Aspects of Difference in the Oral Narrations of Classical Arabic Poetry

This research paper examines the aspects of the difference in oral narrations of the classical Arabic poetry, in an attempt to find out the recurrent forms of variations, and the mechanisms used to trigger difference in the oral narrations of the classical Arabic poetry. To achieve this, the research looks at the various components of poetry ranging from major ingredients such as poetry collections and single poems, which represent the most popular form of poetry in our Arabic heritage, right down to micro-ingredients, which include single poetic lines, including the word in its different forms, and the vowel markers as important syntactic determinants of the word order in Arabic.
In the major components of poetry collections and single poems, we encounter forms of difference including the size of the volume, which is linked to the number of poems that have been narrated about the poet or attributed to the poet. In the single poems there are two aspects of difference: the first is the number of verses of the poem. Here two aspects of difference were observed which might be called ‘insertion’ where lines are inserted within the text closest to the poet’s time. In this case the beginning and end of the poem are left intact and insertion takes place in the rest of the poem. The second aspect of difference deals with the poem as a whole to which insertions are mounted. This does not mean that these two aspects do not take place simultaneously. The variation and confusion of the attribution of the poems represent the second form of difference. Due to the difference between the time of writing poetry and the time of producing it, the attribution of poems has been confused. Many poems have been attributed to more than one poet at the same time and the nature and structure of the Arabic poem also contributed to the confusion of some Arabic texts which are similar in rhyme, rhythm and subject matter. All this adds to the effect of what is known as plagiarism and wrong attribution in the classical Arabic poetry.
In smaller components, which include single lines of poetry, the forms of difference vary according to the different possibilities of altering the structure of single lines whether the lines came from the context of the text or outside. The oral narration of single lines of poetry seems to be more vulnerable to difference because taking it out of context, makes it easier for change. I have used single lines of poetry in the language and literature as indicators of various phenomena and as the raw material used in setting the rules of grammar, which significantly contributed to the variations that have been observed in the oral narrations.
As for the word which is the smallest components including its various forms, it is worthy to note that the word has been subject to a myriad of differences due to its smallness and the nature of the language which makes replacing one word for another possible. In addition to this, there is also what we might call a mistaken hearing and reading, especially in the time period prior to the time when writing was improved and confusion was corrected.
We can sum up the most important findings of the present research paper as follows:
1. The difference in oral narrations is a phenomenon that runs through all the components of the classical Arabic poetry, and does not spare almost all poetry collections and anthologies.
2. This phenomenon appears to be more common in smaller components due to the nature of each component and areas of their use.


It can be said that the difference in oral narrations is mostly the result of mistaken hearing and reading. This seems to contradict with what might be expected that difference in oral narrations took place in the next stage of the writing poetry than the period prior to the writing of poetry due to the adoption of the written language possibilities and not hearing which is supposed to be the original mechanism of how poetry is received.