Ahmed Zaghloul Al-sheety
Encyclopedia
Ahmed Zaghloul Al-sheety (born 1961) is a contemporary Egypt
ian novelist who has enormously attracted attention to himself after his first important novel, Poisonous Roses for Sakr. Published in Cairo
, February 1990, Roses was heartily received by the literary circles inside and outside Egypt
. He is one of the most outstanding writers who started writing in the 1980s whose writings carry inside them a unique taste and a distinctive flavor though they belong to the main current of New Sensibility.
Alsheety was born in Damietta
, February, 10th, 1961 into a family that mainly worked in furniture industry for which the city is famous. Finishing his secondary school in Demitta, Al-sheety moved into Cairo where he graduated from the faculty of Law, Cairo University
in 1983. All through his educational years, and perhaps because of the premature death of the father, Al-sheety had to work during his summer vacation, and sometimes during the school year in furniture making workshops specially in the sophisticated wood-carving known as “Oyma".<(Hafez,107)/>
Despite his difficult life, Al-sheety started a very early writing career; he could not publish, however, till 1985. His stories followed after that in many Egyptian papers and magazines like Almesaa, AlAhaly, Adab Wa Nakd, Alkahera, Almakwef AlAraby, Alensan wa Altatwor. These scattered stories revealed a true talent together with an inherent artistic flavor especially in Poisonous Roses for Sakr.
The novel includes what is called the eighties’ novel flavor which arises from the disillusions of the eighties and the costly ruins of the seventies that kill any hope for upheaval and blocks all roads towards salvation in the eyes of the youth. The novel is characterized by an overwhelming amount of maturity, whether in its vision or unique writing techniques: its distinctive novelistic voice, and its particular narrative situation that astonishes the reader from the very first lines.<( Hafez,107)/> The novel was the subject of a special critical issue of Adab Wa Nakd, many literary reviews by distinguished critics, and various seminars of the Cairo International Book Fair in 1990. Nominated as the best Egyptian novel in 1990, the younger generation considered it the “icon” of the nineties and a new birth for a new Egyptian Narration.
Al-sheety’s other works are Internal Winter <(Cairo, Mohktarat Fosoul, 1991)/> and Paper Toys <( Cairo, Sharkiat, 1994.)/> Of Winter, Dr Said Albahrawy writes: “ It ( the collection) reveals a complex consciousness; concerned with our contemporary life’s problems in spite of the writer’s deep optimism that pushes him still to write.” <( Said Elbahrawy.( Feb.1989) “ New Visions”. Adab wa Nakd. p 65)/> Of Toys, Edward Alkharat writes: “ They are outstanding stories in the Modernist fictional mood. They handle the internal/external psychological reality alike; extremely brief. If read together, the stories may seem as an answer to a latent and original oppression in a fragile heavy world, <{Alkharat. ( 1995) “The Toys of Reality and Beyond” Nazwa. Pp269–270}/>
Al-sheety awaits the publishing of his fourth book that consists of short texts that have been published in the Egyptian and Arabic periodicals and in the last ten years.
In spite of the warm reception that Al-sheety’s writings were met with in the 1990s, his work as a lawyer in the investment field together with his movement between his residence in Heliopolis, Cairo and his birthplace in Demitta, Alsheety’s physical appearance inside the center of Cairo cultural circles rather dwindled in the last ten years. However, he is back to the center with a new novel in progress. More important than this is his interest in securing his financial independence depending on his own capacities away from external financial patronizing. To him, the independence of the creative person is a major condition for continuity in a third world country like Egypt where all kinds of confused and/or suspicious financial patronizing exist.
From the distinguished critics who wrote on Al-sheety are Edward Alkharat, Sabry Hafez, Said Elbahrawy, Said Hamed Alnasag, Abdurrahman Abou Ouf, Ramadan Albastaweesy, Said Alwakeel<( Proceedings of the Seventh Literary Demitta Conference.2004)/> Mahmoud Abdulwahab <( Althakafah Algadeedah, April 1992)/> Khaleel Alkhaleel <( Adab wa Nakd, Sept. 1990)/> Fareedah Alnakash,
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
ian novelist who has enormously attracted attention to himself after his first important novel, Poisonous Roses for Sakr. Published in Cairo
Cairo
Cairo , is the capital of Egypt and the largest city in the Arab world and Africa, and the 16th largest metropolitan area in the world. Nicknamed "The City of a Thousand Minarets" for its preponderance of Islamic architecture, Cairo has long been a centre of the region's political and cultural life...
