The Integration of Autobiography in the Novels of Jabra Ibrahim Jabra اندماج الرواية في السيرة الذاتية عند جبرا إبراهيم جبرا

الملخص

This study explores the phenomenon of autobiographical integration in the fictional works of Jabra Ibrahim Jabra, focusing on the complex interplay between personal experience and narrative construction in his novels. Jabra, a prominent Palestinian intellectual, novelist, translator, and critic, is widely recognized for his significant contribution to modern Arabic literature and his role in shaping the Arab literary modernist movement. Through an analytical reading of his autobiographical works, The First Well and The Princesses’ Street, alongside his major novels such as Hunters in a Narrow Street, The Ship, and In Search of Walid Masoud, this paper investigates how elements of his lived experience permeate his fictional narratives. Although Jabra explicitly states that his fictional characters are products of imagination and any resemblance to real individuals is purely coincidental, a closer literary analysis reveals strong thematic and experiential parallels between his autobiography and fiction. Events, emotional struggles, and socio-political contexts presented in his novels often reflect autobiographical dimensions that cannot be dismissed as mere coincidence. The study critically examines these intersections to understand how autobiography transforms into fictional form and how narrative identity is reconstructed through literary creativity. Methodologically, the research employs a comparative textual analysis of autobiographical and fictional texts, highlighting structural, thematic, and stylistic convergences. The study argues that Jabra’s narrative technique challenges the rigid boundaries between autobiography and fiction, offering a hybrid literary form that enriches Arabic narrative tradition. Ultimately, the paper demonstrates that autobiographical embedding in Jabra’s novels serves not only as a narrative strategy but also as a means of intellectual self-expression and cultural commentary.