The Identity of the Imaginary in Ancient Arabic Poetry Usama ibn Munqidh as a Model

Abstract

The research aimed to clarify the identity of the imaginary in ancient Arabic poetry, through the poetry of Osama bin Munqidh, and visualized the features of the imaginary in the poet in his representations of the image of the self and the other, and the oscillation of the poetic self and its relationship to the absence of the poetic self, especially in the two positions: elegy and complaint of gray hair and old age, and reflected the features of his youth and youth, which represents the peak of strength and maturity in his poetic life. The poetic imaginary in the position of praise reflected the decline of the poetic self without its dissolution before the praised, so his praise came repeated, and perhaps this is due to his luxurious life, and his innate transcendence of resembling others, and explains to us the intensity of his anguish when he reached the stage of gray hair and old age. Usama bin Munqidh's elegy was characterized by grief and intense sadness, and his elegy focused on family, relatives, and some friends, so most of his poetic output in the elegy genre was limited to those close to him.