Comparison of Romantic illustrations by Nizar Qabbani and Simin Behbahani Using Childrens Traits and Moods

Nizar Qabbani and Simin Behbahani are renkowned as famous and stylish poets in Arabic and Persian literature. These two prominent poets have utilized the states and characteristics of children as a tool to express their feelings and emotions aligned with their tendency towards romantic style. As decleared by Nizar, childhood is considerd as the key feature of his personality and literary life and, accordingly, he has expressed the joys and sweet experiences of childhood in these poems. Furthermore, he never finds himself distinguished from the states of childhood. In opposition to that, Simin has spent a bitter childhood and this bitterness is reflected in his poems, although the childhood memories of two poets, one is sweet and the other is bitter, both of them are full of the characteristics and moods of children, such as love for play and mother. They have integrated features like innocence, beauty and tenderness, honesty and hopelessness, etc. for their romantic depictions. In this article, irrespective of the exisiting distinctions between the two poets in terms of their gender and nationality, childrens' moods and traits have been used by both as a vehicle to express their romantic feelings and emotions due to their shared human feelings.
Introduction:
Nizar Qabbani and Simin Behbahani, the two dominant poets in the field of Arabic and Persian literature, have reflected diverse aspects of their personality and their society in their poems. It is through investigating the works of these two contemporary poets that the integration of the word child can be indicated. The child's world is filled with simplicity and, at the same time, happiness. Everything is new as the child gets surprised all the time in case he/she faces any new or unknown phenomenon. The child simply cries with the least amount of toys or sweetness and becomes happy when achieves his wish playing. He has a pure and bright heart and is free of sins, etc. The two afore-mentioned poets have created a masterful link between these attributes and childrens behavior with their intended meaning, especially romantic imagery. Nizar Qabbani has spent his childhood under the shadow of love and special attention of his parents and their boundless love. In his writings, he constantly remembers his childhood with happiness and goodness, and the world of his constant companion. He knows that the notion of childhood is an inseperable part of his life. On the other hand, Simin Behbahani's childhood was full of sadness and loneliness, the separation of her parents and her illness during her childhood, and some other factors alike has made remember her childhood bitterly which was like a swelling under her right ear. As announced; “Every single day, they put a bowl of black bitter gourd in front of me saying drink but my fever doesnt go away. Later that bitterness became one of my contemporaries.” Despite this, Simin remembers her childhood purely. The nature of childhood is so prominent for her that it is repeated throughout her poetry in multiple scenes.
Method:
This research, intergrating an analytical-descriptive and library approaches alongside surveying, has conducted a comparative study of the common themes of the word "child" and its moods for romantic depictions in the poems written by two poets. This comparison between the poems of Nizar Qabbani and Simin Behbahani is a step towards comparative literature, which is presented in the form of American comparative literature.
Results and Discussion:
A child's world is a beautiful world filled with joy and happiness. The child does not worry about his past and future, he experiences life in the present and enjoys simple and small things and feels satisfied with the life he has. He/she does not find life bitter unlike adults and may be very happy with a simple event and never considers it impossible to fulfill his wishes. A child's life is full of happiness and the joys of pure childhood. In a child’s life, everything is beautiful like a story. The child’s relationship with gaming has stopped the human mind from making a distinction between these two words (child and game). Due to their kind heart and gentle spirit, children have a fragile and weak spirit against evil and ugliness. They possess a pure and bright heart and are innocent. They are never found to carry unpleasant characteristics such as stubbornness and anger. Making excuses and crying is frequently observed in them which is considered necessary for childhood. The word "child" and its states and attributes are frequently noticed in the poetry of Nizar Qabbani and Simin Behbahani. In their poems, both poets used the word child and its attributes and states to express their romances and, furthermore, the attributes and states of the lover and the beloved. Nizar Qabbani is more successful in creating an emotional atmosphere and expressing romantic images, using the moods and attributes of a child, rather than Simin Behbahani. After reading the poems of these two prominent poets, the reader can learn about many boundaries and angles of private life and personal relationships between the poet and his family members and some of the bitter and sweet currents of their lives. Both poets have mentioned their private lives and their families in many cases, and by putting them together, a clear picture of their personal lives can be obtained.
Conclusion:
As presented by the current research, the role of child in the poetry of two prominent contemporary poets, Nizar Qabbani (the Syrian poet) and Simin Behbahani (the Iranian poet) has been taken into account. From different angles, they have used childrens’ moods and traits as a tool to express their romantic imagery and purposes alike. Nizar Qabbani and Simin Behbahani had experienced two distinct childhood periods. The bitterness of Simin's childhood and the sweetness of Nizar's childhood are clearly reflected in their poems. Even though these two poets are of opposing genders, nationalities, and cultures, both of them carry shared understanding of childrens’ moods and characteristics, and they use many of these characteristics in the form of similes and allegories to depict their romantic moods in the post-modern era. They have been working since childhood. This comparison of the good qualities of children shows that the sweetness of Nizar’s childhood has made him remember it throughout his life and refers to these these unforgettable and everlasting images in his poems much more than Simin. Considering this comparison in the form of American comparative school, it can be demonstrated that people have common feelings and human emotions despite their apparent differences. Sense, emotion, and precision in the poems of Nizar Qabbani and Simin Behbahani have created romantic images using the attributes and moods of children. By examining and comparing the poems of the two poets, we find that nizar’s romantic depictions using the moods and attributes of children are more clear than simin’s poetry. Furthermore, the examination of the poems by these poets in this context shows that Nizar’s poetry, due to the positive view of childhood, is better than that of Simin's and also in the creation and expression of romantic images, using childrens attributes and moods. This is a proof of Nizar's artistry and high precision in creating emotional images. In the meantime, Nizar's romantic depictions are more expressive and clear by using children's moods and characteristics, and use these moods and characteristics to express the characteristics of love or the moods and characteristics of the lover and the beloved. Simin, similar to Nizar, has made use of the notion of child and the moods and attributes of children to express love, the notions of the lover and the beloved.