An Analysis of the Components of National Identity in the Novel A Mask, the Color of the Sky by Basim Khandaqji

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

1 Associate Professor of Arabic Language and Literature, University of Birjand, Iran.

2 - Master's Student of Persian Language and Arabic, University of birjand, birjand, Iran

Abstract

The issue of national identity, particularly in occupied societies such as Palestine, represents one of the most complicated cultural challenges of the contemporary era. Continuing efforts to undermine the constituent elements of Palestinian identity have transformed the novel into an important arena for redefining and consolidating the foundations of national identity. In this context, A Mask, the Color of the Sky, the recent novel by the contemporary Palestinian writer Basim Khandaqji, through its representation of the lived reality of Palestinians,   presents a suitable framework for examining the fundamental components of national identity and the crises ensuing therein. This study, using a descriptive-analytical approach, sought to identify which components of national identity are highlighted in this novel and to examine how the Palestinian identity crisis is reflected in its narrative. Accordingly, the study focused on five components, including language, religion, the individual, homeland, and history, as the primary analytical framework. The findigns indicated that language, as a means of communication, reflects the internal conflicts of the characters through the tension between their mother tongue and foreign languages; religion, as a source of cultural cohesion, shows its role in either reinforcing or weakening national identity by the depiction of ideological conflicts and the spiritual crises experienced by different generations; at the individual level, the characters’ confrontation with conflicting identities and existential pressures intensifies their personal identity crises, eventually contributing to a broader national identity crisis; the homeland, as the central axis of national belonging, occupies a fundamental position in preserving the cohesion of national identity by virtue of its historical and cultural significance; and finally, history functions, on the one hand, as an instrument of resistance and identity reclamation through exposing Zionist historical distortions, while, on the other hand, the characters’ neglect of their national history further deepens the identity crisis.

Keywords

References

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Journal of Resistance Literature
Volume 18, Issue 34
July 2026
Pages 189-206

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