The Coronavirus Pandemic in Arabic Novel: From Documentary Realism to Imaginative Literature

Abstract

Epidemics have played a significant role in shaping human consciousness, weaving their way into history and influencing its formation. The “coronavirus” pandemic, one that has both aggravated existing wounds and intertwined with the imaginative visions of creative writers, stands among the most devastating epidemics to afflict humanity. Therefore, this study seeks to offer an analytical reading of the Arabic novel that takes the coronavirus pandemic as its central subject, exploring the boundaries between reality and imagination. This is undertaken through an examination of selected Mashriqi and Maghrebi novels, in which authors articulate human anxiety, isolation, fear of death, the disintegration of relationships, and the reconfiguration of questions of identity. This article further aims to trace the manifestations of the coronavirus pandemic in the Arabic novel that emerged in the wake of the crisis by analysing its artistic and documentary dimensions.