Interpretation and the Reproduction of Meaning in Antarah’s Lāmiyyah (“Ajibat Obeilah”)

Abstract

This study seeks to offer a reading that moves against the prevailing current by presenting an interpretation that departs, partially or substantially, from earlier readings of the poem by Antarah ibn Shaddad, commonly known as “Ajibat Obeilah” or “Lā Taṣrimīnī.” The poem is approached as a text open to interpretation، rich in linguistic expressions and semantic layers that provide broad possibilities for interpretation and a dynamic capacity for the reproduction of meaning.

In examining the poem، the study is guided by a set of focal questions: What does the poet seek to express through his text? What meanings does he intend to convey to his audience? Is it possible to penetrate the text and access the author’s intention? Or does every creative act inevitably direct its audience toward a specific intended meaning?

Through this analytical engagement, it becomes evident that Antarah succeeds in articulating his ideas by drawing on the expressive potential of language. Even at the level of unconscious expression، he reveals language as a living, evolving system; flexible, renewable, and responsive to changing modes of textual reading. Language, therefore, is not static or incapable of conveying meaning; rather, it possesses a continuous vitality that enables the renewal and reinterpretation of literary texts. In this sense, it challenges the classical notion expressed in his famous line: “Have the poets left any unclaimed ground?”