The Problem of Terminology and its Significance in Arabic Criticism

Abstract

The controversy in the Arab arena has stirred up the world of Arab criticism  causing Arab readers to live in constant turmoil due to the ongoing debate between heritage and modernity, particularly after advocates of modernity called for updating the Arab mind and severing ties with tradition, captivated by Western modernity. On the other hand, others have clung to Arab heritage, attempting to revive it and employ it in their intellectual and literary works. Amidst this intellectual conflict that dominated the field of contemporary Arab criticism, reality is experiencing a genuine crisis, manifested in the loss of the distinctiveness and intellectual identity of criticism. This was a result of the influx of Western cultural terms into Arab culture through the process of acculturation. However, this transition had a negative impact on the practice of criticism, as these imported terms carried significant conceptual baggage at all levels. Moreover, these imported terms remained in a state of flux and the Arab criticism continued to struggle between the absence of a unified terminological formula and the translation or adaptation of these terms from Western studies. This has had a negative effect on the effectiveness of procedural terminology and its active role in unifying and facilitating the circulation of information. What is the significance of terminology in the Arab critical arena? And how can it be regulated and unified? In this research paper, we will attempt, God willing, to examine the reality of Arab critical terminology and its challenges through the following elements: 1. The nature of critical terminology and its challenges. 2. The mechanisms used in formulating critical terminology. 3. The experiences of some Arab critics in the field of critical terminology. 4. Proposed solutions to address the problematic nature of critical terminology.