The dictator. (c2008)

Abstract

This study tries to demonstrate how the image of the dictator is an image that has haunted mankind throughout history, regardless of geographic, national, ethnic and cultural differences. In a framework of globalization, this subject can be of interest to scholars in order to see if the image of the dictator is indeed a global image. This thesis tends to examine this theory through a comparative study two literary works that belong to different societies, cultures and times; one is The Comedians by Graham Greene and the other is 'Aw by Ibrahim Nasrallah. Moreover, this study tries to show that literary devices encrypted in these two novels with an image of a dictator as primary protagonist, authentically represent an original human reality that in a culture of social and political suppression, would otherwise never be revealed. By applying Marxist, structuralist and post-structuralist approaches to these novels, this claim is being further supported. The problematic issue that this thesis seeks an answer for is the following: does such a comparative study of literature provide a sufficient answer the above questions regarding the image of the dictator in human perception?