Employing Heritage in the Modern Arab Novel A Study in Signification and Function: A Critical Literature Review and Comparative Analysis

Abstract

The present study conducts a critical review of the literature relevant to the use of cultural heritage in the modern Arabic novel, based on eighteen verified academic sources (nine Arabic and nine foreign). The study addresses a central issue regarding how modern Arab novelists employ heritage within their narrative texts and the aesthetic, semantic, and ideological functions this utilization serves. To achieve this, a conceptual model is adopted linking forms of heritage (religious, historical, popular, and mythological) with narrative functions, examined through qualitative critical reading focusing primarily on Egyptian and Sudanese narrative models, with partial extension to Syrian novels. The findings indicate that heritage utilization frequently extends beyond mere aesthetic functions to embody identity and resistance dimensions, while maintaining methodological caution regarding statistical generalization due to the qualitative nature of the review.