Department of Arabic Language and Literature The Narrative Structure in the Novels of Abdul Zahra Ali

The second chapter، entitled Spatial Setting and Its Transformations، examines the concept of place in Abdul Zahra Ali’s novels. It begins by defining place linguistically and terminologically and is divided into two sections. The first discusses the significance of place in literary works، the problematics of place and space، and open spaces، including the city، village، and street. The second section addresses closed spaces، such as the prison، café، hospital، house، and hotel. ons، consists of two sections. The first examines the patterns of fictional characters، focusing on major and minor characters، and discusses their definitions both linguistically and terminologically، with reference to selected characters from the novelist’s works. The second section investigates the dimensions of character from external، internal، social، and cultural perspectives. It also explores the relationship between character and narrator، dividing narrators into three categories: the superior narrator، the subordinate narrator، and the equal narrator. Based on this premise، the study seeks to answer several important questions، most notably: How is the narrative structure formed in Abdul Zahra Ali’s novels? What are the principal narrative elements upon which he relies in constructing his works? What are the most significant characters employed in his fiction? And how do these characters contribute to the development and progression of events? To answer these questions، the researcher adopted a plan consisting of an introduction، a preface، three chapters، a conclusion، and a bibliography. His narrative writings directly represent various aspects of this reality، revealing the psychological impact of wars on both individuals and society، as well as the oppression، hardships، and tragedies. The preface is divided into two sections. The first provides a brief overview of the Iraqi novel before and after 2003، with particular emphasis on the post-2003 period. The second presents a biographical account of Abdul Zahra Ali، highlighting his literary achievements، awards، and professional career. Nced by the Iraqi people during periods of crisis and under an unjust and repressive regime. One of the main reasons that motivated the researcher to choose this topic was the desire to shed light on Abdul Zahra Ali، whose novelistic works have not yet received sufficient academic attention. Another motivation was the researcher’s aspiration to study and analyze the textual components of his novels، which were found worthy of scholarly investigation. Accordingly، this thesis، entitled The Narrative Structure in the Works of Abdul Zahra Ali، seeks to explore the dimensions and horizons of narrative studies and to uncover the structural elements that constitute the novelist’s narrative texts. The novel has occupied a prominent position among literary genres that have enriched the cultural scene، gaining a distinguished status due to its ability to keep pace with social reality، its diverse narrative mechanisms، and the variety of themes it addresses as a mature literary form. Consequently، novel writing has become more stable and widespread than many other literary genres. This has enabled the novel to establish itself as one of the most significant literary forms in both Iraqi and Arab literature. It has come to embody the artistic foundations upon which literary works are constructed، while also reflecting their connections with political، social، and cultural transformations. Since the novelist lives amidst these changes، he strives to convey them to readers through his own unique style، expressing the conditions of life and lived reality so that the novel may serve as a mirror reflecting the image of society. Within this context، the novels of Abdul Zahra Ali hold particular significance because of their reliance on reality as a means of depicting the suffering of the Iraqi individual under the difficult and turbulent circumstances endured by the country and Iraqi society.