Bibliotheca Polyglotta

4 – إنّ الثورة الفكرية التي تسري بقوّة هائلة في دمائنا حملتنا على محاربة كلّ شيء قديم تجعلنا نستبشر بحدوث نهضة عامّة في مصر ،

4 – ʔinna ’l-ṯawraẗ al-fikriyyaẗ allatī tasrī bi-quwwaẗ hāʔilaẗ fī dimāʔi-nā ḥamalat-nā ʕalà muḥārabaẗ kullⁱ šayʔⁱⁿ qadīm taǧʕalu-nā nastabšir^u bi-ḥudūṯ nahḍaẗ ʕāmmaẗ fī Miṣr,

4 | The intellectual revolution that is flowing so powerfully¹ through our veins² prompts us to fight against everything old and makes us look forward in joyful anticipation to an overall renaissance/upswing to happen in Egypt.

1. Lit., ‘with an immense power’. 2. Lit., ‘in our blood’.

AR: ṯawraẗ fikriyyaẗ, quwwaẗ, dimāʔ (dam), qadīm, nahḍaẗ, Miṣr
EN: 4, intellectual revolution, overall renaissance/upswing

لأنّ النهضة تتّبع عادةً الثورة وتكون نتيجة طبيعية لها ،

li-ʔanna ’l-nahḍaẗ^a tatbaʕ^u ʕādaẗ^an il-ṯawraẗ^a wa-takūn^u natīǧaẗ^an ṭabīʕiyyaẗ^an la-hā,

For such a renaissance tends to follow revolutions and is usually a natural result of them.

AR: nahḍaẗ, ṯawraẗ, natīǧaẗ, ṭabīʕī (ṭabīʕaẗ)
EN: …

وستتناول تلك النهضة كلّ شيء في أحوالنا السياسية والاجتماعية والأدبية .

wa-sa-tatanāwal^u tilka ’l-nahḍaẗ kull^a šayʔⁱⁿ fī ʔaḥwāli-nā ’l-siyāsiyyaẗ wa’l-iǧtimāʕiyyaẗ wa’l-ʔadabiyyaẗ.

This renaissance will encompass everything in our political, social and literary life.³

3. Lit., ‘situation(s), condition(s)’.

AR: nahḍaẗ, siyāsī (siyāsaẗ), iǧtimāʕī (muǧtamaʕ), ʔadabī
EN: …

فبعد أنْ رأينا المرأة المصرية المخدَّرة (ك) المحجَّبة تنزل إلى ميدان العمل متظاهرةً جنبَ الرجل مطالبةً بشجاعة وجرأة بحقوق بلادها ،

fa-baʕda ʔan raʔaynā ’l-marʔaẗ^a ’l-miṣriyyaẗ^a ’l-muḫaddaraẗ^a ’l-muḥaǧǧabaẗ^a tanzil^u ʔilà mīdānⁱ ’l-ʕamal mutaẓāhiraẗ^an ǧanb^a ’l-raǧuli muṭālibẗ^an bi-šaǧāʕaẗⁱⁿ wa-ǧurʔaẗⁱⁿ bi-ḥuqūqⁱ bilādi-hā,

Having seen veiled, segregated Egyptian women [p. xi] leave home [to go] to work and participate in demonstrations, alongside with Egyptian men, demanding boldly and with determination their country’s rights –

AR: marʔaẗ, miṣrī (Miṣr / Miṣriyyaẗ), šaǧāʕaẗ, ǧurʔaẗ, ḥaqq / ḥuqūq
EN: …

الأمر الذي لم تكن تستطيعه قبل أن تهيج الثورة جهازنا العصبي ،

al-ʔamr allaḏī lam takun tastaṭīʕu-hū qabla ʔan tuhīǧ^a ’l-ṯawraẗ^u ǧihāza-nā ’l-ʕaṣabī,

which they would not have been able to do before the revolution shook our country to its core⁴ –,

4. Lit., ‘shook our nervous system’.

AR: ṯawraẗ
EN: …

رأينا كتّاب الناشئة الجديدة قاموا يندّدون بما كنّا نقدّسه بالأمس

raʔaynā kuttāb al-nāšiʔaẗ al-ǧadīdaẗ qāmū yunaddidūn^a bi-mā kunnā nuqaddisu-hū bi’l-ʔams

we have [also] seen the writers of the new upcoming generation rise to criticize what we used to hold sacred in the past,

AR: kātib (kuttāb), nāšiʔaẗ (našʔaẗ, nušūʔ), ǧadīd, qaddasa (taqdīs), ʔams
EN: …

متطاولين بجرأة متناهية على الرءوس الكبيرة التي تمثّل أدب الأمس وأدب اليوم .

mutaṭāwilīn^a bi-ǧurʔaẗⁱⁿ mutanāhiyaẗⁱⁿ ʕalà ’l-ruʔūsⁱ ’l-kabīraẗ allatī tumaṯṯil^u ʔadab al-ʔams wa-ʔadab al-yawm.

and attack in an extremely brave manner the big heads who represent the literature of yesterday and today.

AR: ǧurʔaẗ, ʔadab, ʔams, al-yawm
EN: …

والثورة المنتظرة في عالم الأدب العصري المصري سترمی إلى القضاء على الأدب القديم الجامد المتشابه المبتذل ،

wa’l-ṯawraẗ al-muntaẓaraẗ fī ʕālam al-ʔadab al-ʕaṣrī al-miṣrī sa-tarmī ʔilà ’l-qaḍāʔ ʕalà ’l-ʔadab al-qadīm al-ǧāmid al-mutašābih al-mubtaḏal,

The revolution that we expect [to happen] in contemporary Egyptian literature will aim to do away with the static, obscure, and hackneyed old literature.

