Narratives and the digital humanities

No one doubts the presence of young students and good researchers, whether in the doctoral preparation stage or after it, in the entire Arab world. There is also no doubt that there are young researchers who teach in the faculties of Arabic literature in general, and in the departments of Arabic language and literature in particular, at a level that qualifies them to contribute to the development of Arabic literary and narrative studies.

And when we stress in many of our writings the flaw in narrative studies, we resort to that to find out the subjective and objective constraints and obstacles that prevent the advancement of academic and scientific research in our cultural reality, not only for the sake of ranking Arab universities at an honorable level for Arab culture, but With the aim of moving to the level of international literary and narrative research.

Someone might say, that the number you mention is very small compared to the huge number of students of the Arabic language, and at the doctoral stage, who suffer from simple language problems, in addition to the severe weakness in issues related to curricula and theories, proposing topics, and the ability to complete letters or Dissertations in which the minimum acceptable level is available. This is also very true.

This miserable reality leads us to wonder about the reasons and factors that led to the perpetuation of this tragic situation? Do the researchers themselves bear some responsibility? Some may refer it to educational and academic policy, and to institutions that in turn suffer from a shortage, whether at the level of guidance and management, or competencies that can advance higher education to the required level? The reasons may be many, but the result is the same: further decline and decline that affects not only the education sector at its various levels, but all other sectors.

Do we have to ask again about the role of intellectuals? Or should we suffice by saying that they too are the masters of successive Arab policies, which only contribute to imitation and regression, and to the creation of generations who have no concern or awareness of the areas in which they work, and what is said in the preambles of plans, programs and decisions, about renewal, does not matter. And keep up with the times, and engage in the global level? How do we get out of this vicious circle?

The digital humanities, which present a set of characteristics that can be presented through computational literary studies, find in narratives the discipline most compatible with a professional computer-assisted approach.

I found myself re-asking these questions that I had asked repeatedly, and many people joined me in asking them, while I was following what is being done in the field of global narratives, and the last book I reviewed was entitled: “Narratives and Digital Humanities” (2021) within the publications of the University of Hamburg. The book includes about nine studies written In German and English, plus an additional introduction.

The book excites me not only because of the subject matter it deals with, but mainly with the nature of the disciplines in which the participants work, the languages ​​they teach, and the different generations. The topic is one, and it is three-dimensional as defined by the introduction in which four researchers participated, who identified “its methodological horizon in three elements: non-ideological reading, narratives, and digital humanities.” The question posed to the participants is: What is the discipline that can serve as a bridge between narratives and the digital humanities?

Each participant dealt with this topic according to his competence, and they were all governed by one central issue, which lies in the development of narratives in their relationship to the digital humanities, by searching for bridges that can be established between a specific specialty, which is narratives, and the digital humanities, which is a “network of competences”?

The digital humanities, which offer a set of characteristics that can be presented through computer literary studies, find in narratives the specialty most compatible with a professional approach supported by computer, for three reasons: The prose narrative work is similar to everyday language as opposed to poetry, for example. Secondly, because the narratives have precisely defined their categories, unlike other approaches.

Thirdly, the introduction confirms that the classic narratives with the Russian Formalists, Gerard Genette, Todorov, and other classical narrators, paid more attention to describing the characteristics of the text, and succeeded in doing so with great success, making the possibility of computing the text realized in a more appropriate way than other approaches. In light of these reasons, it is concluded that “computer narratives (as we find in Mane’s works 2013) are the common basis that links the digital humanities and narratives.”

I return to our distinguished young Arab students and researchers, and to young university professors who are motivated and capable of research, and I ask: What are the narratives that they studied? Have they already studied it? Is it sufficient to repeat the narrative interpretations that were written, and the concepts related to dialogue, pilgrims, pronunciation, and others, which we have not returned to their origins, to declare our distinction and superiority, while we add nothing but that we write eloquent constructions, and in a good language? Neither this young student nor this young academic can be a researcher, with a specific specialization, and able to open up to other specializations unless he renews himself, makes a double effort, transcends the horizon formed within his scope, and works to keep pace with what is happening in his field of competence. Have we thought about computational literary studies? What are the narratives that we can start from to go to the computer narratives?(Moroccan writer)