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Hanan al-Shaykh, The Story of Zahra

*Sexual Violence Trigger Warning* 

The Story of Zahra is a biography of a girl named Zahra told from various perspectives including her own.

The story is based in Beirut and takes place throughout the Lebanese Civil War. The book is divided into 2 parts – the first part narrates Zahra’s family trauma in addition to the roots of her sexual trauma, and the second part focuses on Zahra’s experiences living in Beirut during the Lebanese Civil War. The book is at times hard to read through and process, as Zahra’s story evokes deep levels of empathy and trauma. While being situated in the chaos of actual wars, she is also at war with her family, men in her life, and even herself. It feels as if she has attempted self-discovery so many times, yet is still unable to find her true self. -Ruofei Shang ’25

Ziad Doueiri, West Beirut

 Ziad Doueiri’s West Beirut (1998) is a classic movie that takes place during the Lebanese civil war in 1975.

It follows Tarek and his friend Omar after the war breaks out, dividing up Beirut. School gets canceled and the kids’ lives turn upside down, as they are no longer safe in their homes. West Beirut touches upon several aspects of Lebanese history, portraying the impact of French colonization and the Lebanese perspective on the Israeli occupation of Palestine. This film beautifully demonstrates the intersection of love and war, making it a beloved classic in the film industry. -Noora Lahoud ’25

Ziad Doueiri, The Insult

Ziad Doueiri’s The Insult (2017) depicts the tension between two groups in Lebanon through two individuals — a Lebanese Christian mechanic named Tony, and a Palestinian refugee construction head named Yasser.

While Yasser was doing work in Tony’s neighborhood and carried out some changes on Tony’s apartment in compliance with the law, Tony got upset and dragged both of them into a series of verbal insults. As the insult incident escalates, Doueiri pulls his audience into the real tension between Lebanese and Palestinian that have resulted from the generational traumas of the Lebanese Civil War and displacement. -Ruofei Shang ’25

Maroun Bagdadi, We Are All for the Fatherland

How does a nation torn by civil war reconcile its fractured identity? Maroun Bagdadi’s We Are All for the Fatherland, named as a reference to the Lebanese national anthem, offers an exploration of this question, investigating the heart of Lebanon’s socio-political turmoil during the Israeli occupation of Southern Lebanon in 1979.

Although this film was made in collaboration with the Lebanese National Movement (LNM) which was allied with the Palestinian Liberation Organization (PLO) at the time, it still highlights many varying perspectives. From Yasser Arafat giving a speech, to an interview with a Phalange commander, to interviews with young LNM militia men and Shia villagers in el-Jnoub (the South), Bagdadi is able to show that despite their differing opinions, all these people have a common interest—preserving the existence of Lebanon.

This film echoes the same message that it did in 1979 as it does today: a divided and isolated Lebanon is a weaker Lebanon. This is especially echoed in this scene where a young fighter from the Lebanese National Movement states “We have an outer and an inner enemy. The outer enemy is Israel, and the inner enemy are the isolationists.” This film ends with a chorus of children attempting to sing the Lebanese National Anthem “Kullana lal Wattan”(We Are all for the Fatherland) highlighting that despite everyone’s religious or political identity, they all sing the same anthem—the Lebanese anthem. –Christina Francis