A STUDY OF ABD AL-WAHHAB AL-BAYATI'S POETICS: THE MYTH OF PROMETHEUS

Abstract

The present paper argues the use of myth in Abd Al-Wahhab Al-Bayati’s poetry (1926-1999), an outstanding modernist Iraqi poet. To incorporate tradition in contemporary  Arabic literature, he could provide new perspective and open wide horizons throughout linking the present with the past and eastern with western literature. Influenced by modernist European writers, Al-Bayati revived  the ancient mythology to create committed Arabic poetry that tackles the issues  of the Arab region, especially that of his country Iraq. As a modernist writer, witnessing the devastating events of world war II, Al-Bayati’s suffering, anger and desire are well reflected in his literary works. The present paper aims to study the myth of Prometheus as a strategic literary technique and the way it has been applied and employed in the poetry of the contemporary Iraqi poet Al-Bayati; in such a way that he has used different aspects of this rich source to express his political and social purposes, conflicts and crises in the life of Arab people.