Language and Gender in Dhakirat al-Jasad Novel by AhlamMosteghanemi

Arabic novels have found a self-contained and functional identity due to the nascent transformation in the Arab world besides worldwide modern literature development. The attempts of great authors in the Arab world have proved effective in setting trends within the domain of thought and language and have also directly influenced the socio-political movements in these countries. North African countries, particularly Algeria, as a result of their long colonization by the French (130 years), have greatly distanced from Arabic language, which is the major index of Arabic culture. Currently, half a century after the Algerian emancipating movement, Arab authors are striving to revive Arabian cultural heritage consistent with the contemporary taste and thoughts of their intellectual citizens. The present study, employing an analytic descriptive approach, analyzes Dhakirat al-Jasad novel authored by AhlamMosteghanemi, one of the well-known Algerian literary figures, via focusing on the relation between language and gender in the text. The findings of the study reveal that the author, by contrasting concepts like feminine and masculine language, has described personal and social concerns, life at home and in exile,and the role played by certain characters before and after the revolution. The author has purposefully deployed the language and gender deconstructiontodepict a different view of Arab woman and her interaction with the dominant masculine language.