AR: ṯawraẗ, ʔadab, ʕaṣrī, miṣrī (Miṣr / Miṣriyyaẗ), qadīm, ǧāmid (ǧumūd), mutašābih (tašābuh), mubtaḏal (ibtiḏāl)
EN: do away with the static, obscure, and hackneyed old literature

فتكون أشبه بالثورة التي قام بها "فيكتور هوجو" ضدّ الأدب المدرسي ،

fa-takūn^u ʔašbah^a bi’l-ṯawraẗ allatī qāma bi-hā "Fīktūr Hūǧū" ḍidd al-ʔadab al-madrasī,

It will resemble Victor Hugo’s revolution against canonical literature,

AR: ṯawraẗ, Fīktūr Hūǧū, ʔadab madrasī
EN: Hugo

والتي نادى بها "زولا" وجماعته ضدّ المذهب الخيالي لإيجاد مذهب الحقائق أساس أدب الغد .

wa-’llatī nādà bi-hā "Zūlā" wa-ǧamāʕatu-hū ḍidd al-maḏhab al-ḫayālī li-ʔīǧād maḏhab al-ḥaqāʔiq ʔasās ʔadab al-ġad.

as well as the one Zola and his group called for against Romanticism⁵ in order to make room for Realism,⁶ the basis for tomorrow’s literature.

5. Lit., ‘the School of Fantasy/Imagination’. 6. maḏhab al-ḥaqāʔiq – see above.

AR: Zūlā, maḏhab, ḫayāl, ʔīǧād, maḏhab al-ḥaqīqaẗ (ḥaqāʔiq), ʔadab, ġad
EN: Zola, Realism

ولكنْ إذا نظرنا إلى أدبنا في الوقت الحاضر نظرةً بريئة خالية من الأغراض ، نظرة محقّق يحلّل الأسباب والنتائج ، لتبيّن لنا أنّ الثورة قد انتابت التمثيل ؛

walākin ʔiḏā naẓarnā ʔilà ʔadabi-nā fī ’l-waqt al-ḥāḍir naẓraẗ^an barīʔaẗ ḫāliyaẗ min al-ʔaġrāḍ, naẓraẗ^a muḥaqqiqⁱⁿ yuḥallil^u ’l-ʔasbāb wa’l-natāʔiǧ, la-tabayyana la-nā ʔanna ’l-ṯawraẗ qad intābat al-tamṯīl^a;

If we take an innocent, disinterested look at the literature of our present days, as an investigator who analyses causes and effects would do, it will become evident that the revolution has actually already infected dramatic arts.

AR: ʔadab, muḥaqqiq (taḥqīq), taḥlīl, ʔasbāb (sabab), natāʔiǧ, tabayyana (tabayyun, bayan), ṯawraẗ, tamṯīl
EN: …

فإنّ النوع المجوني المَرَضي الإباحي ليس هو في الحقيقة إلا مظاهرة أو شبه ثورة ضدّ القديم المبتذل ،

fa-ʔinna ’l-nawʕ al-muǧūnī al-maraḍī al-ʔibāḥī laysa huwa fī ’l-ḥaqīqaẗ ʔillā muẓāharaẗ ʔaw šibh ṯawraẗ ḍidd al-qadīm al-mubtaḏal,

For that obscene, sick and licentious type [of plays that we see today on our stages] is actually nothing but a demonstration or a semi-revolution against the old and trite,

AR: nawʕ, muǧūn, maraḍ (ʔamrāḍ), ʔibāḥī (ʔibāḥaẗ), ḥaqīqaẗ, ṯawraẗ, qadīm, mubtaḏal (ibtiḏāl)
EN: …

ضدّ الأنواع الغربية التي مجّها واستغاث منها الجمهور المصري ،

ḍidd al-ʔanwāʕ al-ġarbiyyaẗ allatī maǧǧa-hā wa-’staġāṯ^a min-hā ’l-ǧumhūr al-miṣrī,

[as well as?] against the western forms that the Egyptian public [now] rejects⁷ and wants to be spared.

7. Lit., ‘disgorges, spits out’.

AR: ʔanwāʕ (nawʕ), ġarbī, miṣrī (Miṣr / Miṣriyyaẗ)
EN: …

وقد حمل هذا النوعُ أصحابَ الفرق على تغيير منهجهم التمثيلي ،

wa-qad ḥamala hāḏā ’l-nawʕ^u ʔaṣḥāb^a ’l-firaq ʕalà taġyīr manhaǧi-him al-tamṯīlī,

This type [of plays] has led the ensemble directors to change their theatre practices:

AR: nawʕ, tamṯīl
EN: …

فأخذوا يكثرون من تمثيل الروايات العصرية المصرية بعد أنْ اتّضح لهم وجوب وسم مرسحنا بطابع شخصيتنا ،

fa-ʔaḫaḏū yukṯirūn^a min tamṯīl al-riwāyāt al-ʕaṣriyyaẗ al-miṣriyyaẗ baʕd ʔan ittaḍaḥa la-hum wuǧūb^u wasmⁱ marsaḥi-nā bi-ṭābiʕⁱ šaḫṣiyyati-nā,

