The Dialectic of Peace and War in the Poetry of Ibn Nubāta al-Sa'dī

Abstract

The dialectic of peace and war in the poetry of Ibn Nubāta al-Saʿdī (d. 405 AH) is regarded as one of the thematic and cultural patterns that occupied poetry in the Abbasid era, as it represents a linguistic image of real life and the political and social fluctuations of society. Ibn Nubāta al-Saʿdī was one of the poets in whose poetic production this dialectical issue prominently emerged, as a fundamental vision that goes beyond mere general description to an intellectual and moral construction. In his poetry, images of war-with their fighting, chivalry, conflict, and depiction of weapons and battlefields—intermingle with images of peace that evoke calmness, reassurance, stability, construction, and security. This intellectual interpenetration constitutes an artistic perspective that reflects the poet’s awareness and his perception of the necessity of balance between the power of war and its instruments and the wisdom of peace and its word.