, February 1990, Roses was heartily received by the literary circles inside and outside Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
. He is one of the most outstanding writers who started writing in the 1980s whose writings carry inside them a unique taste and a distinctive flavor though they belong to the main current of New Sensibility.
Alsheety was born in Damietta
Damietta
Damietta , also known as Damiata, or Domyat, is a port and the capital of the Damietta Governorate in Egypt. It is located at the intersection between the Mediterranean Sea and the Nile, about north of Cairo.-History:...
, February, 10th, 1961 into a family that mainly worked in furniture industry for which the city is famous. Finishing his secondary school in Demitta, Al-sheety moved into Cairo where he graduated from the faculty of Law, Cairo University
Cairo University
Cairo University is a public university located in Giza, Egypt.The university was founded on December 21, 1908, as the result of an effort to establish a national center for educational thought...
in 1983. All through his educational years, and perhaps because of the premature death of the father, Al-sheety had to work during his summer vacation, and sometimes during the school year in furniture making workshops specially in the sophisticated wood-carving known as “Oyma".<(Hafez,107)/>
Despite his difficult life, Al-sheety started a very early writing career; he could not publish, however, till 1985. His stories followed after that in many Egyptian papers and magazines like Almesaa, AlAhaly, Adab Wa Nakd, Alkahera, Almakwef AlAraby, Alensan wa Altatwor. These scattered stories revealed a true talent together with an inherent artistic flavor especially in Poisonous Roses for Sakr.
The novel includes what is called the eighties’ novel flavor which arises from the disillusions of the eighties and the costly ruins of the seventies that kill any hope for upheaval and blocks all roads towards salvation in the eyes of the youth. The novel is characterized by an overwhelming amount of maturity, whether in its vision or unique writing techniques: its distinctive novelistic voice, and its particular narrative situation that astonishes the reader from the very first lines.<( Hafez,107)/> The novel was the subject of a special critical issue of Adab Wa Nakd, many literary reviews by distinguished critics, and various seminars of the Cairo International Book Fair in 1990. Nominated as the best Egyptian novel in 1990, the younger generation considered it the “icon” of the nineties and a new birth for a new Egyptian Narration.
Al-sheety’s other works are Internal Winter <(Cairo, Mohktarat Fosoul, 1991)/> and Paper Toys <( Cairo, Sharkiat, 1994.)/> Of Winter, Dr Said Albahrawy writes: “ It ( the collection) reveals a complex consciousness; concerned with our contemporary life’s problems in spite of the writer’s deep optimism that pushes him still to write.” <( Said Elbahrawy.( Feb.1989) “ New Visions”. Adab wa Nakd. p 65)/> Of Toys, Edward Alkharat writes: “ They are outstanding stories in the Modernist fictional mood. They handle the internal/external psychological reality alike; extremely brief. If read together, the stories may seem as an answer to a latent and original oppression in a fragile heavy world, <{Alkharat. ( 1995) “The Toys of Reality and Beyond” Nazwa. Pp269–270}/>
Al-sheety awaits the publishing of his fourth book that consists of short texts that have been published in the Egyptian and Arabic periodicals and in the last ten years.
In spite of the warm reception that Al-sheety’s writings were met with in the 1990s, his work as a lawyer in the investment field together with his movement between his residence in Heliopolis, Cairo and his birthplace in Demitta, Alsheety’s physical appearance inside the center of Cairo cultural circles rather dwindled in the last ten years. However, he is back to the center with a new novel in progress. More important than this is his interest in securing his financial independence depending on his own capacities away from external financial patronizing. To him, the independence of the creative person is a major condition for continuity in a third world country like Egypt where all kinds of confused and/or suspicious financial patronizing exist.
From the distinguished critics who wrote on Al-sheety are Edward Alkharat, Sabry Hafez, Said Elbahrawy, Said Hamed Alnasag, Abdurrahman Abou Ouf, Ramadan Albastaweesy, Said Alwakeel<( Proceedings of the Seventh Literary Demitta Conference.2004)/> Mahmoud Abdulwahab <( Althakafah Algadeedah, April 1992)/> Khaleel Alkhaleel <( Adab wa Nakd, Sept. 1990)/> Fareedah Alnakash,
External links
- http://www.arabicac.com/shownews.php?ID=257
- http://www.asmarna.net/al_moltqa/showthread.php?t=18178