الفهرس 
Historical / Literary Context of The Iraq WarOnly 14 pages are availabe for public view
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Abstract
The Iraq War that began in March 2003, with the Invasion of Iraq by the
Coalition forces led by the United States in the aftermath of 9/11, is a major juncture in recent
history. Based on the views of many commentators and observers, it could be argued that the
War in no way benefited the Iraqis or brought them any good. On the contrary, it was
basically an American decision and for American interests in international domination,
regardless of the ’humanitarian and liberal’ pretexts used to justify it. It represents a part of
modern globalization with its accompanying neoliberal hegemony and neo-colonial interests
and their entailments. It unleashed troubles whether on the political or the social level
dividing the Iraqi society in a very acute way. Despite the official withdrawal of the last
American forces from Iraq in December 2011, Iraq is still living with the repercussions of the
War. As complex and nuance-filled as that War was/is, it occupied many writers from
different backgrounds, and thus there has been a proliferation of works with the Iraq War as
their subject matter. Examining the representation of the Iraq War whether in fiction or
testimonies is of significant importance in the attempt to do a comparative reading of these
texts. This assists in the endeavour to look into the War and to have a comprehensive view of
what its representations reveal.
The thesis aims to examine and compare the representation of the Iraq War/
Invasion in selected texts by Arab and Western writers. It is believed that the study of a
variety of works by different authors from different background is pivotal in the understating
of the representations of the Iraq War as the study seeks. As Linda Hutcheon maintains
”Writing literary historically in terms of reclaiming the repressed, the blocked out, the
marginalised means openly addressing the forces that caused [emphasis added] the
repressing, the blocking and the marginalising in the first place” (Hutcheon 19). Hence, the
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importance of examining how this applies to the Iraq War context. Since 2003 and up to the
present day a myriad of works on the Iraq War has been appearing. Although the surge of
production of Iraq-War-related works on the Western (particularly American side) is more
prolific than that on the Arab side, especially in fiction; the works of Arab writers have
tackled the topic in an original way that echoes the Iraqi and Arab views and concerns about
the War and also their experience. It is argued that examining two of the different forms of
representation of the War, particularly fictional novels and testimonies, and trying to look
into both Arab and western points of view is quite enriching for the study.
It is noteworthy that the deficiency, if one may use the term, of fictional works
by Arab writers that dealt with the Iraq War/Invasion could be attributed to a number of
reasons. Although there is no accurate study, so far, of why the case is such, some initial
causes can be pointed out. The experience of the Invasion of Iraq, and all what ensued it, is
far-reaching and very frustrating to completely assimilate and be produced in ’many’ fullydeveloped
literary works, within the current time span. Despite the official military
withdrawal, the violence and the consequences of the War are continuing, which entails that
in reality a form of war is still in action, thus survival is the preeminent task, giving little
space to wide recognition of literary works. Another reason for that is the traumatic nature of
the War experience which adds to the difficulty of the process of narrating it. Financial means
and publicity may also be among the causes of that deficiency. Getting the means to publish a
work in print inside Iraq and outside is not that easy, and to have it widely known is more
difficult, especially with the absence of a credible, known unified database that encompasses
the vast majority of recent publications by Arab writers worldwide.
To limit the scope of the study, it was decided to restrict it to a number of
selected texts produced during the first decade of the War, namely from 2003 to 2013. These
are three novels and five testimonies. The fictional texts that the thesis studies are: The
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American Granddaughter (2008, translated 2010) by the Iraqi Inaam Kachachi’s, The Sirens
of Baghdad (2007) by the Algerian Yasmina Khadra (Mohammed Moulessehoul) and The
Yellow Birds (2012) by the American Kevin Powers. The testimonial accounts that the study
investigates are: The New Great Upheaval (Al-Fitna Al-Kubra Al-Gadida) (2009) by
Egyptian journalist Muhammed al-Anwar, The Pages of the Occupation of Iraq (Safahat
Ihtelal al Iraq) (2008) by Iraqi journalist Mustafa Ali al-Obaidi, Imperial Life in the Emerald
City: Inside Iraq’s Green Zone (2006) by Indian-American journalist Rajiv Chandrasekaran,
Nobody Told Us We Are Defeated (2006) by the British journalist Rory McCarthy, and
Voices from Iraq (2009) by American journalist Mark Kukis. The selected texts are
significant to study as they offer different perspectives given that the characters and the
authors represent different backgrounds: the Arab, the western and the hybrid one. This
variety was deliberate in order to offer the possibility of having a comprehensive view of the
representation of the invasion of Iraq War.
