This study examines the issue of distorted identities in Ahmed Saadawi's Frankenstein in Baghdad, set in post-2003 war-torn Iraq. The novel, inspired by Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, depicts a creature “Whatsitsname” created from the body parts of war victims, representing the fragmentation of both individual and national identity at a period of tremendous violence and instability. This study looks at how Saadawi depicts the collapse of personal and moral identities in the characters of Hadi, Mahmoud, and Baghdad residents as they deal with the horrors of war and occupation. Furthermore, the novel criticizes the erosion of Iraqi national identity, highlighting the profound sectarian splits that match the creature's fractured form. By examining the blurring lines between justice and vengeance, victim and offender, the study contends that Frankenstein in Baghdad is a profound meditation on the complicated process of identity building and destruction in combat zones. Additionally, the study adds to the increasing body of scholarship on Middle Eastern postwar fiction by highlighting how literary works can shed light on the sociopolitical reality of oppressed states

Abstract This study explores the role of ghosts in August Wilson’s The Piano Lesson, concentrating on how these supernatural elements symbolize the traumatic legacy of slavery and reflect African American heritage. The main problem indicated is the symbolic function of ghosts in the play and their connection to the African American experience, notably in how they represent the ongoing on sequence of slavery on familial and cultural identity. Utilizing the close reading approach, the analysis examines the text through the lens of Gothic fiction and African American folklore, unfolding the ghosts as symbols of historical trauma and spiritual continuity. The study finds that the ghosts manifest unresolved historical trauma and embark on the complex struggle between valuing the past and pursuing material advancement. Wilson’s utilization of Gothic elements enhances the play’s exploration of African American history and spirituality, with the ghosts symbolizing the lasting effects of slavery and underscoring the need for reconciliation with the past to achieve personal and familial unity.

The current study tackles the philosophical concept of moral decadence in the modern American play The Zoo Story by Edward Albee. The research concentrates on how specific characters tend to have low moral standards, and what detrimental and deteriorating effects of their immorality could harm the people around them. The research follows Aristotle`s philosophical concept of morality, what Greeks used to consider to be moral and immoral. Immanuel Kant`s views are also taken into account to measure characters` misconducts as well. As an existential play, the study sheds light on various social and family problems, such as poverty, lack of education, prostitution, hopelessness and bereavement. These appalling circumstances inevitably could have a tremendous effect on the low-class people in the American society of the late 1950s. Most notably, both Jerry and Petter are the embodiment of this society, where each one belongs to a distinct social class. The research exemplifies how such social predicaments could change the direction of each one of the mentioned characters. The main focus is on Jerry as he is the most talkative, absurdist, problematic, confused and suicidal character in the play.