In Search of an Alternative…
Iraq is in chaos, with no end to the war in sight. Palestine, or rather what are now called the Palestinian territories, have been divided into Fatah and Hamas controlled areas. Lebanon, a year after last summer’s war, is politically, economically and socially weakened. Syria, accused of supporting terrorists and purchasing Russian made anti-aircraft missiles, is under the threat of a possible attack from Israel and/or America. Meanwhile Saudi Arabia and a number of other Gulf states have signed an arms deal with the US worth twenty billion dollars. A look at the state of affairs across the Middle East necessitates the asking of certain questions, namely how we, as Arab nations, have ended up in this situation and how on earth we are meant to get out of it.
“Write down, I am an Arab!” wrote Palestinian poet Mahmoud Darwish in 1963,
A sentiment held by many Arabs around this time. There was a sense of unity, an Arab Awakening, as millions stood up and insisted that they were Arabs before anything else. However, since then, this sentiment has gradually faded and instead has been replaced by a much more religious identity. There is an array of key events that we could maintain influenced this shift, such as the 1967 war, the 1973 war, the Iranian revolution, the use of Afghani fighters in the toppling of the Soviet Union, the Iran/Iraq war, the Lebanese civil war, the first Intifada, the first Gulf war, the second Intifada and now of course the ongoing second Iraq war. Yet, although each of these events left us in a more precarious position, they cannot be solely blamed for the weakening of this sense of unity among the Arabs.
There is an inescapable correlation between the state we are in today, as a fundamentally divided Middle East, and the exclusive religiosity of it and our view of our own history. Nietzsche, in On the Use and Abuse of History for Life distinguishes between three types of history, each of which, if used excessively or in the wrong way, proves to be suppressive and destructive. However if used in unison and in balance with one another, history then proves to be productive and beneficial to the present. History must serve life; life should not simply be a tool to promote a history.
The first type of history is monumental history, the history of momentous events. Unfortunately, we often cling too strongly to these events, blinding ourselves from the possibilities of our own present. Instead, monumental history should be used to instil in us a faith in humanity, for “the greatest moments in the struggle of single individuals make up a chain, in which a range of mountains of humanity are joined over thousands of years.”[1]
Antiquarian history signifies a love of the past, which may be considered something that preserves our traditions and cultures. However all too often this love of the past is used to define how we should live, what we should think and essentially who we should be — today.
“The Arabs find themselves – in spite of all the changes of the last fourteen centuries – moving on a stage where history is repeating itself with just one objective: the continual actualization of the past.”[2]
From too young an age, we are taught that the peak of our existence as Arabs has passed, such as the time of Prophet Mohammed (PBUH), the Caliphate, the Ottoman Empire. We were once great, now we merely exist in our own shadows. We are taught to rarely question, to do as we are told according to our flawed preconceptions of our own cultures and religions.
Most importantly however is a critical history, where we should be able to critically examine the past and shatter our preconceived ideas of it in order to truly live in the present, unhistorically. Regrettably, we have failed to critically examine our own history, and as Nietzsche stresses it is only through destruction, as it were, that creativity is truly possible. Consequently it is only when we can use these three methods of history in the right manner and proportion that we can truly live unhistorically and thus successfully exercise our creativity.
Nietzsche also emphasises the importance of the youth – for whom the historical sense is perhaps the least dominant – if there is to be any hope for the future. It is in light of their importance that history is so often misused against them in order to “uproot the strongest instincts of youth, fire, defiance, forgetting of the self, to dampen down the heat of their sense of right and wrong, to hold back or repress the desire to mature slowly with the contrary desire to be finished quickly, to be useful and productive, to infect the honesty and boldness of the feelings with doubts. Indeed, history is itself capable of deceiving the young about their most beautiful privilege, about their power to cultivate in themselves with complete conviction a great idea and to allow an even greater idea to grow forth out of it.”[3]
Therefore it is up to us, as Arab youth to ensure and continue to develop an even more outstanding time of creativity. We must know where we have come from, but have no irrational loyalty to the past, crippling us from being able to critically examine the errors of our past. We must not allow any of the corrupt governments, whatever their motive or incentive, to suppress our thoughts and our voices. It is through art, film, poetry and the creation of an alternative media that we can express ourselves and get our message out there. After all, our creative expression is all we have if we truly want to be free. “When you are free, you have to face reality, the world in its entirety. You have to deal with the world’s problems, with everything…. On the other hand, if we are slaves, we can be content and not have to deal with anything. Just as Allah solves all our problems, the dictator will solve all our problems.”[4]
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[1] Nietzsche, F. (1874) Untimely Meditations: On the Use and Abuse of History for Life. http://www.geocities.com/thenietzschechannel/history.htm
[2] Adonis. (2003) An Introduction to Arab Poetics. Saqi Books; London. pp. 78-9.
