WEEK 1:
|
|
| Mon |
Seminar organization:
session format, book availability, library, study space, lectures,
films, paper topics [classroom presentations & written versions]
Opening Discussion:
TOPIC 1: CULTURES IN CONTACT: MIDDLE EAST & WEST /
NORTH & SOUTH
NOVEL: A1‑Tayyib Salih, citeSeason of Migration to the North
|
| Tue |
Continued discussion of Salih novel and cultures in
contact, along with further texts [modern poetry]
Khalil Hawi, "The Mariner and the Dervish" Nizar Qabbani, "Bread,
Hashish and Moonlight"
|
| Thurs |
Guest lecture (Prof. Heather Sharkey): “Al-Tayyib
Salih’s Sudan”
"The Power of the Word" [video]: a survey of modern Arabic literature,
its genres & heritage |
|
TOPIC 2: JOURNEY AS ALLEGORY: RELIGION & POLITICS
|
| Fri |
NOVEL:
Najib Mahfuz, Miramar
Initial discussion
******************* |
WEEK 2:
|
|
| Mon |
Continued discussion of Mahfuz novel and religious and
social values, with further texts [short stories]:
Najib Mahfouz, "Zaabalaoui"
Yusuf Idris, "House of Flesh," "The Greatest Sin of All"
|
| Tue |
Issues connected with the Arabic language as a
literary vehicle
Introduction to bibliographical sources for Arabic literature;
transliteration issues, availability of library resources, etc.
Open Discussion:
The integration of Arabic literary genres into the framework of World
Literature studies in school, especially in the period following
Mahfuz's award of the Nobel Prize; advantages and disadvantages of the
historical and generic approaches in non-Western literature studies |
|
TOPIC 3: ENVIRONMENT AND TRADITION
|
| Thurs |
NOVEL:
Ibrahim al-Kuni, The Bleeding of Stone
Continued discussion of Al-Kuni novel,
with further texts [ancient poetry]:
Desert Tracings: The mu'allaqah of Labid (6th
cent. Desert ode)
******************* |
WEEK 3:
|
TOPIC 4: WOMEN'S ROLE: TRADITION & CHANGE
|
| Mon |
NOVEL: Hanan al‑Shaykh, The Story of Zahra
|
| Tue |
Continued discussion of al-Shaykh novel and literature
on/by women, with further texts [short stories]:
Zakariyya Tamir, "Face of the moon"
Edward al-Kharrat, "Within the walls"
Salwa Bakr, "The Wiles of Men"
|
| Thurs |
Guest Lecture on women's literature in the
contemporary Arab World
Discussion of feminism in Arab World and its literature (Prof. Firoozeh
Kashani-Sabet)
Selected participants' initial presentations of seminar paper topics
[I] |
|
TOPIC 5: MAGHRIBI SOCIETY AND MODERN FICTIONALITY
|
| Fri |
NOVEL: Muhammad Barrada, The Game of Forgetting
******************* |
WEEK 4:
|
|
| Mon |
Continued discussion of Barrada novel and his
portrayal of Moroccan life with further texts [novella & stories]:
Moroccan short stories
Selected participants' initial presentations of seminar paper topics
[II] |
|
TOPIC 6: THE ISSUE OF PALESTINE
|
| Tue |
NOVEL: Emil Habibi, The Secret Life of Saeed
the Ill-fated Pessoptimist
|
| Thurs |
Guest Lecture on the question(s) of Palestine
Continued discussion, with further texts:
Ghassan Kanafani, Men in the Sun and other stories
Palestinian poetry
Selected participants' initial presentations of seminar paper topics
[III]
|
| Fri |
General discussion:
Review of the literary texts discussed in the seminar
Brief presentations of other novels available in translation and other
topic areas
The relationship of contemporary Arabic literature to other literary
traditions: links and ruptures |
