The Formation of the Poetic Image through the Duality of Hope and Despair in the Poetry of Mourid Barghouti and Thomas Stearns Eliot: A Comparative Study

Abstract

This study explores the impact of the duality of hope and despair on the construction of the poetic image in the works of Palestinian poet Mourid Barghouti and the Anglo-American poet T. S. Eliot, through a comparative approach that considers their cultural backgrounds, artistic structures, and existential experiences. Employing both descriptive-analytical and comparative methods, the research utilizes textual analysis tools to uncover the psychological, symbolic, and semantic dimensions embedded in their poetry. The findings reveal that both poets place this emotional duality at the core of their poetic expression: Barghouti draws upon themes of exile, memory, and homeland to craft images of enduring hope despite the bitterness of displacement, while Eliot presents a vision of existential and spiritual fragmentation shaped by the crisis of Western modernity, with faint traces of hope veiled in religious or mystical symbolism. The study inderscores the crucial role of historical and cultural context in shaping these poetic images and highlights the aesthetic and intellectual functions of the poetic image as a reflection of inner conflict that transcends the self and speaks to the broader human condition. It concludes by advocating for the expansion of comparative criticism to include major emotional dualities in both Arab and Western poetry as a means of revealing the expressive power underlying shared human experiences across cultures.