Abstract

The study aimed to provide a new perspective to "The Epistle of Forgiveness" reconsidering its genre affiliation. However, the study presumes that hereafter he built is nothing but a blank attempt to build a Utopian city. He wanted to subvert reality order through believing in a better world that should be. The objectives of this study are revealing hereafter that Al-Ma'arri built and connected himself with Utopia, reading cultural patterns within "The Epistle of Forgiveness" and its influence on the author's awareness against prevailing culture, ascertaining Al-Ma'arri's stand on his utopian world that he built, and comparing he envisions within. The study was based on cultural criticism considering Al-Ma'arri's Epistle a cultural discourse, which includes within social, political, and religious patterns that are relevant to society, and Arabic culture in general. These patterns were covered-up behind aesthetic language and creative structuralism, which protect the author from any harassment by society or authority. The study concluded that was the first Utopian literary work, in which Al-Ma'arri built a perfect world rather than an unworthy dystopian real-life world. However, Al-Ma'arri set out a legal code, in which he tried to criticize living in a reality order. It has also demonstrated plenty of cultural patterns covered-up behind aesthetic language including religion, society, and political matters. Moreover, it indicated Al-Ma'arri's awareness in criticizing some Arabic cultural patterns while he remained unconsciously trapped in Arabic culture tangles and other patterns, particularly those related to woman.