Iraqi Christian Minority and Identity: A Critical Discourse Analysis of Selected English and Arabic Novels

Abstract or Introduction

The study of identity within a given discourse is one of the significant topics in the field of critical discourse analysis. Iraqi Christian identity has undergone various political and social changes during different historical periods leading to the emergence of the Christian identity as a minority in society. The present study investigates the representation of the identity of Iraqi Christian minority in the narrative discourse of selected English and Arabic novels. More precisely, the present study is a critical discourse analysis of the Christian identity as a minority in selected English and Arabic novels, namely; the English novel “Abducted in Iraq” by Saa’d Hanna (2017), and the Arabic Novel “الحفيدة الامريكية” (The American Granddaughter) by Inaa’m Kachachi (2009).

The study aims at: first, identifying the identity representation of Iraqi Christian minority in the narrative discourse of selected English and Arabic novels before and after 2003 war; second, investigating the textual resources and their role in the identity construction of Iraqi Christian minority in the narrative discourse of selected English and Arabic novels before and after 2003 war; third, identifying the discursive resources and their role in the identity construction of Iraqi Christian minority in the narrative discourse of selected English and Arabic novels before and after 2003 war; fourth, examining the social resources and their role in the identity construction of Iraqi Christian minority in the narrative discourse of selected English and Arabic novels before and after 2003 war. That is, it examines the role played by power and social dynamisms in the identity construction under analysis; and fifth, investigating similarities and differences in the identity construction of Iraqi Christian minority in the narrative discourse of selected English and Arabic novels before and after 2003 war at the textual, discursive and social levels of analysis. For achieving the afore-mentioned aims, a purposive sampling technique is used to choose the most representative data from the selected English and Arabic novels. The data is analysed according to a synthesised theoretical framework based on Wodak et al. (2009), Fairclough (2015), Wortham (2001), and Graumann (1999). The data are analysed both qualitatively and quantitatively.