Each of The American Granddaughter, The Sirens of Baghdad and The Yellow
Birds focuses on an individual who is involved in the War context whether directly or
indirectly and whose life is utterly transformed by the experience of the War. The American
Granddaughter depicts Zeina, the Iraqi-American woman who chooses to go back to Iraq
as a hired translator for the American army, thinking that by doing so she is helping her
two countries. As a hybrid woman, she oscillates between the worlds of the coloniser and
the colonised seeking her way through either. She finally comes to finding her own hybrid
identity and discovers the reality of the War that she once believed to be for the welfare of the
Iraqi people. She experiences ambivalence and mixed loyalties on the subconscious level,
while still referring to herself as ”we” in relation to the American army. Zeina embodies the
self, the other and the involved conflict all at once. Moreover, the portrayal of her patriotic
grandmother, Rahma, and the role she plays in helping Zeina figure out the realities of her
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situation is quite revealing. Iraq’s past and present and its ’natural’ life are effortlessly
presented through the narrative. Zeina’s narrative ends with her acceptance of her hybrid
position, her disillusionment with the American dream and her realization of the strength of
her bond to Iraq.
Moving to The Sirens of Baghdad, it presents the story of an unmanned Iraqi
Bedouin young man in his early twenties, whom the Iraq War with its violence, humiliation
and destruction transforms from a timid student of literature and a to-be-man-of- letters into a
hatred-filled potential agent of terrorism. Although he is not directly involved in the War
(like the protagonists of the other two novels), he represents how the War reaches the life of
everyone involved in its context, and how extreme the response might be. Khadra’s novel also
addresses the crucial question of the role of the Arab intellectual in/towards his society in
critical times and the possible ways out of the vicious circle of terrorism and counterterrorism.
The Iraqi young man chooses not to take revenge against the whole world which
foreshadows his achieving a form of resignation, if not reconciliation.
The third novel is The Yellow Birds which focuses on the War experience of
the American soldier, Bartle, who willingly enlists in the army and is sent to fight in Iraq,
where he witnesses the atrocities of the War culminating in the murder and mutilation of
his close friend Murph which he is forced to cover up. The narrative marginalises the
Iraqis involved in the situation to a great extent making their existence peripheral to that of
the American soldier though the War is on their land. While the novel shows significant
aspects of the War it does not incorporate the predicament of the Iraqis in depth. Bartle
manages to achieve a degree of acceptance of what the War has inflicted upon him by the end
of the novel.
On the other hand, the rationale behind selecting the specific testimonies
chosen for the thesis is to include testimonial accounts whether by Arab or Western
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writers/editors which are largely based on living the War and interacting with or interviewing
Iraqis or Americans in the decade from 2003 to 2013, and that involves first-hand experience.
Two accounts by Arab writers were selected: The New Great Upheaval (Al-Fitna Al-Kubra
Al-Gadida) (2009) and The Pages of the Occupation of Iraq (Safahat Ihtelal al Iraq). Both
texts are primarily focused on the Iraqi/Arab perspective but American presence is evident in
them. Each of the two texts combines interviews of Iraqi figures and narrations of events that
the writers witnessed or were part of. Both focused on people and events in addition to
offering their analysis at points. It could be argued that the accounts of the Arab writers
delivered an enlightening view of the War but degrees of subjectivity were quite obvious in
them.
Shifting to the testimonies offered by western writers, these involved two
kinds: testimonies by Americans focusing on the inside world of the American forces
operating in Iraq exemplified by Imperial Life in the Emerald City: Inside Iraq’s Green Zone
(2006) and accounts of testimonies of Iraqis offered by western journalist as in Nobody Told
Us We Are Defeated (2006) and Voices from Iraq (2009). The accounts offered in the first
text are significant in their exposure of the discrepancy of the ’stated’ strategies and the actual
practices taking place on the ground relating to the War. The focus on the ’imperial’ nature of
American intervention in Iraq is quite interesting to note as it highlights how the rhetoric of
neoliberalism is belied by its actions, making the whole process a revival of colonial interests
with the change of the outline to fit the modern world. The two other accounts, are very
illuminating not only in the variety of perspectives and stories they offer, but also in their
emphasis on the fact that there is an awareness about the importance of ’giving voice’ to the
Iraqis whose side of the War narrative was/is still not given enough space. It could be argued
that one of the major reasons for considering testimonies is the necessity of giving voice to
those silenced by the War.
