Stefan G. Meyer teaches at Siena Heights University.

"This book has a great deal to offer, particularly at a time when Arab-Islamic cultures are coming under close scrutiny by the media and the public at large." — Comparative Literature Studies"…a significant book for Middle East and comparative literature collections." — CHOICE"An exceptionally deep analysis of modernist developments in the Arabic novel of the Levant, evaluating its most recent experimental phase and clarifying the debate about modernism and postmodernism in relation to it among Arab critics, theoreticians, and others." — Issa J. Boullata, author of Trends and Issues in Contemporary Arab Thought"The issues raised have been tackled by leading scholars in the field, but only in piecemeal fashion. The global view attempted here is unprecedented and illuminating." — Pierre Cachia, author of An Overview of Modern Arabic Literature

• AcknowledgmentsPrefaceArabic Transliteration SymbolsGlossaries of Arabic Names Introduction: The Experimental Arabic Novel and Comparative Modernisms 1. Modernist Ambivalence and the Beginnings of Narrative Experimentation Existentialism and the Fragmentation of Narrative VoiceThe Defamiliarization of NarrativeThe Strategy of Ironic Distance 2. Recovering the Past: The "Arabization" of the Novel Cultural and Historical Counternarrative: Abdelrahman MunifMagical Realism: Salim BarakatFolk Narrative and Subjective Expression 3. Rediscovering the Present: The Lebanese Civil War Fragmented Reportage: Ghada SammanThe Patchwork Novel: Elias KhouryThe Dynamics of War and SexualityThe Novel of Interior Situations 4. Redefining the Future: Questions of Artistic Choice The "Mirage of Language" and the "Dust of Life"The Conflict between Political and Artistic CommitmentThe Limits of Masculine PerspectiveThe Dialectical SolutionMimicking Postmodernity Conclusion: The Experimental Arabic Novel and Postmodern Discourse NotesBibliographyIndex

Stefan G. Meyer teaches at Siena Heights University.

"This book has a great deal to offer, particularly at a time when Arab-Islamic cultures are coming under close scrutiny by the media and the public at large." — Comparative Literature Studies"…a significant book for Middle East and comparative literature collections." — CHOICE"An exceptionally deep analysis of modernist developments in the Arabic novel of the Levant, evaluating its most recent experimental phase and clarifying the debate about modernism and postmodernism in relation to it among Arab critics, theoreticians, and others." — Issa J. Boullata, author of Trends and Issues in Contemporary Arab Thought"The issues raised have been tackled by leading scholars in the field, but only in piecemeal fashion. The global view attempted here is unprecedented and illuminating." — Pierre Cachia, author of An Overview of Modern Arabic Literature

• AcknowledgmentsPrefaceArabic Transliteration SymbolsGlossaries of Arabic Names Introduction: The Experimental Arabic Novel and Comparative Modernisms 1. Modernist Ambivalence and the Beginnings of Narrative Experimentation Existentialism and the Fragmentation of Narrative VoiceThe Defamiliarization of NarrativeThe Strategy of Ironic Distance 2. Recovering the Past: The "Arabization" of the Novel Cultural and Historical Counternarrative: Abdelrahman MunifMagical Realism: Salim BarakatFolk Narrative and Subjective Expression 3. Rediscovering the Present: The Lebanese Civil War Fragmented Reportage: Ghada SammanThe Patchwork Novel: Elias KhouryThe Dynamics of War and SexualityThe Novel of Interior Situations 4. Redefining the Future: Questions of Artistic Choice The "Mirage of Language" and the "Dust of Life"The Conflict between Political and Artistic CommitmentThe Limits of Masculine PerspectiveThe Dialectical SolutionMimicking Postmodernity Conclusion: The Experimental Arabic Novel and Postmodern Discourse NotesBibliographyIndex