Tradition and Modernity in Laila Halaby’s West of the Jordan (2003) and Leila Aboulela’s Lyrics Alley (2010)
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Date
2025
Authors
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Journal ISSN
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Publisher
Université Mouloud Mammeri Tizi Ouzou
Abstract
This dissertation is a study of tradition and modernity in Leila Halaby West of the Jordan (2003) and laila aboulela lyrics Alley (2010) it has examined the ways in which the two authors have subverted cultural heritage and contemporary realities within Arab societies and Diaspora contexts. Focus has been put on how both authors have provided similar visions of their respective countries. To frame this analysis, the dissertation draws on Homi K. Bhabha‘s theory of The Location of Culture (1994), particularly his concept of hybridity where cultural meaning and identity are negotiated. Additionally, the study incorporates insights from Chandra Talpade Mohanty‘s postcolonial feminist theory, which allows for a nuanced reading of gender dynamics and the impact of colonial and patriarchal structures on women in postcolonial and Diasporic contexts. Through a detailed textual analysis, the dissertation explores how both novels depict central themes such as tradition, family structures, gender roles, religious values, and personal identity. The research reveals how characters in these narratives confront the challenges of integrating modern values with traditional norms, often resulting in the emergence of a hybrid cultural space that reflects both resistance to and assimilation of change.We have come to the conclusion that both novels highlight family gender roles, religion and identity and portray how diasporic societies struggle toward modern values trying to integrate it to their own, landing to a third space which we explored. finally, the analysis of the two texts has revealed the authors‘ stance on patriarchy and its traditional norms and how it was infected by the modern codes changing it into a hybrid system that reflects both resistance to and acceptance of change.
Description
68p. ; (+CD-Rom)
Keywords
Tradition, Modernity, Homi K. Bhabha, West of the Jordan, Lyrics Alley
Citation
Literature and Civilisation