Superstition as a Cultural Pattern in the Novel Fuqahaa Al-Dhalam
Abstract
This study examines "Myth as a Cultural System in Salim Barakat’s Novel The Jurists of Darkness," aiming to uncover the mechanisms through which myth operates as a cognitive and structural system that reshapes reality and collective consciousness. The research is structured around three primary requirements. The first requirement investigates the deconstruction of realistic identity and its reproduction within a mythical framework, The second requirement analyzes narrative events as a fictional construct for producing an alternative memory, wherein logical and temporal laws are disrupted through surreal events to preserve collective memory and resist historical amnesia. Meanwhile, the third requirement focuses on the deconstruction of realistic geography and its reconstruction into a mythical space, tracking the transformation of physical spaces into parallel, metaphysical realms that express alienation and the quest for existential salvation.
The study concludes that myth in the novel does not serve as a tool of detachment from reality, but rather functions as a critical instrument and a form of cultural resistance to reformulate identity, memory, and space outside the dominance of prevailing systems.
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