They stage contemporary Egyptian plots now more often because it has become clear to them that our stages have to express our [national] character⁸

8. Lit., the necessity of imprinting the stamp of our personality on our stage.

AR: tamṯīl, riwāyaẗ, ʕaṣrī (ʕaṣriyyaẗ), miṣrī (Miṣr / Miṣriyyaẗ), ittaḍaḥa (wuḍūḥ), wasm (simaẗ, simāt), marsaḥ, ṭābiʕ, šaḫṣiyyaẗ
EN: …

لأنّ المناظر القومية والألوان المصرية الصميمة تُثير فينا عادةً حاسّةَ اللذّة والإعجاب ،

li-ʔanna ’l-manāẓir al-qawmiyyaẗ wa’l-ʔalwān al-miṣriyyaẗ al-ṣamīmaẗ tuṯīr^u fī-nā ʕādaẗ^an ḥāssaẗ^a ’l-laḏḏaẗ wa’l-ʔiʕǧāb,

because national scenes and genuine Egyptian colours tend to stimulate the sense of pleasure and liking.

AR: manāẓir, qawmiyyaẗ, ʔalwān, miṣrī (Miṣr / Miṣriyyaẗ), ṣamīm, ḥāssaẗ (ḥawāss), laḏḏaẗ
EN: genuine Egyptian colours (local colour)

ولعلّ النجاح الذي صادفه النوعُ المجوني الضئيل يرجع إلى المسحة المصرية التي تتجلّى فيه ،

wa-liʕalla ’l-naǧāḥ allaḏī ṣādafa-hu ’l-nawʕ^u ’l-muǧūnī al-ḍaʔīl yarǧiʕ ʔilà ’l-masḥaẗ al-miṣriyyaẗ allatī tataǧallà fī-h,

Maybe the obscene and miserable type [of plays] owes its success just to the Egyptian touch that becomes manifest in it,

AR: naǧāḥ, nawʕ, muǧūn, ḍaʔīl (ḍuʔūlaẗ), masḥaẗ, miṣrī (Miṣr / Miṣriyyaẗ)
EN: …

بدلیل عدم نجاح الروايات التي من هذا النوع ، الخالية من المناظر القومية الصادقة .

bi-dalīl ʕadam naǧāḥ al-riwāyāt allatī min hāḏā ’l-nawʕ, al-ḫāliyaẗ min al-manāẓir al-qawmiyyaẗ al-ṣādiqaẗ.

as evidenced by the lack of success of the production of this kind that features no genuine national scenes.

AR: dalīl, naǧāḥ, riwāyaẗ, nawʕ, manāẓir, qawmiyyaẗ, ṣādiq (ṣidq)
EN: …

قلنا إنّ هذا النوع حمل أصحاب الفرق على تغيير (ل) برنامجهم العادي ،

qulnā ʔinna hāḏā al-nawʕ ḥamala ʔaṣḥāb al-firaq ʕalà taġyīr barnāmaǧi-him al-ʕādī,

Above, we said that this kind [of theatre] has led the theatre directors to change [p. xii] their usual programs.

AR: nawʕ, taġyīr
EN: …

أمّا الذين أبوا تغيير رواياتهم بروایات مصرية وأصرّوا بعناد ساذج غبي على تمثيل رواياتهم المترجمة البعيدة عن ذوقنا المضادّة لمزاجنا

ʔammā ’llaḏīn^a ʔabaw taġyīr riwāyāti-him bi-riwāyāt miṣriyyaẗ wa-ʔaṣarrū bi-ʕinād sāḏiǧ ġabiyy ʕalà tamṯīl riwāyāti-him al-mutarǧamaẗ al-baʕīdaẗ ʕan ḏawqi-nā al-muḍāddaẗ li-mazāǧi-nā

[But not all of them did so.] Those, however, who refused to replace the [foreign] pieces with Egyptian ones and insisted, in stupid and naive stubbornness, [to continue] to stage foreign pieces, far removed from our taste, opposed to our mentality,⁹

9. mazāǧ.

AR: taġyīr, riwāyaẗ, miṣrī (Miṣr / Miṣriyyaẗ), ʔiṣrār, ʕinād, sāḏiǧ (saḏāǧaẗ), ġabiyy (ġabāʔ), tamṯīl, tarǧamaẗ, ḏawq, mazāǧ
EN: our taste, our mentality

اضطرّوا - رغماً عنهم - إمّا أنْ يهاجروا من مصر أو يهجروا المرسح

uḍṭurrū – raġm^an ʕan-hum – ʔimmā ʔan yuhāǧirū min Miṣr ʔaw yahǧurū ’l-marsaḥ

were either forced to emigrate from Egypt, against their will, or to leave the stage,

AR: hāǧara (hiǧraẗ), Miṣr, marsaḥ
EN: …

كما وقع لقطبين من أقطاب المرسح ونوابغ الفنّ ،

ka-mā waqaʕa li-quṭbaynⁱ min ʔaqṭāb al-marsaḥ wa-nawābiġ al-fann,

as happened with two big pillars of the theatre scene and geniuses of art.

AR: marsaḥ, fann
EN: …

وهما إذا حدّثتْهما نفسُهما في المستقبل إلى الرجوع إلى التمثيل في مصر فلا يمكنهما إلا على قاعدة تمثيل الروايات العصرية المصرية .

wa-humā ʔiḏā ḥaddaṯat-humā nafsu-humā fī ’l-mustaqbal ʔilà ’l-ruǧūʕ ʔilà ’l-tamṯīl fī Miṣr fa-lā yumkinu-humā ʔillā ʕalà qāʕidaẗ tamṯīl al-riwāyāt al-ʕaṣriyyaẗ al-miṣriyyaẗ.

