Sharqawi, Abd al-Rahman al-

Sharqawi, Abd al-Rahman al- 

Born Nov. 10, 1921, in the province of Minufiya. Egyptian writer.

Al-Sharqawi was born into a peasant family. His first works were published while he was a student at the law school of the University of Cairo, which he attended from 1938 to 1943. Al-Sharqawi took part in the antimonarchy struggle. He founded the progressive journal Al-Katib (1951–53), which advocated peaceful cooperation among peoples. He was head of Egyptian delegations to various conferences on peace from 1951 to 1955.

Al-Sharqawi became widely known after the publication of his novel The Earth (1954), which deals with the oppressed peasantry’s awakening to struggle; the book was translated into many languages. The concepts of “Arab socialism” in its leftist form are evident in the novel Muhammad—the Messenger of Freedom (1962). In this work the author attempted to correlate the life of the prophet to our times and social struggle. The history of Islam and its projection in contemporary times are the basic themes of al-Sharqawi’s plays about Caliph Husein (1969). In the novel Fellah (1967), which is pervaded with themes of revolution and democracy, the author returns to the subject of village life after the enactment of land reform.

Al-Sharqawi is a member of the World Peace Council.

WORKS

In Russian translation:
Fellakh. Moscow, 1973.
In English translation:
Egyptian Earth. Translated by D. Stewart. London, 1962.

REFERENCES

Khusein-zade, M. Sh. Fellakh v literature Egipta. Dushanbe, 1973. Pages 70–127.
Kotsarev, N. K. Pisateli Egipta. XX vek. Moscow, 1975. Pages 272–74.
Jomier, J. “Une Vie de Mohammad, Apôtre de la liberté.” Mélanges de L’Institut Dominicain d’études orientales du Caire, vol. 8. Cairo, 1966. Pages 395–400.