Portrait of social inequality and family crisis in “Mirāth” by Muhammad Husayn Haykal: Literary realism approach

Khotimah, Husnul and Surur, Misbahus ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9370-5004 (2026) Portrait of social inequality and family crisis in “Mirāth” by Muhammad Husayn Haykal: Literary realism approach. JALi Journal of Arabic Literature, 7 (2). pp. 52-64. ISSN 2722-5585

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Abstract

As a mimetic cultural artifact, literary conflict frequently encodes the socio-political tensions and ideological fractures of its originating society. Within the framework of literary realism, this study critically interrogates the representation of social inequality and familial disintegration in Muhammad Husayn Haikal's short story "Mirāth," which is featured in his collection Qiṣaṣ Miṣriyya (first published in 1969 and republished by Muassasah Handawi in 2014). Departing from purely formalist readings, this research argues that Haikal's narrative conflicts serve as a diagnostic lens through which the structural asymmetries of early twentieth-century Egyptian society are laid bare. Employing a descriptive qualitative methodology, data were gathered via close reading, translation, and systematic note-taking, subsequently analyzed using the Miles and Huberman interactive model. The findings delineate four interlocking tropes of social reality: structural inequality, gender asymmetry, domestic discord, and moral erosion. Collectively, these elements substantiate the short story's function not merely as a literary reflection, but as a critical social document. The study ultimately contends that the story's depiction of mismanagement in inheritance and waqf (endowment) systems operates as a catalytic agent of protracted communal strife, thereby contributing to broader scholarly discourses on the intersection between Arabic realist narrative and socio-economic critique.

Item Type:	Journal Article
Keywords:	social inequality; mirāth; realism; arabic literature
Subjects:	20 LANGUAGE, COMMUNICATION AND CULTURE > 2005 Literary Studies > 200523 Middle Eastern Literature 20 LANGUAGE, COMMUNICATION AND CULTURE > 2005 Literary Studies > 200527 Arabic Literature (al-Adab al-‘Arabī) 20 LANGUAGE, COMMUNICATION AND CULTURE > 2005 Literary Studies > 200527 Arabic Literature (al-Adab al-‘Arabī) > 20052706 Naqd al-Adab (Arabic Literary Criticism) - al-Natsr (Prose, Novel)
Divisions:	Faculty of Humanities > Department of Arabic Language and Letters
Depositing User:	Misbahus Surur
Date Deposited:	23 Sep 2026 13:03

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