Show Us Your Face, Handala!

Show Us Your Face Handala is a prominent collection of poetry written by renowned Palestinian poets who live in diverse areas of the world. The poems included in this collection were written directly in Arabic, and translated later into English by local and international translators who largely perceived the significance of the conveyance of the Palestinian identity to the world. The title of my book is derived directly from Hilal Al-Fari's poem "Show Us your Face Hanzalah". This book converted Hanzalah into Handala to preserve or domesticate the original Arabic name in English. Handala or Handhala is the most well-known of all Naji al-Ali's characters. It is portrayed as a ten-year-old boy, and appeared initially in Al-Siyasa newspaper in Kuwait in 1969. This figure turned his back to the viewer, and clasped his hands behind his back. Al-Ali's notion of this ten-year-old boy is that he represented his age when compelled to leave Palestine and would not grow up until he could return to his homeland. Handala wears ragged clothes and is barefoot, symbolizing his allegiance to the paupers and vulnerable people. He is now an iconic symbol of Palestinian identity and defiance.