SOAS Research Online

Abstract

The language and style of the Qur’an have attracted a large amount of work by Western scholars. Yet there are two neglected areas: balāgha in Arabic (rhetoric), and certain aspects of Qur’anic style. This chapter sheds some light on both. Balāgha was developed to understand the finest aspects of Qur’anic Arabic. It is important in Arabic education, even in secondary schools, but not in the Western tradition of teaching Arabic. ʿIlm al-maʿanī (the study of meanings) is the most neglected part of balāgha. A summary is given here of its main topics, which may help to remedy some serious misunderstandings of the language and effect of the Qur’an. Whereas Western works on style have largely concentrated on figurative language, jinās, sajʿ, etc., other aspects of style are discussed that are more informative of the way the Qur’an presents its message and makes it effective.