The young sing back : On protest songs and the rise of an alternative national-popular consciousness in the arab world /
الشباب يرد بالغناء : أغانى الاحتجاج وظهور وعى وطنى-شعبى بديل فى العالم العربى
Rowa Mohamed Nabil ; Supervised Maha Elsaid
- Cairo : Rowa Mohamed Nabil , 2020
- 122 P. ; 25cm
Thesis (M.A.) - Cairo University - Faculty of Arts - Department of English
The present study examines the dynamics of youth artivism -artistic activism- in selected countries of the Arab World as manifested in protest songs, produced by young singers and bands during the popular uprisings between 2010 and 2013. The study analyzes the stylistic, linguistic, and aesthetic features of protest songs, and their function as instruments employed to articulate collective defiance, grievances, and aspirations.The study, also, investigates the political engagement of young Arab protest singers in the homeland and diaspora, by analyzing their role as activist-artists in generating songs that represent an alternative national consciousness reflective of the popular masses.This national-popular consciousness is represented and documented in the protest songs accompanying the eruption of popular political contention. Central to this research is the assertion that the cultural phenomenon of Arab artivism is best understood within its social, political, and historical contexts. Presenting a critical discussion of neo-Marxist and post-Marxist approaches, the study is informed by Antonio Gramscis concepts of hegemony and national-popular in an attempt to highlight the cultural paradigm of subversive artistic activism