Of all the different areas of Arabic literature, the one I find most interesting is Arabic poetry. Arabic poetry consists of both classical poetry (pre-Renaissance or al-Nahdah) and modern poetry. Classical poetry dates back to the 6th century, although it is believed to be preceded by oral poetry. Arabic poetry is composed of two main types, the first type of poetry is rhythmic poetry, which according to Al-Khalil ibn Ahmad al-Farahidi, consists of 15 types of bahr, or meter – however, one of his students later added one sixteenth metre. The second form of Arabic poetry is prose, which is the spoken language without any form of metrical structure. In addition to being my favorite, Arabic poetry is also the earliest form of Arabic literature and includes multiple genres including romantic poetry and satirical poetry. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Most of the poetry that originated in the pre-Islamic era has unfortunately not been preserved, however, what remains is well regarded as the most eloquent Arabic poetry to date. In addition to its artistic value, it also serves as an important source for Classical Arabic regarding grammar and vocabulary and also serves as a reliable historical document for Arab life at that time. Popular forms of poetry from this era include qit'ah, which praised the tribe, and hija', or satirical Arabic poetry. The arud or prosody of Arabic rhyming poetry is well established in the Arab world. In rhythmic poetry, as mentioned before, meters are known as “seas”. These are measured by something known as “taf'ilah”. Within each verse, there are a number of these taf'ilah. The addition or subtraction of a single consonant or vowel can completely shift the verse from one meter to another. It is also worth noting that in rhythmic poetry, each line must end with the same rhyme. Two of the most common genres of Arabic poetry, either love poetry or lampoon poetry. From my research, I concluded that Gaza's poems have the recurring theme of unconditional love. These poems are typically written from the perspective of a lover whose beloved is out of reach or unattainable. This genre of poetry typically tends to be full of extended metaphors. Over the past millennia, collections of gazal poetry have been created by many poets from different countries, such as Turkey and Iran. It is common for both classical and modern gazals to be rendered vocally and performed. Notable Gazal poets include Hafez (b. 1315 – 1390), Faiz Ahmad Faiz (b. 1911 – 1984), and Parveen Shakir (b. 1952 – 1994). Hija, or lampoon, poetry is typically written when the poet wishes to express his discontent or disgust towards someone else. It's usually meant to be funny, but it serves as a much larger social construct for critics, using it as a weapon. There are different types of hijab, including individual hija, collective or group hija, and moral or ethical hija. Individual hijas are directed towards an individual whom the poet strongly dislikes and therefore attempts to show his flaws and have him denigrated. The collective was addressed to a group of people, such as a tribe or a society, and the poet attempts to show their flaws. Moral or ethical hija deals with distinctive physical defects and disabilities such as odd posture, large noses, or other notable physical features. To provide an even clearer picture of the structure of Arabic poetry, I will translate and analyze a small excerpt of a poem by one of my favorite Arabic poets: NizarQabbani. The last two lines of this excerpt demonstrate that the speaker finds himself unable to come to terms with the flood of emotions he feels for the lover he is seeking. Continues.