The Poet Glorifies his Poetry: AL-Mutanabbi and Shakespeare as a Model

Abstract

This paper aims at studying the aspects of and the reasons behind the poet glorifying his poetry and, consequently, himself. The two examples chosen here are Al-Muttanabi, the famous Abbasid poet and Shakespeare, the Elizabethan poet. The researchers discuss the common features that distinguish the poetry of both poets especially in relation to the theme of glorification of poetry. This comparative study has chosen examples from Al-Mutanabbi's poetry (the Diwan; the collection of his poems) and Shakespeare's sonnets (18-126). The researchers have found out that the two poets glorify their poetry while praising an outstanding powerful character in order to make profit or gain a social status or a governmental position. Ironically speaking, they end up hinting at the fact that their poetic lines are immortal and only through their panegyric poetry the concerned patron is immortalized.