Narrative of Resistance Through Displacement and Silence

A look back at the epic and tragedy of Palestinian suffering in literature, from the mirage of migration to awakening in the trenches of struggle and national consciousness, through Ghassan Kanafani's novel 'Men in the Sun.'

Iranian Ambassador Arjan Literary Service (Ambassador Arjan); Shadia Darbandi: Palestinian resistance literature is more than a written tradition or a set of political slogans, it is a geographical reflection of suffering, displacement and continuous effort to redefine the collective identity of a nation caught in the wheels of history and colonialism. Among the lasting works that emerged from this crisis-ridden climate, the novel "Men in the Sun" (Rajal fi Al-Shams) written by Ghassan Kanfani, the late writer, journalist and spokesman of the Palestine Liberation Movement, is considered one of the most significant and influential milestones. This work, which was first published in 1962, is not only a bitter and stinging account of the displacement of the Palestinians after the 1948 war (the event known as the "Nakbat"), but above all, it is a deep and epic account of man's struggle for survival, suffering from roots and the need to wake up in the face of historical tragedies. Re-reading this work along with Konfani's novel quartet is a way to understand the depth of the resistance that changed the history of the Middle East.

Searching for a mirage in the darkness of poverty and displacement

The central core of the story "Men in the Sun" is based on a dangerous and deadly journey. Three Palestinians from different generations and social situations - "Abuqis", an old man rooted in the soil and strongly attached to the olive trees of his hometown; "Esad", a driven youth on the threshold of the road; and "Marwan", a teenager who bears the heavy burden of support after the collapse of his family - decide to immigrate illegally in order to escape crushing poverty and hope to reach the "utopia" of Kuwait.

At a point of the border, these three travelers surrendered to a man named "Abu Khizran"; The tanker driver, who is a Palestinian himself and a former fighter, but now in the cycle of the day, engages in human trafficking to earn money. Finally, to pass the border checkpoints, the three men hide in the empty tank of a water tanker. Prolonged administrative formalities and personal and deceptive games of the border agent turn the tanker into a furnace and well of hell under the scorching sun of the desert. Tanker passengers are suffocated in the deathly silence of the tank before they reach their destination and the tank door is opened; A tragic story that is an allegory of the impasse of losing one's heart from the motherland and falling in love with a mirage outside the borders.

The roots of endogenous suffering and responsibility; Tradition, ignorance and leadership

In this outstanding work, instead of reducing all tragedies to the external factor, Kanfani directs the criticism towards the internal structures of the Arab and Palestinian society. Rereading the hidden layers of the characters' lives shows how the author creates a distance between traditional freezing and the requirements of modern struggle. In the course of the story, the gap between traditional society and modern means of self-defense is depicted; Where the society without being equipped with knowledge and science becomes fragile against the storm of events.

Also, Abu Khizran's character is a tragic representation of leaders and currents that, although they arose from pain and struggle, over time succumbed to personal interests, passivity and profiteering. Konfani shows with rare clarity how financial poverty, structural weakness and moral collapse in the absence of a large strategic project forces people to surrender to the worst conditions for individual survival; A condition that ultimately leads to the loss of human dignity.

The big question of history: Why didn't they hit the tanker?

One of the most brilliant and at the same time the most shocking parts of the analysis of this novel is a question that critics and thinkers like Edward Said have also asked: why didn't the three dying passengers in the tanker tank hit the walls to scream for life and protest and escape from death?

The answer to this question gives a deep political and psychological layer to the work. The silence of these three people in the face of death is a reflection of an "inner terror" and institutionalized passivity in the body of a nation that has surrendered to its inevitable fate. With this allegory, Kanfani directs a sharp self-criticism towards the Palestinian society; Accepting passivity, fearing the consequences of protest and surrendering to oppressive conditions will not lead to anything but gradual death. This critical view is a reflection of the intellectual atmosphere of the left of that time, which evaluated the failure as a result of internal shortcomings, ignorance, ineffective traditions and general negligence. However, this question also indicates the necessity of passing from passivity to conscious resistance; A message that was later manifested in the evolution of resistance literature.

evolution of resistance; From the body to the displacement to the maturity of Hanzala

The novel "Men in the Sun" is the second part of a quartet of stories written by Ghassan Kanfani about the history of Palestine; The narrative course that begins with "Return to Haifa" (the story of displacement and longing), continues with "Men in the Sun" (the tragedy of migration and death in the desert), reaches "What is left for you" (turning to the position of struggle and sacrifice) and finally reaches its peak in "Tales of Am Saad" (the symbol of the Palestinian mother and the embodiment of permanence and resistance).

