Nostalgia in Hafez Al Shammari's poetry "Letters on Leaves" as a Model

Abstract

Nostalgia or longing for the past is one of the literary phenomena that appear in literary and artistic works in general, and in poetry in particular. This phenomenon evokes a deep feeling of longing for the past, situations, places and people who lived at that time. Nostalgia is a means of expressing feelings of loss and attachment to the past, and it appears clearly in the poetry of many poets, including the poet Hafez Al-Shammari. In the collection "Letters on Tree Leaves", Hafez Al-Shammari uses nostalgia as a primary tool to convey his feelings and thoughts. This collection is a prominent model for embodying nostalgia for the past in contemporary Arabic poetry. Nostalgia is evident in Al-Shammari's poems by evoking memories, places and people who left an imprint on his life, in addition to depicting feelings of loss and longing for a past time when the poet felt reassured and happy.

Nostalgia is a common human phenomenon, and has been manifested in many literary works, including poetry collections. The manifestations of nostalgia in the collection show the poet's longing for the past, his attachment to the old, his rejection of the changes occurring in society, and his criticism of the negatives of the current era. In the poems of this collection, Al-Shammari uses poetic language in a style that expresses the aesthetics of nostalgia, highlighting the contrast between the past and the present. Through his poetic images and phrase structures, the poet reflects the state of the human soul and the conflicting feelings that afflict it between the desire to return to the past and accepting the present with all its changes. "Letters on Tree Leaves" represents a rich poetic experience that explores the depth of human feelings related to nostalgia, presenting a distinctive poetic image that reflects nostalgia for the past in a wonderful artistic style.