The Poetics of Contrast Between Western and Arab Thought

Researchers in literary circles frequently use the term ”poeticism”due to the ambiguity that often surrounds literary texts. This term clarifies the obscurities by offering explanation and reveals the underlying elements through the application of theory, analysis, and commentary. This paper presented to your academic conference aims to investigate the use of poetic contradiction on poetry, examining the impact of oppositions on poetry and identifying its effects through practical application. Early scholars paid significant attention to the poetry that dominated the scene at the time, starting with Ibn Salam and Al -Jahedh up to the closest terms to the modern poetic theory such as Abd al Qahir al-Jurjani ’s theory of of composition and Hazim al-qartaganni’s poetic theory. In the twentieth century, with the emergence of structuralist thought in its formal phase, poetic methodology also appeared as a modern approach, referred to by various names, such as poeticism, aesthetics, and stylistics. It evolved into a scientific subject at the hands of the critic Roman Jakobson, who defined its scientific nature as stemming from linguistic structures, making it central to his position on poetry. It was also associated with the French philosopher Todorov. However, in modern poetics, Kamal Abu Deeb is considered at the forefront of Arab critics. He discussed it in terms of relationality and totality, while Abdullah Al-Ghadhami refers to it as ”poetic.”Among the prominent contemporary theorists is Adonis, who argues that meter cannot be considered a sufficient criterion for distinguishing between poetry and prose. The study aims to understand binary oppositions and highlight their significance in uncovering creativity and artistic beauty. Abdul Qahir al-Jurjani emphasized the importance of antithesis and its role in shaping the artistic image. The credit for the emergence of the concept of opposition is attributed to the linguist Ferdinand de Saussure, and critics have relied on the contributions of Western thought. Then, the concept of the poetics of contrast is introduced, highlighting its reliance on the creative text in its composition. Embracing the essence of poetics while ignorance becomes a rein on creativity and excitement makes the recipient more captivated by it.