Metaphysics in Arab heritage

This book sheds light on a phase in Arab poetic heritage that is considered revolutionary in its achievements, and distinguished by poets' awareness of themselves; considering them responsible for creating something new. Despite recognizing the importance of the Abbasid experience, most literary critics do not include it in discussions that address modern poetry in the twentieth century. In the linear chronological approach, they are subjected to marginalization or pushed backward. I believe it is of utmost importance to connect the two developments with the project of Arab modernity; to include Abbasid poets such as Abu Tammam, Ibn al-Rumi, Al-Buhturi, and certainly Al-Mutanabbi, who came later, in the discussion surrounding Arab poetry and its directions in our current era. Comparing the project of the modernists and the free poetry movement provides us with insightful perspectives of great significance regarding what we specifically mean by "poetic change" and "poetic revolutions," and even the terms we use to describe poems or poetic movements, such as "original" or "new."