If these two should decide, some day in the future, to return to theatre-making in Egypt, they will be able to do so only on the condition that they stage contemporary Egyptian plots.

AR: nafs, mustaqbal, tamṯīl, Miṣr, qāʕidaẗ (qawāʕid), riwāyaẗ, ʕaṣrī (ʕaṣriyyaẗ), miṣrī (Miṣr / Miṣriyyaẗ)
EN: …

فَلْيفهما هذه الحقيقة التي تعبنا لإفهامهما إياها ؟

fa-l-yafhamā hāḏihī ’l-ḥaqīqaẗ allatī taʕibnā li-ʔifhāmi-himā ʔiyyā-hā?

So, will they possibly acknowledge this truth that we have worked so hard to make them understand?

AR: ḥaqīqaẗ
EN: …

ويحزننا أنْ نقول إنّ الأدب العصري المصري في وقتنا الحاضر غير مستقلّ ولا موسوم بطابع شخصيتنا ،

wa-yuḥzinu-nā ʔan naqūl^a ʔinna ’l-ʔadab al-ʕaṣrī al-miṣrī fī waqti-nā ’l-ḥāḍir ġayr mustaqill wa-lā mawsūm bi-ṭābiʕ šaḫṣiyyati-nā,

It makes us sad to say that contemporary Egyptian literature is neither independent nor bears the traits of our [national] character these days.

AR: ʔadab, ʕaṣrī (ʕaṣriyyaẗ, muʕāṣaraẗ), miṣrī (Miṣr / Miṣriyyaẗ), mustaqill (istiqlāl), ṭābiʕ, šaḫṣiyyaẗ
EN: national, character

فهو ما زال خاضعاً للأدب العربي الجامد المتشابه القديم ،

fa-huwa mā zāla ḫāḍiʕ^an lil-ʔadab al-ʕarabī al-ǧāmid al-mutašābih al-qadīm,

Rather, it is still subordinate to the static and uniform ancient Arabic literature

AR: ʔadab, ʕarabī, ǧāmid (ǧumūd), mutašābih (tašābuh), qadīm
EN: …

أو متأثراً بنفوذ الأدب الأجنبي الذي اضطررنا إلى درسه لنتعلّم منه أسرار الفنّ الصحيح الراقي ونأخذ عنه قواعده وقوانينه وأسلوبه .

ʔaw mutaʔaṯṯir^an bi-nufūḏ al-ʔadab al-ʔaǧnabī allaḏī ’ḍṭurirnā ʔilà darsi-hī li-nataʕallam^a min-hu ʔasrār al-fann al-ṣaḥīḥ al-rāqī wa-naʔḫuḏ^a ʕan-hu qawāʕida-hū wa-qawānīna-hū wa-ʔuslūba-hu.

or under the influence of foreign literature, which we have been forced to study in order to learn from it the secrets of genuine advanced art / sound sophisticated technique and to adopt its pillars, rules and style.

AR: taʔṯīr, ʔadab, ʔaǧnabī, dars, ʔasrār (sirr), fann, rāqⁱⁿ(ruqiyy), qawāʕid (qāʕidaẗ), qawānīn (qānūn), ʔuslūb
EN: genuine advanced art / sound sophisticated technique

فالروايات المصرية المؤلّفة ، معرّبة ويا للأسف عن المرسح الأجنبي ، وقصصنا مأخوذة عن القصص الأجنبية !

fa-’l-riwāyāt al-miṣriyyaẗ al-muʔallafaẗ, muʕarrabaẗ wa-yā lil-ʔasaf ʕan il-marsaḥ al-ʔaǧnabī, wa-qiṣaṣu-nā maʔḫūḏaẗ ʕan il-qiṣaṣ al-ʔaǧnabiyyaẗ!

Egyptian-authored pieces¹⁰ are namely – what a pity! – [often/generally] Arabized versions of foreign drama, and our fiction is taken from foreign fiction!

10. The meaning of the attributive muʔallafaẗ is not really clear to me here. – For riwāyaẗ, see above, passim.

AR: riwāyaẗ, miṣrī (Miṣr / Miṣriyyaẗ), taʔlīf, taʕrīb, marsaḥ, ʔaǧnabī
EN: …

وإنْ قام كاتب ليؤلّف رواية فهو إما أنْ يقتبسها عن رواية أجنبية أو أنْ يمصّرها ،

wa-ʔin qāma kātib li-yuʔallif^a riwāyaẗ^an fa-huwa ʔimmā ʔan yaqtabisu-hā ʕan riwāyaẗⁱⁿ ʔaǧnabiyyaẗ ʔaw ʔan yumaṣṣiru-hā,

If an author sets out to compose a piece, he will either take inspiration for it from a foreign one or [downright] Egyptianize it.

