Modern Syrian Short Stories

by M.J.L. Young, Michel G. Azrak

Book by Young, M. J. L., Azrak, Michel G.

131 pages, Hardcover

First published May 1, 1988

Reviews

[Helen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This collection of short stories, which includes an introduction by the editor, appeared in 1988 - before the present catastrophe in Syria. The volume gathers short stories of an era of development, in which country/backward/bazaar folk may be gently lampooned, or fondly depicted as representing the essence of the Syrian character; however, the outlook is based on the acceptance of the notion that the sophisticated, Western-oriented, possibly Western-educated urban dwellers, represent the future - as difficult as it may seem to attain.

Syria thus was trying to achieve Western-style secular development goals - although of course conservative social values persisted in the villages, and tradition still permeated life even in some sectors of the cities. This is actually a useful, if poignant, volume in light of the subsequent disintegration of Syrian society with the advent of the Syrian civil war, and the addition of "warlords" from neighboring Iraq, corrupting youth with promises of instant riches, land, wives, even slaves. The disorder, lawlessness, economic catastrophe of the civil war made the criminal "fundamentalist" state attractive to numerous disaffected, impoverished Syrian youth, who previously might have pursued a normal career, or opened a business, or tried to farm and so forth. The get-rich-quick "promises" of the Islamic state group have corrupted thousands of Syrian youth in the aftermath of the collapse of society - mirroring the rise of the rapacious Nazi state in Germany in the aftermath of the collapse of the German economy/hyperinflation/impoverishment of the middle-class/etc following the First World War.

This is truly a catastrophe on a gigantic scale, and most unfortunate considering that Syria was on the road to development and taking its place in the ranks of the normal, law-abiding countries of the world. The millions of displaced Syrians in refugee camps in the past few years include innumerable children, who will be traumatized by the experience of being uprooted from their homes and villages. They will not receive a normal education. Their families have no way to support them, or try to get them into schools in cities or overseas. An entire generation of Syrians - which in a way represents the future of Syria - is thus cut off from progress. Certainly, the Arab Spring of 2011-2012 played out in a tragic, catastrophic way in Syria. What started as a seemingly progressive movement for change - a demand for increased democracy in Syria - ended up a civil war. The civil war was in turn fed by vested regional interests looking to gain an advantage - like some infernal boxing ring where bets are placed, and parties work to influence the outcome to their advantage. S. Arabia would like to see secularism extirpated - and an extension of conservative, religiously-oriented regimes, which they could then easily control/influence (pawns). Democracy is incompatible with monarchy - such as the monarchical, theocratic regime in S. Arabia. The Assad family dictatorship is equally anti-democratic - but with the saving grace that it is at least Western-oriented (secular, non-religious). Syria is caught in the tangled web of regional rivalry - between Iran, which would like to extend its influence in the region by having a compliant, friendly regime in place in Syria (or continuing the rule of the Assad family, which is friendly to the mullah-led country of Iran) and S. Arabia, which would like to "absorb" Syria into its sphere of influence. The civil war in Syria thus was fueled literally and figuratively by the oil rich Mid East petro-powers S. Arabia and Iran, intent on winning out and adding Syria to the list of countries "allied" with them. Did the original demonstrators in Syria at the onset of the Arab Spring ever imagine that their quest for representative government would deteriorate into a tragic civil war, and then degenerate into an outright travesty of "government" - the "institutionalization" of criminality with the rise of the Islamic state in Syria? This tragedy, as it continues to unfold, and render millions of Syrians homeless including millions on the march to safety in Europe, actually is the opposite of the idealistic aims of the Arab Spring. Who would have expected a logical bid for democracy, which could have been expected under the repressive Assad regime, and also was to be expected with the rising level of development/education in Syria, would have led instead to a 180 degree turn to backwardness, theocracy, crime, the cessation of the rule of law, slavery, and every conceivable benighted notion that progressive, educated Syrians had tried since the 19th Century to free themselves from. The gifts of the Enlightenment, even now, even now in the 21st Century, are set to be snatched away from the long-suffering Syrians yet again, by greedy despots. Freedom is just one casualty in the never-ending suffering and crushing of the population, which has been ongoing for centuries under varying regimes. The Syrians had at last seen a light at the end of the tunnel, with the promise of progress with education and development - but that too has now been shattered. The country is a victim of regional rivalries, each of the regional mega-powers sitting on the side-lines of the gruesome contest like fat, greasy, hyenas, cruelly and cynically barking/laughing, licking their chops, like misshapen monsters in a Goya print, waiting for the ultimate dissolution of the country, so they can "acquire" what "remains." It is truly a tragedy that a sizable portion of the population has left the country - which makes it all the more simple for tyrannical theocratic groups to control the depopulated areas, strip them of whatever economic value they still contain. Is Syria going to be "easier to manage" with less people, if Assad does eventually win out? Or will the Syrian refugees return once the rule of law is restored, with the defeat of the Islamic state? Time will tell.

In light of what occurred in Syria in the 33 years since this book of short stories was published, we can say, perhaps, that the reader may read and weep.

Actually, the volume presents a cross-section of perspectives into the life, social customs, attitudes in Syria in the mid-20 Century, and is definitely worth reading. The stories are well-written. There is quite a bit of humor, and one story was incredibly funny - although with a suitably "karmic" bittersweet ending. I recommend the book as a window into what once was in the tortured country of Syria - and what secular Syrians should struggle to continue.