- Ahmed Shawqi
Ahmed Shawqi (1868 - 1932) ( _ar. أحمد شوقي) was an Arabic Language poet and
drama tist who pioneered the modern Egyptian literary movement, most notably introducing the genre of poetic epics to the Arabic literary tradition. Shawqi also produced distinctive poetry that is widely considered to be the most prominent of the 20th century in Egypt.Life
Raised in a privileged setting, his family was prominent and well-connected with the court of the
Khedive ofEgypt . Upon graduating from high school, he attended law school, obtaining a degree intranslation .Shawqi was then offered a job in the court of the Khedive Abbas II, which he immediately accepted.After a year working in the court of the Khedive, Shawqi was sent to continue his studies in Law at the Universities of Montpellier and Paris for three years.While in
France , he was heavily influenced by the works of French playwrights, most notablyMolière and Racine.He returned to Egypt in 1894, and remained a prominent member of Arab literary culture until the British forced him into exile in southern Spain,
Andalusia , in 1914.Shawqi remained there until 1920, when he returned to Egypt.In 1927 he was crowned by his peers "Amir al- Sho’araa’" أمير الشعراء("literally:" the Prince of Poets) in recognition of his considerable contributions to the literary field.He used to live in ‘Karmet Ibn Hani’ or Ibn Hani’s Vineyardin كرمة ابن هانىء at
Al-Matariyyah area near the palace of the Khedive Abbas II at Saray El-Qobba until he was exiled. After returning to Egypt he built a new house atGiza which he named the new Karmet Ibn Hani. [My Father Shawky by Hussin Ahmed Shawky 2nd edition (in arabic) General authority of culture palaces 2006 Cairo] The house later on becameAhmed Shawki Museum .Works
Shawqi’s work can be categorized into three main periods during his career:
*The first coincides with the period during which he occupied a position at the court of the Khedive, consisting of eulogies to the Khedive: praising him or supporting his policy.
*The second comprised the period of his exile inSpain . During this period, his feeling of nostalgia and sense of alienation directed his poetic talent to patriotic poems on Egypt as well as the Arab world.
*The third stage occurred after his return from exile: during that period he became preoccupied with the glorious history ofAncient Egypt andIslam . This was the period during which he wrote his religious poems, in praise of the ProphetMuhammad . The maturation of his poetic style was also reflected in his plays, the most notable of which were published during this period.;PlaysShawqi was the first in
Arabic literature to write poetic plays. He wrote five tragedies:
*Magnun Laila (literally "The Madman of Layla"), his first play.
*The Death of Cleopatra , his most famous play.
*'Antara
*Ali bek el-Kabeer
*Qambeez :and two comedies:
*Es-Set Huda ("literally:" Madam Huda)
*El-Bakhila ("literally:" the Miser):in addition to a prose play:
the Princess of Andalusia .;Poetry
*Esh-Shawqiyyat , his selected works, in four volumes, includingNahj al-Burda , a tribute to the ProphetMuhammad
* A long poem about theHistory of Islam , namedThe States of Arabs and the Great Men of Islam .;ProseShawqi wrote several ill-written
novel s. A few survived. He also wrote "chapters of prose", as he called them, about several and unrelated subjects, and collected them under the title:the Markets of Gold .References
* "Glimpses of Ahmed Shawqi’s Life and Works", Egypt Magazine, Issue No. 19-Fall 1999.1. "My Father Shawky" by Hussin Ahmed Shawky 2nd edition (in Arabic) General authority of culture palaces 2006 Cairo
External links
* [http://www.ashawkymuseum.gov.eg/ Ahmed Shawqi Museum in Cairo] . ar_icon
* [http://www.romabeniculturali.it/villeparchi/28/408/409/485/album.asp Monument to Shawqi in Villa Borghese, Rome] .
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