Alexandrian Cosmopolitanism: An Archive

by Hala Halim

Overview

Interrogating how Alexandria became enshrined as the exemplary cosmopolitan space in the Middle East, this book mounts a radical critique of Eurocentric conceptions of cosmopolitanism. The dominant account of Alexandrian cosmopolitanism elevates things European in the city’s culture and simultaneously places things Egyptian under the sign of decline. The book goes beyond this civilization/barbarism binary to trace other modes of intercultural solidarity.

Halim presents a comparative study of literary representations, addressing poetry, fiction, guidebooks, and operettas, among other genres. She reappraises three writers—C. P. Cavafy, E. M. Forster, and Lawrence Durrell—who she maintains have been cast as the canon of Alexandria. Attending to issues of genre, gender, ethnicity, and class, she refutes the view that these writers’ representations are largely congruent and uncovers a variety of positions ranging from Orientalist to anticolonial. The book then turns to Bernard de Zogheb, a virtually unpublished writer, and elicits his camp parodies of elite Levantine mores in operettas, one of which centers on Cavafy. Drawing on Arabic critical and historical texts, as well as contemporary writers’ and filmmakers’ engagement with the canonical triumvirate, Halim orchestrates an Egyptian dialogue with the
European representations.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780823252275
Publisher:	Fordham University Press
Publication date:	09/19/2013
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	448
File size:	4 MB

About the Author

Hala Halim is Assistant Professor of Middle Eastern Studies and Comparative Literature at New York University.

Table of Contents

List of Figures ix

Acknowledgments xi

Abbreviations xvii

Introduction 1

1 Of Greeks, Barbarians, Philhellenes, Hellenophones, and Egyptiotes C. P. Cavafy 56

2 Of Hellenized Cosmopolitanism and Colonial Subalternity E. M. Forster 120

3 Uncanny Hybridity into Neocolonialism Lawrence Durrell 179

4 "Polypolis" and Levantine Camp: Bernard de Zogheb 226

Epilogue/Prologue 271

Notes 313

Works Cited 405

Index 447

Editorial Reviews

This book is firmly in the postcolonial mode, and on a topic that is both timely and important. As Egypt and other countries in the Middle East begin a political journey that takes them further and further out of the control of Western political institutions, it is essential to have nuanced studies that allow us to begin to understand how we (as Western writers and thinkers) have created comfortable spaces for certain non-western elites while excluding others.- Susan Stephens, Standford University

"An excellent exercise in rigorous comparative literature scholarship."-Roger Allen, University of Pennsylvania

"The masterful culmination of years of research by a world expert on Alexandria. Halim introduces Egyptian writers, such as Edwar Al-Kharrat and Ibrahim Abdel Meguid, into the previously predominantly European dialogue."—Banipal

"This is a labour of love, written by no other than a native Alexandrian, Hala Halim, and bound up by a profound love for the coastal city." -Ahram Online

"Hala Halim, who was born and bred in Alexandria and teaches at New York University, has a unique perspective from which to view the four male writers whose work she studies in her book." -Byzantine and Modern Greek Studies Vol. 38 No. 2

"In her 'Alexandrian Cosmopolitanism; An Archive,' Hala Halim explores enduring and critical literary constructs of Alexandria and its long touted "cosmopolitanism. " Halim's Text will be of great interest to students of comparative literature, cosmopolitanism, postcolonial writing and Mediterranean studies." -Al Jadid

"The strength of this work lies in Halim's ability to offer a much-needed postcolonial critique on the ubiquitous literary trope of Alexandrians, as a cosmopolitan city." -Mara Naaman, International Journal of Middle East Studies

"Alexandrian Cosmopolitanism is a treasure trove of information and original, groundbreaking critical insights not only on four important authors of world literature, but also on a city which is as versatile and inspiring as Venice, for instance, with its uniqueness, literary aspect, and history."-Comparative Literature Studies

"Hala Halim's book is a provocative and erudite study of the modern European literary discourses that have constructed Alexandria as the exemplary site of what we might call cosmopolitan desire."-Arab Studies Journal

"The institution of Orientalist categories-and the new understanding of history through which these categories are given-set the terms for what came to be rendered as literary history, Arabic and others, and one legacy of this setting of terms is imparted through "the discourse of Alexandrian cosmopolitanism," which Hala Halim considers in her stunning intervention Alexandrian Cosmopolitanism: An Archive."—Journal of Arabic Literature

"...a key reference for studies of Alexandria."-Canadian Review of Comparative Literature

From the Publisher

In her 'Alexandrian Cosmopolitanism; An Archive,' Hala Halim explores enduring and critical literary constructs of Alexandria and its long touted "cosmopolitanism. " Halim's Text will be of great interest to students of comparative literature, cosmopolitanism, postcolonial writing and Mediterranean studies.

Al Jadid

The masterful culmination of years of research by a world expert on Alexandria…. Halim…introduces Egyptian writers, such as Edwar Al-Kharrat and Ibrahim Abdel Meguid, into the previously predominantly European dialogue.

Banipal

Hala Halim's book is a provocative and erudite study of the modern European literary discourses that have constructed Alexandria as the exemplary site of what we might call cosmopolitan desire.

Arab Studies Journal

Alexandrian Cosmopolitanism is a treasure trove of information and original, groundbreaking critical insights not only on four important authors of world literature, but also on a city which is as versatile and inspiring as Venice, for instance, with its uniqueness, literary aspect, and history.

Comparative Literature Studies

The strength of this work lies in Halim's ability to offer a much-needed postcolonial critique on the ubiquitous literary trope of Alexandrians, as a cosmopolitan city.

International Journal of Middle East Studies - Mara Naaman

“This book is firmly in the postcolonial mode, and on a topic that is both ti mely and important. As Egypt and other countries in the Middle East begin a political journey that takes them further and further out of the control of Western political institutions, it is essential to have nuanced studies that allow us to begin to understand how we (as Western writers and thinkers) have created comfortable spaces for certain non-western elites while excluding others.

Stanford University - Susan Stephens

"This is a superbly researched and clearly (and powerfully) written study of a series of works devoted to one of the world’s most fabled and fascinating cities, Alexandria, all within the overarching theme of 'cosmopolitanism.' In a word, it is an excellent exercise in rigorous comparative literature scholarship."—Roger Allen, University of Pennsylvania

University of Pennsylvania - Roger Allen

…a key reference for studies of Alexandria.

Canadian Review of Comparative Literature

The institution of Orientalist categories—and the new understanding of history through which these categories are given—set the terms for what came to be rendered as literary history, Arabic and others, and one legacy of this setting of terms is imparted through “the discourse of Alexandrian cosmopolitanism,” which Hala Halim considers in her stunning intervention Alexandrian Cosmopolitanism: An Archive.

Journal of Arabic Literature