2018-09-10

I´m done with "Tale of Tala"


Infiltration, trafficking, brokerage, exploitation, drug dealing, prostitution, homelessness ... etc.
This might happen during the journey that refugees set off on for the sake of safety!
"Tale of Tala" is a novel written by a Palestinian immigrated from Lebanon to Canada, who himself is a refugee, had decided to document this journey in Europe, he ended up with a Syrian refugee in the Netherlands was working as a prostitute. During their talks, he learned about her personal story in Syria and other tough familial issues, her story with her partner Bilal who engaged with drug dealers to gain money for their trip to EU, including the difficult journey with trafficker (Abu Ali) who was a dodgy and exploiter.
The novel, in general, is interesting and went viral, I had the privilege to attend its launch ceremony in Ramallah at an international book fair this year. 
Because it explicitly highlights refugees suffering, was supported on media by humanitarian bodies as the UN, which was good that part of the proceeds went for donation. 
My other takeaway, it´s a humanitarian attempt, the text is very sexualized when explaining what was going on in the whorehouse, which is familiar to us human beings this human behavior. Moreover, the writer made a point when impersonated the protagonist (the Syrian refugee girl) whom he met at whorehouse turning it into a Palestinian girl in an attempt to shed light on Palestinian refugee experience, which I don't know the extent of its ethicality. The readers will find that the whole novel revolves around a story of a Palestinian girl went refuge to Europe and then fell down into the hands of exploiters, which is incorrect according to the writer who admitted so. 
Anyway. I actually would say that when I read the products of those writers or poets who belong to this generation, I yearn for what the last generation, the generation of the 20th century and before, of writers and authors, left to us. I could touch upon that the 21st century hasn't generated new Shakespeare, Wolfgang Goethe, Tolstoy, Voltaire, Victor Hugo, and many more. 
Also, the movement of Arabic literature (الأدب العربي) throughout the old age until the 20th century brought up genius groups of writers, authors, and poets. I can remember, Ibn Battuta (ابن بطوطة), Ibn Khaldun (ابن خلدون), Butrus AlBustani (بطرس البستاني), Almutanabi (المتنبي), Bashar Bin Burd (بشار ابن برد), Mahmoud Darwish (محمود درويش), Gibran Khalil Gibran (جبران خليل جبران), Alasfahani الأصفهاني, Ahmad Shawqi أحمد شوقي, Nizar Qabani (نزار قباني), Amin Alrahani (أمين الريحاني), Taha Hussain (طه حسين), Elia Abu Madi (إيليا أبو ماضي), Alfarahidi (الفراهيدي), Edward Said (إدوارد سعيد), and too many of them that the list here isn´t enough to pin their names. 
Arabic literature is a magnificent legacy was inscribed by prolific people who are rarely to find nowadays, to the degree I found out that Arabic Art Movement hasn´t been magnificently productive over the past period, especially during this technological era that led lots of people to depend on this virtual world in gaining speedily whatever info they want. Today´s writings only aim to make profits! 
I yearn for everything old; art, literature, culture, so on and so forth! 
I yearn for the old cinema, movies, and songs! Sadly, today, everything devoid of its real meaning and sexualized for profits.
I yearn for the time of those writers who were living a very simple life, but full of real values!
I yearn for the time when ambitious neighbors were loving each other and going to spend their time under nice trees to read, write, and document that unforgettable moments!


Everything is gone ...

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 12.12.2024