SOURCE: Mikhail, Mona N. “Existential Themes in a Traditional Cairo Setting.” In Naguib Mahfouz: From Regional Fame to Global Recognition, edited by Michael Beard and Adnan Haydar, pp. 81-94. Syracuse, N.Y.: Syracuse University Press, 1993.

In the following essay, Mikhail delineates the relationship between existentialism and Arab thought in Mahfouz's short fiction.

The relationship between existentialism and Arab thought has been investigated by several Western and Arab philosophers. A summary of the findings of one of the foremost spokespersons of Arab existentialism, ‘Abd al-Rahman Badawi, will help us to understand its manifestation in contemporary literature in general and particularly the works of Naguib Mahfouz.

Badawi has discussed the striking affinities between traditional Islamic philosophy and modern existentialism.¹ He addresses himself to the complex question of whether a Muslim thinker can be an existentialist within his own cultural tradition. His brilliant study, al-Insaniyya wa al-wujudiyya fi al-fikr al-‘Arabi...