This quartet shows how the Palestinian society has progressed from the stage of passivity, migration and wandering to the stage of self-awareness, standing and armed and popular resistance. In the following years, symbols such as "Hanzaleh" (the child who always turns his back to the watching world in Naji Ali's cartoons) replaced the old men in the desert to depict the maturity, dynamism and continuity of the struggle of a nation that will never surrender to silence again.

analytical summary; A story of life and resistance

The novel "Men in the Sun" is more than a simple narrative, it is a bitter, painful but liberating manifesto for rereading history; A reminder of the fact that until the roots are planted in the soil of resistance and true self-awareness, the mirage of migration and the scorching sun of the desert will be the only prospects for the lost in the purgatory of history.

Ghassan Kanfani, who lost his honorable life on the way to this great cause and on the path of struggle, reminded us with his brilliant pen that national self-criticism, although bitter and stinging, is the first condition for awakening. Konfani's narrative is the narrative of passing from death in the tanks of silence to conscious life in the stronghold of resistance; The truth that will remain the beacon of justice and freedom until the final victory.

Rereading the epic and tragedy of Palestinians' suffering in the horizon of literature; From mirage of migration to awakening in the stronghold of struggle and national self-awareness in a look at the novel "Men in the Sun" by Ghassan Kanfani.

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Fars - The 30th anniversary of Hafez's academic meeting was held with the presence of a group of university professors, researchers, writers and those interested in Hafez Shirazi's poetry and thought, focusing on "Hafez in artistic and literary creations".

Fars- Hafez's tomb was held on the anniversary of the commemoration of this famous lyric poet.

The meeting of "Top Dissertations" will be held with the presence of Maryam Hashemi Moghadam, with the topic of examining old Iranian customs, traditions and vocabulary in Bakhtiari culture and dialect.

Khuzestan- The book "Mozban Khan Sukund", a historical account of the participation of the Sukund family in some political movements at the end of the Qajar period until the years of the Pahlavi period, has been published by Gholam Ali Izadi, a writer from Khuzestan.

Farhad Hemmati wrote: In addition to advancing the Nazi goals in the university, Heidegger also controlled the professors and students and even spied on the professors and gave secret reports. Like the case of Edward Baumgarten, who followed John Dewey's pragmatism in philosophy, which caused him to be expelled from the university.

Yazd- The meeting of "Gazal's Mirror" was held in the Vaziri Library of Yazd, a library that hosts one of the most exquisite manuscripts of Divan Hafez in Iran.

On the occasion of Hafez Day, the deputy minister of cultural affairs wrote: Perhaps the prophetic hadith "Inna minna al-Sha'ar al-Hikmah" (some poems are full of wisdom) refers to this holy capacity in linking artistic form with practical wisdom, and Hafez's poetry is undoubtedly the highest example of this meaning.

Two months after marriage, Fakhrizadeh went to Hamza Seyyed al-Shohda's camp in Urmia city with his family by the order of Martyr Mohammad Boroujerdi and after some time they returned to Tehran. He was also present in the battle fronts during the Iran-Iraq war. The main part of his activity was in the western front

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"Blood of the heart that was spilled" Ayatollah Khamenei's collection of memoirs from the years of struggle, prison and exile was translated into Armenian by the efforts of Maryam Zazian.

The chairman of the board of directors of Arvin Mehr Fajr Company announced that the presence of 280 companies in the 33rd Tehran International Printing and Packaging Exhibition has been confirmed.

The teacher always told his students: "A doctor should be with people and patients and think about humanity and the world community with an open mind, but first of all, he should be at the service of Iran and the people of this country. Leaving the homeland permanently and forgetting the homeland is a defect. Traveling is necessary to acquire knowledge and skills, but we doctors owe Iran and its people and we must serve inside our country. If you want to become a legend; Have work, effort, sincerity and knowledge."

The deputy of cultural affairs of the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance, by issuing a decree, appointed Ebrahim Heydari as the secretary of the 34th book week of the Islamic Republic of Iran.

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When the pen touches the things of the heart, the world does not disappear; A curtain is removed from the world. And at that moment, the Tarbnameh of love is written.

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Fatemeh Sadat Mirrezi said: When a historian starts the history of Islam from creation, brings it to his own time through the history of prophets and previous nations, and then places it on the horizon of the end of time, he is actually not just reporting the past; Rather, it also interprets its present time in a larger historical whole.

With the presence of professors of Persian language and literature, the unveiling meeting and signing ceremony of "One went, one came, and other new works by Sadegh Hedayat" will be held.

Khorasan Razavi - The 19th of October 1405 is the 87th anniversary of the birth of the poet, researcher and scholar of Iranian literature and citizen of Neyshabur, "Mohammedreza Shafiei Kodkani". The following picture shows the graduation certificate of this enduring figure of Iranian literature from Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, which was issued in June 1344, with a score of 19 in the field of Persian language and literature. A document from the scholarly days of a man whose name still shines in the sphere of poetry and literary research in Iran and the world.