Literature and Society: The Influence of Public Opinion on Literary Production in Yemen

Yasmine Abdulhafeez – Sawt Al-Amal (Voice of Hope)

Literature is deeply influenced by the issues of society and the surrounding circumstances. Literature can have a significant impact on social reality. Literature is a social product that reflects its concerns and aspirations and is influenced by its different circumstances. In Yemen, where political and social events intertwine deeply, this connection is evident.

Yemeni literature, whether it be stories, poems, or novels, is a reflection of society. It records historical events, highlights social issues, and conveys human emotions and feelings. The role of literature is not limited to recording events but extends to influencing society and shaping public opinion. However, the degree of impact on society differs depending on the extent to which members of society themselves are interested in reading and keeping up with literature, as well as the degree of attention paid to writers and the publication of their works, especially those that focus on social issues in their writings.

Therefore, literature is one of the fields that needs attention, whether through supporting writers themselves, encouraging them to produce, taking care of their writings, developing their works and marketing them, or opening institutions concerned with literature and activating their various activities, which are represented by holding festivals and competitions for creative writers and poets. This is due to the great importance of literature in the lives of societies.

The Importance of Literature in Influencing Society

Voice of Hope newspaper conducted several interviews to get the opinions of society on the importance of literature in social reality. Poet Zahir Habib pointed this out by saying: “Unfortunately, the role of literature has become marginal and does not have an active role that we can point to. Although literature and writers are meant to play a leading role in enlightening and guiding societies, we now live in a time where the roar of bullets drowns out the rustling of pens.”

On the other hand, media person Muhammad Al-Huraibi believes that the importance of literature in any society lies in the fact that it is a basic tool for preserving national identity, promoting positive social values, expressing the issues of society, embracing them, and defending them. Literature also plays a significant role in reinforcing and strengthening the social fabric. It is worth noting that the Yemeni Writers and Writers Union was the first Yemeni institution to bring together all the sons of the homeland, and it was a unified entity before the Yemeni unification years ago. However, its role has weakened in recent years due to the successive conflicts that have greatly affected the reality of literature in Yemen. According to him, “We are now living in an era marked by the decline of the intellectual elite.”

A community activist, who asked not to be named, said, “Literature plays an important role in influencing social reality in several ways. It helps shape awareness by offering perspectives and opinions on social, cultural, and political problems. Through its exploration of identity, literature aids in preserving culture and strengthening national belonging. Moreover, it stimulates discussions by providing subjects for analysis and debate, thereby promoting dialogue between individuals and communities on important issues. Literature can also influence the behavior and perspectives of individuals, and it provides an outlet for individuals to escape from their reality, which may lead to relaxing effects and new thinking.”

He stressed that literature is an effective means of expressing ideas and feelings and can have a profound impact on society and its culture.

Poet Zakaria Al-Ghandri believes that the importance of literature in society is very important, and both complement each other. Society needs more attention from the concerned and societal bodies. The more culture a society has, the more sophisticated and influential it will be. The more its events are narrated in a literary way, the more it will contribute to the refinement and education of society.

He continues, “Therefore, the relationship between literature and society is close. We write in the name of society, but this is not tangible, because most of society does not realize the value of literature. The writer may realize the value of society in his literature and write about it, but society rarely feels this, so literature will not be literature except under specific social conditions. The writer, in the end, is a social element that came from society and transformed its events in a literary way, confirming the relationship between society and literature.”

Al-Ghandri adds to Voice of Hope newspaper: “Society needs literature because it is the spiritual food that helps open dreams and aspirations, as it produces literary works that emulate the details of society in all its fields. Therefore, society remains the first inspiration for the writer, but in the end, its impact on society may be limited due to the lack of societal interest in literature.”

He pointed out that in the past, the pre-Islamic society was a literary society. Therefore, there were markets specifically for literature and poets, and there were poems hung on the “Ka’aba”. This was because they believed in the importance of literature and its influence at that time. Currently, although the connection between literature and society is deep-rooted, there seems to be a gap as a result of not educating the entire society about the importance of literature in reality. We may not find the entire society producing literature. Literature contributes more to the study of society, and the writer who comes from the midst of society conveys all the events of society in his literary way, highlighting its importance in a literary way that makes it an important society.

