Poets such as Badr Shakir al-Sayyab, Salah Abd al-Sabour, Khalil Hawi, and Mahmoud Darwish were said to have been influenced by Eliot; we examine the depth of this inspiration.
American-English poet T. S. Eliot left behind a formidable legacy, inspiring generations of writers all over the globe. But one of the lesser-known facts of his literary impact is that he is, perhaps, the most frequently translated Western poet in the Arab world.
Art, of course, is often derivative; even Eliot’s work itself has drawn comparisons to his predecessors. However, with this cross-cultural impact comes accusations of Arab poets overidentifying with Eliot.
Meanwhile, Arab modernist poets, playwrights and novelists have long embraced Western influences, incorporating elements of Western languages, schools of thought, doctrines, structures and even ideologies; this is particularly true of writers who emerged in the 20th century.
Arab modernist poets, playwrights and novelists have long embraced Western influences, incorporating elements of Western languages, schools of thought, doctrines, structures and even ideologies; this is particularly true of writers who emerged in the 20th century.
Beyond each independent piece, however, there is a clear and rich intertextuality, resulting in remarkable literary endeavours. Because Arab poets relied not only on individual strokes of genius, but rather on a collective creative openness to the outside world that ultimately shaped their work.
Some were influenced by Francophone tendencies, while others by Anglophone literary spheres. Considering the divergence and multiplicity of these influences, it's important that we approach Arab poets and their levels of success – or lack thereof – with an open mind and a constructive eye, rather than accuse this author of plagiarism, and that author of failing to acknowledge his inspirations.
Many critics have misconstrued the relative influence of Eliot on the Arab literary world as a plundering or theft of T. S. Eliot's work – maybe even a denial of its impact.
So, we decided to delve deeper into the work of four Arab poets – Badr Shakir al-Sayyab, Salah Abdel Sabour, Khalil Hawi, and Mahmoud Darwish – who were subjected to such questioning, and often reduced to mere imitators or copycats.
But how much did they really borrow from Eliot's poetic blueprint – and how much did they deviate from it? We place their ink beneath the magnifying glass to uncover the truth.
Khalil Hawi
There are about fifteen translations of Eliot's "The Waste Land" into Arabic. Among them, Khalil Hawi stands out.
Khalil Hawi
Hawi was known to be influenced by Eliot – but his early work was also shaped by the likes of Al-Sayyab and Elias Abu Shabaka (not so much Amin Nakhla, despite what many have suggested).
There are some commonalities between Hawi and Eliot, of course, particularly in the use of myth and the mourning of civilisation.
There are some commonalities between Hawi and Eliot, of course, particularly in the use of myth and the mourning of civilisation.
But the legend of "Tammuz", which Sayyab was famous for tackling, illuminated some differences. Counter to how other writers perceived it – as a death of the Arab self, for instance – Hawi used the "phoenix" as a symbol of hope and rebirth.
However, despite his once optimistic outlook, Hawi committed suicide in 1982, when Israel invaded Lebanon – an invasion that served as a final blow to the concept of Arab nationalism and killed any hope of change for the poet.
Furthermore, we find that it was English writer Aldous Huxley, not Eliot, who influenced Hawi's use of religious symbols and historical myth. Hawi also derived his sense of civilised vigour from Samuel Taylor Coleridge, most evident in Coledrige's poem "The Sailor and the Dervish".
This does not negate Eliot's influence on Hawi, but rather highlights that Hawi's poetic language deviates from Eliot's in terms of structure and composition.
In contrast to Eliot, Hawi adopted two strong, distinct expressions that alternated between classical and modern, while also employing poetic free verse. He also owes the emotional intensity of his language to the wonderful poem "Serpents of Paradise", penned by the Lebanese poet Abu Shabaka.
Badr Shakir al-Sayyab
Al-Sayyab is at the forefront of Arab poets who were judged for their strong identification with Eliot.
Badr Shakir al-Sayyab
He himself acknowledged the role of Western writers in his work, saying, "I am influenced by the English poet Keats in his adoption of the image for expression, by Shakespeare in his tragic imagery, and I admire Eliot as well as Dante and James Fraser."
Al-Sayyab himself acknowledged the role of European and Western writers in his work, saying, "I am influenced by the English poet Keats in his adoption of the image for expression, by Shakespeare in his tragic imagery, and I admire Eliot as well as Dante and James Fraser."
We see Eliot's influence on Al-Sayyab's work most clearly in his use of folk songs, as in Eliot's "The Waste Land", as well as a children's song, and a southern Iraqi song... without forgetting his wonderful poem, "The Rain Song".