AR: kātib, riwāyaẗ, iqtibās, riwāyaẗ, ʔaǧnabī, tamṣīr (Miṣr, miṣrī, Miṣriyyaẗ)
EN: …

ويتجلّى في هذه الحالة اضطرابُ شخصية الأشخاص الذين لا يكون لهم غالباً وجود في هيئتنا الاجتماعية وتنعكس الألوان الغربية بجلاء على روايته

wa-yataǧallà fī hāḏihī ’l-ḥālaẗ iḍṭirāb^u šaḫṣiyyaẗ al-ʔašḫāṣ allaḏīn^a lā yakūn^u la-hum ġālib^an wuǧūd fī hayʔati-nā ’l-iǧtimāʕiyyaẗ wa-tanʕakis^u ’l-ʔalwān al-ġarbiyyaẗ bi-ǧalāʔ ʕalà riwāyati-h

The reason that the character traits are so evidently inorganic is the fact that such characters usually do not exist in our society

AR: šaḫṣiyyaẗ, ʔašḫāṣ, ġarbī, riwāyaẗ
EN: inorganic…

فتعدمها المسحة الطبيعية التي هي سرّ من أسرار الفنّ الحقيقي .

fa-tuʕdimu-hā ’l-masḥaẗ^a ’l-ṭabīʕiyyaẗ allatī hiya sirr^un min ʔasrār al-fann al-ḥaqīqī.

and that their Western features clearly leave such an imprint on an author’s [lit. his] piece that it will lack the natural touch that is one of the secrets of real art.

AR: ṭabīʕī (ṭabīʕaẗ), ʔasrār (sirr), fann, ḥaqīqaẗ / ḥaqīqī
EN: Western features, natural touch

وكثيراً ما تكون الحادثة نفسها غريبة عن أخلاقنا ، وقد لا تقع قطّ على مرسح الحياة المصرية ،

wa-kaṯīr^an mā takūn^u ’l-ḥādiṯaẗ nafsu-hā ġarībaẗ ʕan ʔaḫlāqi-nā, wa-qad lā taqaʕ^u qaṭṭ^u ʕalà marsaḥ al-ḥayāẗ al-miṣriyyaẗ,

Often even the plot itself is so foreign to our character that it would probably never occur on the stage of [real] Egyptian life –

AR: ʔaḫlāq, marsaḥ, ḥayāẗ, miṣrī (Miṣr / Miṣriyyaẗ)
EN: …

وذلك ناشئ عن ترسّم الكاتب الروايات الأجنبية ،

wa-ḏālika nāšiʔ^un ʕan tarassumⁱ al-kātibⁱ ’l-riwāyātⁱ ’l-ʔaǧnabiyyaẗ^a,

a result of the author’s imitation of foreign productions.

AR: kātib, riwāyaẗ
EN: …

فواجبنا نحن الكتّاب أنْ نعطي أدبنا العصري المصري صفة حيّة ملوّنة خاصّة به ويعرف بها ،

fa-wāǧibu-nā naḥnu ’l-kuttāb ʔan nuʕṭiya ʔadaba-nā ’l-ʕaṣrī al-miṣrī ṣifaẗ ḥayyaẗ mulawwanaẗ ḫāṣṣaẗ bi-hī wa-yuʕraf^u bi-hā,

Therefore, it is our duty as writers to give our contemporary Egyptian literature lively and colourful features, peculiar to it and by which it is identifiable as unique.

AR: kātib (kuttāb), ʔadab, miṣrī (Miṣr / Miṣriyyaẗ)
EN: lively, colourful, unique

ولذلك يجب أنْ نجتهد بأنْ نحرّر ذهنيتَنا من تأثير الأدب الغربي

wa-li-ḏālika yaǧib^u ʔan naǧtahid^a bi-ʔan nuḥarrir^a ḏihniyyata-nā min taʔṯīr al-ʔadab al-ġarbī

We must strive to free our minds from the influence of Western literature

AR: ḏihniyyaẗ, taʔṯīr, ʔadab, ġarbī
EN: …

بألا نتّخذ (م) من الروايات الأجنبية قاعدة لرواياتنا التي يجب أن تشاد على أساس الملاحظة الصادقة المستخرجة من أعماق حياتنا اليومية ، وعلى التحليلات الاجتماعية والنفسانية ،

bi-ʔallā nattaḫiḏ^a min al-riwāyāt al-ʔaǧnabiyyaẗ qāʕidaẗ^an li-riwāyāti-nā ’llatī yaǧibu ʔan tušād^a ʕalà ʔasās al-mulāḥaẓaẗ al-ṣādiqaẗ al-mustaḫraǧaẗ min ʔaʕmāq ḥayāti-nā ’l-yawmiyyaẗ, wa-ʕalà ’l-taḥlīlāt al-iǧtimāʕiyyaẗ wa’l-nafsāniyyaẗ,

by avoiding taking [p. xiii] foreign narrative [traditions] as the pillars on which to erect our own. These must [instead] be built on faithful observation, extracted from our daily lives, as well as on social and psychological analyses.

AR: riwāyaẗ, qāʕidaẗ (qawāʕid), mulāḥaẓaẗ, ṣādiq (ṣidq), ʔaʕmāq (ʕumq), ḥayāẗ, taḥlīl, iǧtimāʕī, nafsānī
EN: observation, daily lives, social, psychological, analyses

فنحن إذا حقّقنا ذلك لأتينا بشيء جديد يجهله كتّاب الغرب لعجزهم عن درس نفسيتنا ونظام حياتنا ،

fa-naḥnu ʔiḏā ḥaqqaqnā ḏālika la-ʔataynā bi-šayʔⁱⁿ ǧadīdⁱⁿ yaǧhalu-hū kuttāb^u ’l-ġarb li-ʕaǧzi-him ʕan darsⁱ nafsiyyati-nā wa-niẓāmⁱ ḥayāti-nā,

If we achieve this, we will have added something new, something writers from the West are incapable of doing because of their inability to study our psychology and the way we organize our lives.

