Dr. Muhsin Al-Musawi

Iraq/United States

Dr. Muhsin J. Al-Musawi (Iraq/USA) is Professor of classical and modern Arabic literature, comparative and cultural studies at Columbia University, New York. A renowned scholar and literary critic, his teaching and research interests span several periods and genres. Professor al-Musawi is the author of thirty-nine books (including 6 novels) and over sixty scholarly articles, most recently Arabic Disclosures: The Postcolonial Autobiographical Atlas (University of Notre Dame Press, 2022). He also wrote the Introduction and Notes to the Barnes & Noble Classics Edition of The Arabian Nights. Professor al-Musawi is the editor of the Journal of Arabic Literature, the foremost academic journal in the field of Arabic literature. He is the recipient of the 2002 Owais Award in Literary Criticism, the 2018 Kuwait Prize in Arabic Language and Literature, and the 2022 King Faisal International Prize for Arabic Literature in English.

About The Book

This serious academic book discusses the profound influences the tales of "One Thousand and One Nights" have had on modern-day global cultures. Muhsin al-Musawi provides a deep and ingenious analysis of the intellectual visions in the tales of "One Thousand and One Nights" and their authentic narrative techniques for poets, novelists, critics, and intellectuals in the West. He also addresses the way Arab nights have been translated, the attempts to reimagine them in new cultural contexts, and the understanding, conveyance, and recruitment difficulties faced. The author's insightful readings are not limited to the presence of "One Thousand and One Nights" in traditional genres but go beyond that to analyze its influences in music, paintings, visual arts, films of various kinds, and political and digital spaces. In this book, Al-Musawi chooses the most important tales of "One Thousand and One Nights," such as Shahrazad and Shahrayar, Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves, Aladdin and the Magic Lamp, and the famous Sindbad the Sailor, and analyzes their profound impact on contemporary global cultures. Furthermore, the book reveals the spirit of the scientific researcher, which combines deep analysis, clear thought, and coherent method.

Published: 2021