The Image of the Jew in Ahmad Harb’s Trilogy (Published)
It took Arabic literature, especially narrative prose, a lot of time to look into the character of the Jew or to seriously describe the mutual relationship between Arabs and Jews whether this relationship indicated collision or neutrality. However, Palestinian literature in general and the novel in particular has had to deal with the Jewish model, because the nature of the circumstances and the conflict on the ground have forced Palestinian writers to involve Jewish personalities in the portrayed events. Ahmad Harb’s novel, which consists of three parts, Ismael (1987), The other Side of the Promised Land, (1992) and Remains (1996) constitute a milestone in this context. Hence, this research traces the depiction of the Jew throughout Harb’s trilogy to illustrate its distinction in describing the “other” based on interactions and close examinations. Besides, it is noted that Harb does his utmost to exclude stereotypical notions and misconceptions, adding human touches to some characters. Furthermore, Harb shows a deep interest in characters similar in form and content to other characters that appeared in the novels of other writers
Keywords: Ahmad Harb and Jewish Palestinian relationships, Jewish character, Kanafani, Palestinian fiction, Sahar Khalifeh