AR: ǧadīd, ǧahl, kātib (kuttāb), ġarb, dars, nafsiyyaẗ, ḥayāẗ
EN: …

وسيأتي حينئذ اليوم الذي يأخذون فيه بنقل قصصنا ورواياتنا إلى لغاتهم ، لأنّ لهم ولعة عظيمة بكلّ ما هو مصري ،

wa-sa-yaʔtī ḥīnaʔiḏⁱⁿ al-yawm allaḏī yaʔḫuḏūn^a fī-hi bi-naqlⁱ qiṣaṣi-nā wa-riwāyāti-nā ʔilà luġāti-him, li-ʔanna la-hum walʕaẗ^un ʕaẓīmaẗ^un bi-kullⁱ mā huwa miṣrī,

There will then come the day when they will begin to translate our stories and plays into their languages, as they have an ardent desire for everything Egyptian,

AR: naql, riwāyaẗ, miṣrī (Miṣr / Miṣriyyaẗ)
EN: …

خصوصاً بعد أنْ ألفتت مصر أنظار العالم نحوها بحركتنا الوطنية البديعة الجيّدة ،

ḫuṣūṣ^an baʕd ʔan ʔalfatat Miṣr ʔanẓār al-ʕālam naḥwa-hā bi-ḥarakati-nā ’l-waṭaniyyaẗ al-badīʕaẗ al-ǧayyidaẗ,

especially after Egypt has attracted the world’s attention through our outstanding authentic national movement.

AR: Miṣr, ḥarakaẗ, waṭaniyyaẗ, badīʕ
EN: …

وحينذاك ، وحينذاك فقط ، يمكن أنْ تُعَدَّ الأمّةُ المصرية من الأمم المستقلّة الراقية مهما كان نظامها السياسي ، لأنّ الآداب معيار رقي الأمّة ،

wa-ḥīnaḏāk^a, wa-ḥīnaḏāk^a faqaṭ, yumkin^u ʔan tuʕadd^a ’l-ʔummaẗ^u al-miṣriyyaẗ^u min al-ʔumamⁱ ’l-mustaqillaẗⁱ ’l-rāqiyaẗⁱ mahmā kāna niẓāmu-hā ’l-siyāsī, li-ʔanna ’l-ʔādāb miʕyār ruqiyy al-ʔummaẗ,

Then, and only then, will it be possible to count the Egyptian nation among the [world’s] independent advanced nations, no matter what political system it will have; for literature/ culture is the criterion for a nation’s progress(iveness).

AR: ʔummaẗ, miṣrī (Miṣr / Miṣriyyaẗ), mustaqil̩l (istiqlāl), rāqⁱⁿ / ruqiyy, ʔādāb, miʕyār, ʔummaẗ
EN: independent advanced nations, progress(iveness)

وإنّ أمّة بلغت ما بلغته الأمّة المصرية من الرقي والنضوج المبكّر البدري، لجديرة بآداب راقية فنّية مستقلّة خاصّة بها .

wa-ʔinna ʔummaẗ^an balaġat mā balaġat-hu ’l-ʔummaẗ^u ’l-miṣriyyaẗ^u min al-ruqiyy wa’l-nuḍūǧ al-mubakkir al-badrī, la-ǧadīraẗ^un bi-ʔādāb rāqiyaẗ fanniyyaẗ mustaqillaẗ ḫāṣṣaẗ bi-hā.

A nation that has achieved such a degree of progress and early, promising maturation as the Egyptian nation has achieved, is indeed worthy of an independent, artistically advanced literature/culture bearing its [sc., this nation’s] own distinctive features.

AR: ʔummaẗ, miṣrī (Miṣr / Miṣriyyaẗ), rāqⁱⁿ / ruqiyy, nuḍūǧ, mubakkir, badrī, ʔādāb, fannī (fann), mustaqill (istiqlāl), ḫāṣṣ
EN: …

هذا هو الواجب المقدّس الذي نترسّمه ، ونؤمل أن تؤدّي بعض ما يقتضيه هذا الواجب ،

hāḏā huwa ’l-wāǧib al-muqaddas allaḏī natarassamu-hū, wa-nuʔammil^u ʔan tuʔaddiya baʕḍ^a mā yaqtaḍī-hi hāḏā ’l-wāǧib,

This is the sacred obligation that we take as our public duty,¹¹ and we hope that some of the things that this task requires will be implemented.

11. Or: ‘that we try to fulfil’ (?).

AR: wāǧib, muqaddas, ʔamal
EN: sacred obligation, public duty

ونظنّ ألا يوجد مَن يدّعی علينا أنّ رواياتنا قصصية كانت أو مرسحية مقتبسة من روايات أجنبية ،

wa-naẓunn^u ʔal-lā yūǧadu man yaddaʕī ʕalay-nā ʔanna riwāyāti-nā qaṣaṣiyyaẗ^an kānat ʔaw marsaḥiyyaẗ^an muqtabisaẗ^un min riwāyātⁱⁿ ʔaǧnabiyyaẗ,

We believe that nobody can accuse us of taking the inspiration for our pieces/accounts – whether they are stories or plays – from foreign ones,

