THE GROTESQUE IN EVENTS OF PALESTINIAN VERY SHORT STORIES

Abstract

Objectives: In view of the changes that happened after Nakba which this reality wrought in all aspects of everyday life, we wish to see how this was reflected in very short stories and the extent to which writers used the grotesque in order to describe the unfortunate situation in which people found themselves, the resulting tendency to avoid the dominant ideologies and ideas and to attempt to promote marginal notions, for the purpose of stimulating the reader and restoring his equilibrium. Methods: In this study I will examine the use of grotesque events in very short stories written by Palestinians from three different sectors: Palestinians inside Israel, Palestinians in the West Bank and the Gaza Strip, and Palestinians abroad. Our aim is to discover how the distorted reality imposed by the wake of the War of 1948 affected the use of the grotesque as a literary technique for expressing this reality. The study consists of two parts. In the theoretical part we define the grotesque in literature and its use by writers, especially since the twentieth century. In the applied part we analyze very short Palestinian stories of three types and examine the use of the grotesque in them. Conclusions: I Found that The grotesque in the stories reflects the state of decline among human beings on every level, especially in the superficial and mechanical way people treat their fellow human beings, and the lack of empathy with the other.