Challenges Facing Literature in Yemen

Literature, like other cultural fields, has been facing many challenges for several years. The current situation in the country, with its conflict, destruction, poverty, displacement, and economic collapse, has increased these challenges, making the concern for literature by the relevant authorities a thing of the past.
In this regard, writer Muhammad Al-Shamiri says: “Yemeni literature cannot be separated from the country’s political and economic realities, especially at present. We can first talk about the challenges imposed by the country’s ruling policy. After literature was at the forefront in terms of awareness and giving, it has become, as a result of the marginalization of writers and creative people, a tool that serves authority. Therefore, the stage of mental atrophy of literature, as I call it, has begun to emerge.”
He adds: “Active literary institutions have begun to withdraw, and publishing houses have disappeared. We have reached the point where literature today is simply a faded presence, even if the number of narrative publications has increased. However, the quality and substance of literature are not keeping pace with modern and digital development. It is also no secret that fear dominates most writers – if not all – of the ruling authority. This makes what they write closer to escaping reality rather than dealing with it, except in rare cases and in a symbolic way.”

For her part, writer and novelist Fikria Shahra says: “Most of the challenges can discourage any writer, but these challenges become the motivation for the writer to forge his path and prove himself in the literary field.”

She continues: “One of the most prominent challenges facing writers is the difficulty of publishing, which starts from the high cost of printing to the limited audience, to the inability to market, as well as the challenge of locality, which is that the writer remains confined to his environment and his small audience around him, and the complete absence of support and encouragement from the Ministry of Culture. In all countries, there is a book authority that prints the most prominent publications annually, except in our case, the authority has proven its failure in everything.”

She adds: “In terms of the appreciation of the writer in our society, we find him among the poorest people abandoning his creativity in pursuit of a living, and he hardly finds time to be creative in his field. These are challenges that affect both genders. The challenges for female writers are even more difficult, and I don’t think there are any solutions other than the return of the state and its institutions.”

The Reality of Literature in Yemen

Novelist Jihad Al-Jifri talks about the reality of literature and writers in Yemen, saying: “There are many writers in Yemen, and their number is considerable, especially in recent times, as a group of literary books have appeared, and many creative writers have emerged who left Yemen and found opportunities for them to publish their works abroad.

She adds: “The economic, social, and political circumstances have made people distant from reading and learning, as the Yemeni person has become more concerned with making a living than reading. However, some elites are interested in reading and learning, which confirms that literature is still flourishing, even if it is confined to writers and those interested. Some support writers and poets from the cadres interested in this socio-cultural orientation, whether in Sana’a or Aden. But as a government agency, it does not give much importance to the community sector.”

She continues: “There must be a unified role that includes all sectors, including education and the cultural sector, to spread cultural awareness. I do not consider literature to be non-existent and finished, but rather it exists despite the circumstances. There is also a large presence of writers. There are even some media websites that are interested in talking and publishing about literature and writers. This is a big and helpful factor in spreading awareness of culture and literature.”

Al-Jafri points out some challenges that writers and literature in Yemen are currently facing, including a lack of care and attention to writers and intellectuals, a lack of publishing houses to publish their books, a lack of a cultural environment in society, and a lack of attention to literature in schools and social events.

Literature and Communities

Poet Ahmad Al-Sallami believes that literature is closely linked to society; literary works reflect people’s concerns and aspirations and record important historical moments. But does this mean that the writer is a social engineer interested in changing the world? Should the novel or poem contain scathing criticism of reality and seek to rebuild the individual’s character?

He points out that some believe that literature should be a tool for social change and that the writer should use his pen to criticize reality and highlight the problems facing society. Others believe that the role of literature is to provide the reader with an aesthetic experience and that the writer is not obligated to offer solutions to social problems.

He also points out that other transformations in societies and the changes that occur in reality are synchronized transformations. There are transformations in production, others in the economic sector, in education, and others. These are combined and interwoven, as the changes that society is witnessing, whether technological, economic, or social, generate new issues and complex problems. These issues become fertile ground for literary creativity, where writers seek to understand, interpret, and offer new insights. Conflicts, technological development, and climate change are all examples of issues that inspire writers and poets to produce works that reflect these transformations.

He explained that literature does not work in isolation from other arts, such as theater and cinema. All these arts interact with each other and draw inspiration from each other. Modern technological developments have opened new horizons for interaction between these arts.

He stresses that literature in an illiterate society will do nothing. Therefore, society must find an opportunity to develop education and solve the problem of children dropping out of school. Stability in society is important in that it makes it turn to educating children, which in turn leads to production.

He adds, asking: “Who will care to buy a book from a library? Unless they have surplus money. Who will go to buy a ticket to attend a play or watch another theatrical work? Unless they have reached a living and cultural level that makes them see the consumption of literature and art as a priority for them.”

The relationship between literature and society is a complementary and intertwined one. The transformations that occur in society affect literature, and literature in turn contributes to shaping society. Therefore, supporting literature and education is an investment in the future, as it contributes to building a more aware and tolerant society.