AR: riwāyaẗ, marsaḥ, muqtabis (iqtibās), ʔaǧnabī
EN: …

أو أنّ رواية غربية أوحت لنا بضعة مناظر أو ساعدتنا على تكييف أشخاصنا ،

ʔaw ʔanna riwāyaẗ^an ġarbiyyaẗ^an ʔawḥat la-nā biḍʕaẗ^a manāẓir^a ʔaw sāʕadat-nā ʕalà takyīf ʔašḫāṣi-nā,

or allege that a Western account has provided us with the model for some scenes or helped us shape our characters,

AR: riwāyaẗ, ġarbī, manāẓir, takyīf, ʔašḫāṣ
EN: …

أو أنّ هؤلاء الأشخاص لا وجود لهم في الأمّة المصرية ،

ʔaw ʔanna hāʔulāʔi ’l-ʔašḫāṣ lā wuǧūd^a la-hum fī ’l-ʔummaẗ al-miṣriyyaẗ,

or that the characters do not have real counterparts (lit., have no existence) in the Egyptian nation/people.

AR: ʔašḫāṣ, ʔummaẗ, miṣrī (Miṣr / Miṣriyyaẗ)
EN: …

فإن ميلي الغريزي للتحليل يدفعني إلى التغلغل في درس أعماق حياتنا الداخلية النفسانية لأصوّرها بأمانة وإخلاص كما هي لا كما يجب أن تكون ،

fa-ʔinna mayl-ī al-ġarīzī lil-taḥlīl yadfaʕu-nī ʔilà ’l-taġalġul fī dars ʔaʕmāq ḥayāti-nā ’l-dāḫiliyyaẗ al-nafsāniyyaẗ li-ʔuṣawwira-hā bi-ʔamānaẗ wa-ʔiḫlāṣ ka-mā hiya lā ka-mā yaǧibu ʔan takūn^a,

My intuitive keenness of analyzing drives me to immerse myself in the study of the innermost depths of our psychology to describe it as it is, reliably and faithfully, and not the way it should be.

AR: mayl, taḥlīl, dars, ʔaʕmāq (ʕumq), ḥayāẗ, dāḫilī, nafsānī, taṣwīr, ʔamānaẗ, ʔiḫlāṣ, ka-mā huwa/hiya
EN: …

ولهذا السبب وحده أحجم بعض أشخاص الفرق عن تمثيل رواية من رواياتي

wa-li-hāḏā ’l-sabab waḥdi-hī ʔaḥǧama baʕḍ^u ʔašḫāṣⁱ ’l-firaqⁱ ʕan tamṯīl riwāyaẗ min riwāyāt-ī

For this reason alone, some theater directors have refrained from taking pieces of mine to stage;

AR: sabab/ʔasbāb, ʔašḫāṣ, tamṯīl, riwāyaẗ
EN: …

لأنّهم وجدوها حقيقية مؤلمة قاسية ، إذ لا يصحّ كما يقولون إظهار كل الحقائق .

li-ʔanna-hum waǧadū-hā ḥaqīqiyyaẗ^an muʔlimaẗ^an qāsiyaẗ^an, ʔiḏ lā yaṣiḥḥ^u ka-mā yaqūlūn^a ʔiẓhār^u kullⁱ ’l-ḥaqāʔiq.

they found them too real, distressing and cruel – it’s bad manners/not right, as they say, to bring all truths to light.

AR: ḥaqīqaẗ (ḥaqāʔiq) / ḥaqīqī, ʔiẓhār (ẓāhir)
EN: …

وإنّا لا نتعرّض الآن لدرس هذا الموضوع الدقيق (ن) لمعرفة إنْ كانوا على خطأ أو صواب ، فسنخصّص لدرسه فصلاً مطوّلاً في كتابنا "ملاحظات ونظرات فنّية"

wa-ʔinnā lā nataʕarraḍu ’l-ʔān^a li-darsⁱ hāḏā ’l-mawḍūʕ al-daqīq li-maʕrifaẗⁱ ʔin kānū ʕalà ḫaṭaʔⁱⁿ ʔaw ṣawābⁱⁿ, fa-sa-nuḫaṣṣiṣ^u li-darsi-hī faṣl^an muṭawwal^an fī kitābi-nā "Mulāḥaẓāt wa-naẓarāt fanniyyaẗ"

We will not dare to study this delicate topic in further detail now [p. xiv] to find out whether they are right or wrong, as we will dedicate an extensive chapter to its study in our book Observations and Perspectives on Art / Aesthetic Contemplations.¹²

12. Mulāḥaẓāt wa-naẓarāt fanniyyaẗ – the book announced by the author here (and which is perhaps the same as he pointed to already earlier in this Preface) does not seem to have seen the light of the day, as ʕUbayd died only the year after the publication of this foreword. Sabry Hafez, however, would not exclude that it existed and actually was published; cf. what he says about this and other (perhaps lost) publications: »At the end of his two collections, ʕĪsā ʕUbaid advertised his forthcoming publications including two novels, Bayn al-Ḥubb wa-l-Fann (Between Love and Art) and Yaqẓat Miṣr (Egypt’s Awakening); a collection of short stories, al-ʔUsraẗ (The Family); another collection in French, Sur les bords du Nil; a collection of critical essays, Naẓarāt wa-Mulāḥaẓāt Fanniyyaẗ (Artistic Reflections); and several plays. It was customary at this time for writers to fill the final page of their books with what seems more like a declaration of their literary intentions than an authentic list of completed works awaiting publication. But in ʕĪsā’s case, one is inclined to take his list seriously, not only because his advertisements were very detailed and because he succeeded in publishing in 1922 the first book on the list which appeared in the final page of his first collection, but also because Muḥammad Bāqir ʕUlwān of Harvard University discovered in Cairo in 1973 the manuscripts of two of his lost plays« – S. Hafez, The Genesis of Arabic Narrative Discourse…, Saqi Books, 1993: 292, n. 72. – The adj. fanniyyaẗ, m. fannī, is a nisbah formation from fann which for ʕUbayd mainly means art as ‘technique’, technē. Naẓarāt ‘views, opinions’ is rendered as ‘perspectives/contemplations’ here – ‘perspectives’ seems to be more idiomatic, while ‘contemplations’ is inspired by the title Naẓarāt, a collection of essays and stories by M. L. al-Manfalūṭī (see above), often translated as Contemplations.

