Living between memory, war, and daily life

Abstract

This paragraph written by the widely acclaimed Palestinian writer, Salman Natour, in one of his significant play about memory, as he tried to show the trauma of the Nakba for Palestinian society. His writing reflects many of the deep seated emotions embedded in Palestinian memory. I remember watching the play in Haifa in July 2004. Natour performed the role with his wonderful acts and movements. His play raised a lot of thoughts in my mind, especially when he started mentioning his granddaughter, Salma, and the stories that he told her and will tell. These Nakba (Palestinian Catastrophe) memories and stories, especially for the first and second generations, are often underpinned with feelings of fear, loss, humiliation, and insecurity. They relate to the year 1948 as a demarcating event in their lives. Simply, their lives were turned upside down in that year. Therefore, the Nakba is a key to Palestinian collective ...