Political Symbolism in Tareq Hammadi’s Play Al-Mirya’: A Semiotic Reading of Characters and Events

Abstract

This study aims to analyze the political symbolism in Tareq Hammadi’s play Al-Mirya’ through a semiotic approach focusing on the characters (the Mirya’, the Generals, and the flock) and the key events (isolation, castration, and the wearing of the bell). The study deconstructs these elements as cultural signs that reveal the mechanisms of authoritarian hegemony in manufacturing an artificial leader used to domesticate the masses. The analysis adopts a semiotic methodology (Umberto Eco / Roland Barthes) supported by the study of dialogues and dramatic conflict to link the text to the Algerian collective memory. It reveals a scathing critique of contemporary authoritarian regimes and the contradictions of pseudo-leadership and culturally normalized oppression.