'The Waste Land' by T. S. Eliot
Al-Sayyab shared an affinity with Eliot for an exaggerated use of religious, cultural, and historical symbols, myths, and tales while maintaining his own sense of lyricism. He skillfully avoided condensing his language, using violent expressions, or resorting to jarring imagery that could disrupt a poem's rhythm.
He also steered clear of Eliot's purely intellectual approach, without falling prey to oversimplification.
Salah Abdel Sabour
Salah Abdel Sabour, despite receiving criticism for being heavily influenced by Eliot, stood out among his peers due to his engagement in both poetry and theatre, akin to Eliot's multidisciplinary approach.
Salah Abdel Sabour
However, Abdel Sabour's influences extended far beyond just Eliot, even including poets that contradicted Eliot's approach, such as Lorca, Rilke, Kafka, Machado, Nazim Hikmat, and Whitman.
However, Abdel Sabour's influences extended far beyond just Eliot, even including poets that contradicted Eliot's approach, such as Lorca, Rilke, Kafka, Machado, Nazim Hikmat, and Whitman.
This made the extent of Eliot's influence on his work unclear and open to interpretation.
In some poems, we spot the Arabic lyricism of the likes of Ahmed Shawqi, Khalil Mutran, and Hafez Ibrahim, which seems to be a departure from Eliot's essence. Yet, Abdel Sabour himself acknowledged Eliot's lasting impact.
Here, he proclaims: "The shadows of his readings faded from his aesthetic memory, leaving only the shadows of Eliot, who combined the spiritual character of our contemporary world with the positive spiritual character of the ancient world."
Perhaps he found common ground with Eliot over his negative tendencies. But despite abandoning the rhetorical Arabic poetic vocabulary after his first book, "People in My Country" – and the classical Arabic poetry found in his poems like "Sadness" – Abdel Sabour didn't quite live up to Eliot's linguistic boldness, which he so admired.
Many Arab poets have explored similar themes without encapsulating Eliot's boldness. To that end, Abdel Sabour quips, "I am not Prince Hamlet, nor did I intend to be."
In examining Abdel Sabour's plays, particularly "The Tragedy of Hallaj" (1974), the influence of Eliot becomes apparent, as he translated and was influenced by Eliot's play "Murder in the Cathedral" (1935). (Abdel Sabour was also influenced by plays such as "Layla and Majnun" and "Dreams of the Old Knight".)
However, it is challenging to envision Abdel Sabour fully capturing the essence of Eliot's philosophical depth and cultural significance. As a result, his plays were often less profound and exhibited weak dramaturgy.
Mahmoud Darwish
We are quite familiar with Mahmoud Darwish's militant support of the Palestinian cause; he expressed it staunchly in his early writing, when he was not yet writing for himself but rather for the public, who viewed poems as slogans of resistance.
Mahmoud Darwish
However, at a later stage of writing, Darwish adopted a very different, almost avant-garde approach. Here, his voice became complex and dense, utilising both suggestive and symbolic language. He inaugurated this second wave with his masterpiece, "Mural".
In 'Mural', Darwish delves into new depths, dreams, and deliriums, exploring themes of meditation, love, and death, like a humming, multifaceted symphony shaped by his own life experiences, obsessions, and subjectivism.
With this one widely resonating poem, he established himself as a literary force with a new vision of Arabic poetry.
However, he also beckoned pointed comparisons to Eliot.
With this one widely resonating poem ["Mural"], [Mahmoud Darwish] established himself as a literary force with a new vision of Arabic poetry. However, he also beckoned pointed comparisons to Eliot.
Critic Muhammad Shaheen wrote that Darwish differs from Abdel Sabour and Al Sayyab in his ability to capture Eliot's essence wholly, adding: "Mahmoud Darwish embodies Eliot, the deepest and most fundamental seeker of this influence.
You read Mahmoud Darwish as if you were reading Eliot, with one echoing the other. A radical reading of his "Mural" and Eliot's poem "The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock" helps you to understand Eliot as much as it helps you to understand Darwish. You read Darwish as if you were reading Eliot, and you read Eliot as if you were reading Darwish!"
However, this is far from a universally held belief. Indeed, we have pored over "Mural" repeatedly, and what we found every time was an epic rich in sounds, delirium, love, death, memory, and history.
What we didn't find was any similarity to Eliot. Furthermore, having discussed this famed poem with several distinguished poets and critics, we found it hard to deduce any correlation between Darwish's "Mural" and Eliot.
In this case, we would refer Shaheen to the many books that Darwish published after "Mural", as they, too, reflect Darwish's personal experiences that propelled him to the forefront of Arabic poetry, and solidified his position as one of the great artistic voices of the modern era.
