The Origins of Modern Arabic Fiction

Traces the genesis of Arabic literature, critically analyzes its development in the 19th and 20th centuries, and deals with topics such as the rise of Arabic theater, including the works of Marun Naqqash, his nephew, Salim Khalil Naqqash and other Syrian playwrights; attempts to infuse the traditional maqama with more current and relevant content by such men as Abd Allah Nadim and Muhammad Ibrahim al-Muwaylihi; and the rise of the more Western-style novel as practitioned by Salim al-Bustani, Jurji Zaydan, Muhammad Husayn Haykal, and Naguib Mahfouz. The author argues that one of the principle trends of modern Arabic fiction is the growth of realism, with an emphasis on society as a whole, rather than on individual characters. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR