Klassisch oder volkstümlich

Arabic poetry is particularly embedded in the problem of tradition and innovation in a way that, for instance, the novel and the play are not. This is because these latter forms are new while poetry is the oldest literary form in the life of the Arabs.

There are always two kinds of poetry, one written in classical Arabic and one recited in colloquial. Throughout our history the two have gone hand in hand. The first produced poet laureates, the second produced popular singers. Popular poetry is a record of people’s moods; their pleasures, their sadness, their love, the expression of their dissatisfaction with the state of things — in short it is a record of daily life.

But this does not mean that classical poetry has become moribund. It has had, at times, moments of vitality. One such moment came in 1882 during the Orabi Revolt. It was an army revolt supported by peasants and among the officers were some poets whose poetry became the record of the revolt. Outbursts of this kind have kept classical poetry alive.

It is interesting that the 1952 Revolution gave rise to poetry written in colloquial. The major poet of that revolution was Salah Jahin, some of whose forceful poems were set to music and sung by Abdel-Halim Hafez. Others remained essential reference points in the history of revolution. Jahin’s was a salutary voice, the voice of the people rising abruptly from the prosaic tenor of dissident conversation to the dulcet tones of nationally oriented song. It was certainly a tribute to the vernacular, and an honour to its people. / Mursi Saad El-Din, Al Ahram 630, 5.10.03

Hier ein Essay von Nagib Mahfuz über das Verhältnis von Poesie und Prosa