The fedayeen and the process of Palestinian national identity-building in the poetry of Mahmoud Darwish

By the end of the sixties, the resurgence of the Palestinian armed resistance movement marked a crucial juncture in the process of nation building. In Lebanon, conditions were so favorable that the guerrilla fighter – or fedayín – rapidly became the symbol of a new collective identity. Song lyrics and poetry provide evidence of the immense popularity he enjoyed in those days, both as a national hero and as a paragon of moral virtues. However, the Palestinian armed presence and military activity on Lebanese soil would eventually destabilize Lebanon’s fragile political system. After the eruption of the civil war (1975-1990), guerrilla fighters lost their momentum. In his poem Ah. mad al-Za‘atar, which was written shortly after the massacre of the Tell Zaatar refugee camp (1976) to commemorate its victims, Mahmoud Darwish captures the essence of that historical moment, and portrays the ethos that the fedayín embodied, the notion of heroic sacrifice which to this day legitimates the Palestinian cause.A finales de los años sesenta, el resurgimiento del movimiento de resistencia armada palestino marcó una coyuntura crucial en el proceso de construcción de la nación. En el Líbano, las condiciones eran tan favorables que el guerrillero –o fedayín– se convirtió rápidamente en el símbolo de una nueva identidad colectiva. Las letras de las canciones y las poesías dan cuenta de la inmensa popularidad de la que gozaba en aquella época, como héroe nacional y modelo de virtudes morales. Sin embargo, la presencia armada y la actividad militar palestina en territorio libanés acabarían por desestabilizar el frágil sistema político del país. Tras el estallido de la guerra civil (1975-1990), los guerrilleros perdieron su impulso. En su poema Ah. mad al-Za‘atar, escrito poco después de la masacre del campo de refugiados de Tell Zaatar (1976) para conmemorar a sus víctimas, Mahmoud Darwish capta la esencia de ese momento histórico y retrata el ethos que encarnaba el fedayín, la noción de sacrificio heroico que hasta hoy legitima la causa palestina.By the end of the sixties, the resurgence of the Palestinian armed resistance movement marked a crucial juncture in the process of nation building. In Lebanon, conditions were so favorable that the guerrilla fighter – or fedayín – rapidly became the symbol of a new collective identity. Song lyrics and poetry provide evidence of the immense popularity he enjoyed in those days, both as a national hero and as a paragon of moral virtues. However, the Palestinian armed presence and military activity on Lebanese soil would eventually destabilize Lebanon’s fragile political system. After the eruption of the civil war (1975-1990), guerrilla fighters lost their momentum. In his poem Ah. mad al-Za‘atar, which was written shortly after the massacre of the Tell Zaatar refugee camp (1976) to commemorate its victims, Mahmoud Darwish captures the essence of that historical moment, and portrays the ethos that the fedayín embodied, the notion of heroic sacrifice which to this day legitimates the Palestinian cause.&nbsp