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Looking at the massive oeuvre of writings about the Iraq War reveals a
number of facts about the nature of the representation of that War as well as the perspective
and allegiance of the one offering the particular work examined (be that intentional or
unintentional). This in turn invites for engagement in what Edward Said termed a
”contrapuntal reading” which involves taking into consideration ”both processes, that of
imperialism and that of resistance to it, which can be done by extending our reading of the
texts to include what was once forcibly excluded” (Said Culture and Imperialism 79). The
exclusion of certain aspects in some of the examined testimonies and in fictional texts opens
up questions about the interpretations of these exclusions and silences. It is true that an allencompassing
representation might not be achievable; however, aspiring for objectivity
without serving pre-planned ideologies can be fruitful. Said’s contrapuntal reading is
considered an approach that does ”not [try] to rule others, not [try] to classify them or put
them in hierarchies, above all, not constantly reiterating how ”our” culture or country is
number one… For the intellectual there is quite enough of value to do without that” (Culture
and Imperialism 409).
Said borrowed the term contrapuntal reading from musical ”atonal ensemble”
(Culture and Imperialism 386) and used it as a method of analysis. Its value is that it allows
for polyphony which entails the complexity of having a multiplicity of voices, with the aim of
”the tying together of multiple voices in a kind of disciplined whole” (Said qtd in Embabi
102). Said’s interest in contrapuntal reading arises from his interest in the relationship
between the western and the non-western world. Doaa Embabi sums up the purpose of this
method of reading which is ”multi-layered and rich, all aspects of the experience are subject
to thorough investigation, and the experience(s) of the past are projected as roots of present
problems and conflicts in the hope that an appreciation of them may lead to an insight into
resolving current issues” (103). Applying this to the Iraq War context, it becomes a problem
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that has its roots in the traditional opposition between Occident and Orient and the claim of
’the civilizing mission’ of the more developed nations. Thus this study is based on the
argument that the War on Iraq is an extension of the former imperialist discourse of the
nineteenth century. Hence, Said’s contrapuntal reading allows for interpreting as well as
comparing the representation of the War context giving equal emphasis to Iraqi/Arab and
American/Western stories which serves the purpose of this study.
Contrapuntal reading has been considered as befitting texts that involve the
coloniser and the colonised enabling ”the emergence of colonial implications that might
otherwise remain hidden” (Ashcroft et al. 49). Moreover, Said’s contrapuntal approach has
sympathy as its goal. Embabi points out that ”[Said] is credited for foregrounding a spirit of
”reconciliation” which guides him to reach an approach to investigating cultural products
from a comparative and humanist perspective” (110). This reconciliatory approach allows for
comparing experiences and their cultural contexts away from the rhetoric of blame, division
and hostility. By focusing on the common interests and the shared experience, Said hoped for
alternative readings that would allow not only for the silenced to be heard but also for the
opposition to be dissolved. In the context of the Iraq War, contrapuntal reading allows to
bring various representations together in an attempt not only to compare the representations
but also to process the experience reaching some form of reconciliation.
The methodological frame work that the thesis employs is ’a contrapuntal
reading’ of selected texts of the two forms of representation of the Iraq War. This approach
allows for a comparative study of both fiction and testimonies with reference to and
application of specific concepts of postcolonial criticism, especially those held by Edward
Said, and trauma theory specifically Cathy Caruth’s work to achieve a comprehensive view of
the representation of the Iraq War. It is worth mentioning that postcolonial criticism and
trauma theory are very much interconnected in the study of the War.
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Though Said’s concept was mainly dedicated to the reading of works of
literature, it seems both relevant and revealing in the analysis of non-fictional works,
particularly testimonies in case of this study. Said rightfully argues that ”Each cultural work
is a vision of a moment, and we must juxtapose that vision with the revisions it later
provoked” (Said Culture and Imperialism 79). Applying that to the context of the Iraq War,
and with some liberty in the consideration of what might be termed ”a revision”, the
juxtaposition of representations of the War in fiction and testimonies against each other and
historical accounts becomes illuminating. It exposes a variety of aspects of the War that
reveal, in addition to the violence, terrorism, colonial strategies at work that expose claims
that the Invasion was to save the world from terrorism and to secure the ’welfare’ of the
Iraqis.
The thesis is divided into three chapters and a conclusion. The first chapter is
entitled ”Historical / Literary Context of The Iraq War”. It examines the historical, social and
political background of Iraq that relates to the War and its aftermath in addition to the oeuvre
of major texts, whether fictional or nonfictional that dealt with the Iraq War during the period
from 2003 till 2013 (the first decade of the War). The second chapter is entitled ”The Iraq
War in selected Fictional Texts”. It investigates how the Iraq War was portrayed in the
selected fiction from the perspective of three different authors: Iraqi, Algerian (Arab) and
American. The third chapter is entitled ”Testimonies and the Iraq War” and it examines a
number of testimonies on/of the War from both stances as well. Each of the second and third
chapter follows a similar pattern to help achieve the comparison of certain aspects of both
forms of representations: the trauma of the War, the colonial context of the War, the
representation of violence and the role of media in the War. The conclusion offers a
recapitulation of the issues examined in the thesis and the major findings and limitations