Manifestations of psychological anxiety in the poetry of Abu al-Qasim al-Shabbi - An analytical approach

Abstract

This research examines the phenomenon of psychological anxiety in the poetry of Abu al-Qasim al-Shabbi, a modern Tunisian poet of the 20th century who lived between the First and Second World Wars, a time when the Arab world was grappling with the duality of its painful present and its recent, flawed past.

However, our poet did not hesitate for long before finding his path and composing his poetry without hesitation, soaring to great heights until death snatched him away in the prime of his youth. Through this research, we have explored this phenomenon, which permeated much of his poetry, both explicitly and implicitly.

The study, through its selected models, aimed to explore the poet’s investment in this phenomenon and the possibility of instilling it in his poetry. All of this came in three sections with different titles and cases, relying on the descriptive analytical method to reach the most prominent results that formed the clear feature of this study

Therefore, my research required a comprehensive plan divided into an introduction, three sections, a conclusion, and a bibliography. In the introduction, I addressed the state of psychological anxiety experienced by poets in particular, and poets in general, and then elaborated on this phenomenon.

The first section dealt with political anxiety, as Al-Shabbi was among the revolutionary poets who opposed the ruling authority at the time. The second section also addressed political anxiety because our poet faced numerous hardships in his country, forcing him to leave and live abroad. The third section explored the concept of space and time, encompassing both time and place, as Al-Shabbi experienced psychological crises in both. The conclusion summarized my findings, and the research concluded with a list of the most important sources that contributed to my research journey.