From “My Dovecote” to “My Building”: Intertextuality in Jarrar’s “The Story of My Building”

This paper aims at investigating how Arab American writer Randa Jarrar’s short story “The Story of My Building” (2016) appropriates events, themes, tropes and motifs employed by Russian Isaac Babel in his Dovecote” (1925) to portray the hard conditions circumstances that Palestinians endure due recurrent Israeli military attacks on Gaza Strip. alludes anti-Semitic violence, known as pogroms, marred lives Jews Russia nineteenth century early twentieth century. Through strategic employment intertextuality, vividly portrays a child’s dream building dovecote has turned into nightmare demolition house tanks. Borrowing certain episodes from Babel’s story, Jarrar sets up link between her Babel’s, creating parallelism Palestinian people’s aches anguishes hands forces start twenty-first Jews’ sufferings torments pogromists almost ago. The connection stories is made even stronger each narrated smart ten-year-old boy who traumatized pillage carnage he witnesses experiences. In tanks destroy protagonist’s kill civilians; similarly, loot murder grandfather. Eventually, two boys are reunited with their families have taken refuge friend’s house. Yet, while protagonist does not lose house, family along several other become homeless displaced..