Today’s Lecture by Prof. Shalal-Esa was intriguing and new to me. The idea of focusing on the writing of Arab American authors was different. The understanding that these authors made content about all sorts of topics was great to hear but made the hyper-focus on the fact that they are Arab made the topic confusing. What I found most interesting was the perspective of Arabs of Arab society and of Arab perspective of other things. Such as the poetry which attempted to fight against the stereotypes like
“Hijab Scene 7 – Poem by Mohja Kahf
“No, I’m not bald under the scarf No, I’m not from that country where women can’t drive cars No, I would not like to defect I’m already American But thank you for offering What else do you need to know relevant to my buying insurance, opening a bank account, reserving a seat on a flight? Yes, I speak English Yes, I carry explosives They’re called words And if you don’t get up Off your assumptions They’re going to blow you away”
The challenging of the stereotypical questions and assumptions is powerful and emphatic. It was also hard to hear that even now it is difficult to get any anti-Israel material in print because of the monopoly on the market of publishing.
Overall the entire lecture and focus of study by Prof. Shalal-Esa was an interesting introduction to a new way of thinking to keep in mind next time I’m looking for a perspective change.
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