres; rather, they extended to disrupt human perception and induce an existential shock that left a profound impact on the Arabic novel. Consequently, the novel transformed into a 'narrative laboratory' tracking these fluctuations. This study examines three thematic and aesthetic dimensions: first, the transformation of the 'protagonist' from a social agent into a vulnerable being, confined within a forced isolation that intensified internal monologue; second, the 'paradox of space,' where the concept of home shifted from a secure sanctuary to a voluntary prison, while streets turned into silent spaces embodying mortality; and third, the mechanisms of 'aesthetic formation,' characterized by a monotonous, circular time, and the hybridization of genres through the deployment of medical jargon, digital lexicon, and dark humor. On the empirical level, the study analyzes existential anxiety across three novels: The Bats of Corona by Ibrahim Rasul, Love and Death by Abdelkader Amiche, and The Ramada Nightfalls by Waciny Laredj, And Corona by Qusay Al -Sheikh Aska.