Major Factors for the Emergence of Hija (Satirical Poetry) for Bashār

Hijā or satire is a genre of poetry that emerges, both spontaneously and through conscious effort, from the depth of the poet’s soul to relieve him of his inner anguish and is followed by resentment of the one being satirized. In the same way as there exist certain motives or factors behind the orientation of poets towards a specific genre of poetry, there are also certain factors involved in the development of this form of poetry. The present article is an effort to investigate such factors within the two classifications of internal and external motives. To begin with, the present study examines the causes of Bashār’s orientation towards satire in the family and social environments, and mentions such factors as his family’s enslavement, genetic physical deformity, as well as barrenness and incapability of producing offspring, as the major factors contributing to his production of satire. The article continues to compare the personality trait of this poet in terms of the opinions of some experts in psychology and sociology on issues including stress, sensation seeking, inferiority complex, and superiority complex.