PORTRAIT OF SOCIAL INEQUALITY AND FAMILY CRISIS IN MIRĀTH BY MUHAMMAD HUSAYN HAYKAL: LITERARY REALISM APPROACH

Abstract

Conflict in literary works is a representation of social reality that reflects the dynamics of society. Within literature, various forms of conflict are recorded and artistically constructed in such a way that they appear real. This study presents a portrait of social inequality and family crisis in the novella Mirāth by Muhammad Husein Haikal, analyzed through the perspective of the realist literary movement. Through this discussion, the researcher seeks to analyze and understand each conflict that emerges in order to obtain a clearer picture of the social reality it represents. This research aims to reveal and describe the forms of social reality represented through the conflicts in the novella. The research employs a descriptive qualitative method. Data were collected through close reading, translation, and note-taking techniques. Data analysis was conducted using the Miles and Huberman model, beginning with the identification and coding of findings, followed by their description through an interpretation grounded in the social context of Egyptian society.The findings show that there are four forms of social reality contained in Mirāth, namely structural inequality, gender inequality, family conflict, and moral decline. These findings confirm that Mirāth functions as a mirror of Egyptian social reality and illustrates how injustice in the management of inheritance and waqf gives rise to ongoing social conflict.