Imitation and renewal - Taha Hussein

About the writers who imitate and copy and think they are renewers and innovators, this is the fate that the Dean of Arab literature did not wish for young Arab intellectuals, who have been placed by the vocabulary of contemporary civilization in a difficult confrontation between looking back and moving forward into the unknown. However — and bearing the responsibility of playing an active role in enlightening minds — he did not just shed light on the phenomenon and its symptoms, but moved from description to analysis and interpretation, emphasizing and demonstrating that not every resemblance to the old is considered imitation, and not every deviation from it is counted as renewal. As usual in following the historical method, the author traces the stages of development of Arabic literature in its different eras, presenting the most important renewals in each stage, until reaching the modern era, to discuss the experiences of its poets — such as: Shouqi, Hafez, Baroudi, Mazini, and Mataran — in the balance of commendable renewal. Publication year 1978 Author: Taha Hussein Publisher: Dar Al-Ilm Lil-Malayin Number of pages: 145