| FT-54018-06 | Research Programs: Summer Stipends | Mark A. Bayer | Shakespeare and the Construction of Modern Arabic Cultural Identity | 7/1/2006 - 8/31/2006 | $5,000.00 | Mark | A. | Bayer | | | | American University of Beirut | New York | NY | 10017-2303 | USA | 2006 | Comparative Literature | Summer Stipends | Research Programs | 5000 | 0 | 5000 | 0 |
Since Shakespeare was first translated into Arabic and performed on the stages of Cairo in the late nineteenth century, his plays have become a remarkably popular and durable cultural commodity for audiences throughout the Middle East. In this study, I look at the history of Shakespeare in the Arab world in an effort to uncover the various reasons for the Arabs’ surprising willingness to appropriate the quintessential symbol of Anglo- American literary achievement and a culture to which they are often so vociferously opposed. I argue that, for Arabs, Shakespeare has been a catalyst for self-reflection and a vehicle through which to negotiate a new cultural identity that merges traditional concerns with the ubiquitous influence of the West. |