[3] Nietzsche, F. (1874) Untimely Meditations: On the Use and Abuse of History for Life. http://www.geocities.com/thenietzschechannel/history.htm
[4] Interview with Adonis (Ali Akbar Said),Syrian Poet. http://wahdah.blogspot.com/2006/03/adonis-interview.html
Originally published in the a-Rab.
http://a-rab.net/september-2007
Join the Conversation
This is an excellent and thought provoking article, Tamara. Your style of writing reminds me of Fouad Ajami. If you do not know his works, (especially the earlier stuff, like The Arab Predicament, I am not too fond of his current articles) you should check him out. Thanks for sharing.
I have not previously heard of him actually.. but a quick search of him pulls up some quite unsettling results. An advisor to Rice? A personal friend of Wolfowitz? A supporter of the Iraq war? Very unsettling indeed!
Indeed it is very hard to agree with his political stance, that’s why I said I’m not too fond of his current works – but I really do encourage you to read The Arab Predicament. There is much to learn from in that book (and much to disagree with) and despite it being initially written in the 80s, his arguments still apply today. He did predict a lot of the things that are going on right now, so I cannot dismiss his thoughts and ideas just because of his personal opinions on where he stands. I do think that for the most part (and especially during his earlier days) he knew a lot of what he was talking about. Lots of factual material in these books that are worth learning, and such an analysis is rare to come across, so despite what we may personally disagree with it’s still worth exploring these ideas.
Indeed… and I certainly will have a more indepth look into his works. Thanks..
Tamara,
Many parts of non-Muslim Africa, South America, and Asia have the same kind of problems as the MIddle East: violence and underdevelopment.
Part of the problem is caused by the military and politcal interventions of the United States and Europe. They preach human rights and democracy, but go around engaging in regime change and suppporting brutal dictators and kings who do their bidding.
Yes Randall, I agree with you 100%, and if you look at my blog you will see a number of essays I have written regarding such issues. http://tamaraalom.wordpress.com/
I was simply trying to look inward for once, something I think we all need to do, if we are to be truly honest and productive.
I think the problem in Palestine is not only Israeli occupation, but also Islamism, which is today incarnated in Hamas and set up by the IRI as a proxy force in the region.
Even if both Islamist movements, Hamas and Hezbollah, fight to push back Israel from the occupied territories, but intend to establish an Islamic state, a similar Iranian model and the risk of the same hisorical analogy, namely Iran was feed from Shah’s dictatorship then fell under the yoke of the current Islamism.
Although, Palestine has been long a symbol of heroic resistance, a history of fair combat against the aggression of Zionism, today, Hamas portrays another image of it, an image of jihad, Islamist intolerance, and an image of terror and suicide bombings, all of which twist the historical facts and fair cause of Palestinian people.
Today, Palestine needs its heroic past; therefore, needs democrat and secular momentum to fulfil people’s fair rights.
In my point of view, a pan-Arabism or pan-Islamism cannot guarantee independence, democracy, peace, progress, and prosperity for Palestine, but as seen, create a scapegoat of Zionist aggression and further apathy of the world community.
Firstly I would just like to point out that if it werent for the Israeli occupation, Hamas and the like would not exist (at least not in their current form). Regarding your observation on the changed image of the Palestinian resistance, I agree with you and have made reference to that in my work ‘Constructing Reality’.
As for Palestine’s need for its heroic past (if that is really what we could call it), is exactly what we do not want. We need to create a new path, using our history as a lesson not as our guide. There is no guarantee that anything will ensure independence, democracy etc. as long as the Israeli government continues along the lines it has taken.
Tamara
Hamas was founded in 1987 in Gaza by late Shaikh Ahmad Jassin, 8 years after installation of the IRI.
I agree with you that any exteremist forces would take the helm when democrats are combative enough.
So, Hamas’ naissance is not only a consequence of the rise of Islamism linked to the IRI, but also a related reaction to the deep frustration of Palestinians who were disappointed from the West.
This frustration is characterises by the continued postponement in the resolution of Palestinian conflicts, American foreign policies in their absolute support for the aggressive policies of Israel in its occupation of “Islamic” territories, corrupt local authorities.
Sunni Hamas is a today a protegé of the Shiite IRI; it follows a strict charter which is not different from IRI’s official policy towards Israel. According to this charter the State of Israel must be wiped off the region and replaced with an Islamic republic.
Furthermore, Hamas is not satisfied with any non-Islamic state in Palestine, its short coalition with Fatah was a forced tactic.
The political effects of hamas areg inspired, if not dictated, by the IRI and we know the position of the IRI vis-a-avis Fatah.
The Islamist, wherever they are, guided or inspired by the IRI, stage the question of state at the middle of their battleground. The legitimacy of such a state cannot be ignored. Therefore in the case of Palestinian independence, the PLO or any non-Islamist political force will not be for Hamas in the legitimate position to govern.
Hamas because of its priority for Islamism remains a proxy force of IRI’s agenda in the region and a potential problem for Palestinian interests.
Hamas opposes any peace process with Israel; it regards such a process a “betrayal of God’s will”. This is its fundamental difference with the PLO which in 1988 recognised Israel’s sovereignty.
Heroic history of a fair combat is a historical fact, it does not mean today’s Islamist violence, but a fair struggle also by various means.