AR: dars, daqīq (diqqaẗ), faṣl, mulāḥaẓaẗ, naẓarāt, fannī (fann),
EN: Observation

ولكنّا نبدي هنا رأينا ونتركه بدون تعزيز

walākin-nā nubdī hunā raʔya-nā wa-natruku-hū bi-dūnⁱ taʕzīz

What we would like to do here, however, is to express our point of view, without imposing it [on the reader].

AR: raʔy, taʕzīz
EN: …

فإنّنا نرى أنّ واجب الفني تصوير الفنّ أينما وجد ،

fa-ʔinna-nā narà ʔanna wāǧib al-fannī taṣwīr al-fann ʔaynamā wuǧida,

For we believe that the artist’s duty lies in [technically advanced, faithful] description wherever he happens to be.

AR: wāǧib, fannī / fann, taṣwīr
EN: duty, technically advanced, faithful, description

لأنّ الفنّ يجب أنْ يكون مستقلّاً ومحرّراً من كل قيد .

li-ʔanna ’l-fann yaǧibu ʔan yakūn^a mustaqill^an wa-muḥarrar^an min kullⁱ qayd.

Art, that is to say, must be independent and released from any bonds.

AR: fann, mustaqill (istiqlāl), taḥrīr, qayd
EN: …

والفنّ كما سبق وقلنا في موضع آخر لا يكون فقط في تصوير الجمال والكمال ،

wa’l-fann ka-mā sabaq^a wa-qulnā fī mawḍiʕⁱⁿ ʔāḫar lā yakūn faqaṭ fī taṣwīr al-ǧamāl wa’l-kamāl,

Art, as we’ve said in another context above, does not only lie in the description of beauty and perfection,

AR: fann, taṣwīr, ǧamāl, kamāl
EN: …

بل قد يكون أيضاً في تصوير عيوب الطبيعة ونقائص المجتمع البشري ،

bal qad yakūn ʔayḍ^an fī taṣwīr ʕuyūb al-ṭabīʕaẗ wa-naqāʔiṣ al-muǧtamaʕ al-bašarī,

it may also be a description of the faults of nature and the shortcomings of human society.

AR: taṣwīr, ʕuyūb, ṭabīʕaẗ, naqāʔiṣ, muǧtamaʕ, bašarī (bašar)
EN: description, faults, shortcomings

لأنّ الفنّ في عرفنا هو القدرة على إيجاد إحساس راقٍ قوي ، يتسرّب بلذّة مُثْمِلة خلّابة إلى قلوبنا ويمتلك علينا نفوسنا فيهذّبها ،

li-ʔanna ’l-fann fī ʕurfi-nā huwa ’l-qudraẗ ʕalà ʔīǧād ʔiḥsās rāqⁱⁿ qawiyyⁱⁿ, yatasarrab^u bi-laḏḏaẗ muṯmilaẗ ḫallābaẗ ʔilà qulūbi-nā wa-yamtalik^u ʕalay-nā nufūsa-nā fa-yuhaḏḏibu-hā,

For art, as we understand it, is the ability to arouse [in us] a strong and noble feeling that we enjoy feeling creep into us, producing in our hearts a drunk, capturing pleasure. It takes control over us and refines our morals / makes us civilized.

AR: fann, ʔīǧād, ʔiḥsās, rāqⁱⁿ, qawiyy (quwwaẗ), laḏḏaẗ, qalb (qulūb), nufūs (nafs), tahḏīb
EN: pleasure, refines our morals / makes us civilized

ولا شيء خليق بإيجاد هذا الإحساس سوى الحقيقة لأنّها تهز أليافاً دقيقة في أعماق قلوبنا ،

wa-lā šayʔ ḫalīq bi-ʔīǧād hāḏā al-ʔiḥsās siwà al-ḥaqīqaẗ li-ʔanna-hā tahuzz^u ʔalyāf^an daqīqaẗ^an fī ʔaʕmāq qulūbi-nā,

Nothing can evoke this feeling but Truth because it touches the sensitive fibers in the depths of our hearts.

AR: ʔīǧād, ʔiḥsās, ḥaqīqaẗ, hazza (hazz), daqīq (diqqaẗ), ʔaʕmāq, qalb (qulūb)
EN: hearts

وعلى هذا الاعتبار تكون كلّ حقيقة جديرة بأنْ تعرض وتُصوَّر وتُقال ۰

wa-ʕalà hāḏā ’l-iʕtibār takūn^u kull^u ḥaqīqaẗⁱⁿ ǧadīraẗ^an bi-ʔan tuʕraḍ^a wa-tuṣawwar^a wa-tuqāl^a.

Accordingly, every truth is worth being displayed, described and spoken out.

AR: ḥaqīqaẗ
EN: …

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