Book Review of Farghal’s Jordan’s Proverbs as a Window into Arab Popular Culture

Abstract

Farghal’s compilation of Jordanian proverbs does not disappoint, by permitting the reader a window through which to gaze into Jordanian culture. One is introduced to a vivid display of whimsey and wisdom that enteratins and educates. They say that When food is served, talk stops, and, equally, when reading these proverbs it is difficult to put the book down, as it is a feast for the imagination. Perhaps from intellectual curiosity or from a penchant for the morbid, one is immediately drawn to Chapter Seven, “Death and Madness Proverbs.” If your folk go mad, your intellect will not help you could serve well as a mantra for many a faculty member seeking tenure, or equally well in a climate of political uncertainty. Such is the draw of each of these proverbs, that they conger images and usages heretofore unthought of by the reader, sometimes as delightful aphorisms, and sometimes as cautionary precepts..