Sufism in the Contemporary Arabic Novel (Paperback)

Close readings of nine contemporary Arab novelists who use Sufism as a literary strategy. Although Sufi characters - saints, dervishes, wanderers - occur regularly in modern Arabic literature, a select group of novelists seeks to interrogate Sufism as a system of thought and language. In the work of writers like Naguib Mahfouz, Gamal Al-Ghitany, Tahar Ouettar, Ibrahim Al-Koni, Mahmud Al-Mas'adi and Tayeb Salih we see a strong intertextual relationship with the Sufi masters of the past, including Al-Hallaj, Ibn Arabi, Al-Niffari and Al-Suhrawardi. This relationship becomes a means of interrogating the limits of the creative self, individuality, rationality and the manifold possibilities offered by literature, seeking in a dialogue with the mystical heritage a way of preserving a self under siege from the overwhelming forces of oppression and reaction that have characterized the late 20th and early 21st centuries. It looks at works such as Ghitany's Kitab Al-Tajalliyat [The Book of Theophanies], where the title and style imitate Ibn 'Arabi; Ouettar's Al-Waliyy Al-Taher [The Holy Saint], where the protagonist allegorizes Algerian history, and multiple works by Ibrahim Al-Koni. It traces references and allusions to the mediaeval Sufis, including Junayd, Al-Niffari, Ibn 'Arabi, Rumi and 'Attar.

General

Imprint:	Edinburgh University Press
Country of origin:	United Kingdom
Series:	Edinburgh Studies in Modern Arabic Literature
Release date:	August 2014
First published:	September 2014
Authors:	Ziad Elmarsafy
Dimensions:	234 x 156 x 15mm (L x W x T)
Format:	Paperback
Pages:	256
ISBN-13:	978-0-7486-9585-0
Categories:	Books > Language & Literature > Literature: history & criticism > Novels, other prose & writers > General Books > Humanities > Religion & beliefs > Non-Christian religions > Islam Books > Humanities > Religion & beliefs > Aspects of religions (non-Christian) > Religious experience > Mysticism Books > Religion & Spirituality > Aspects of religions (non-Christian) > Religious experience > Mysticism Books > Religion & Spirituality > Non-Christian religions > Islam Promotions
LSN:	0-7486-9585-0
Barcode:	9780748695850

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