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Approaches to Teaching the Works of Naguib Mahfouz EDS. WAÏL HASSAN AND SUSAN MUADDI DARRAJ New York: Modern Language Associat ion of America, 2012. viii + 226 pp. ISBN 9781603291095 paper.
With its 119th number, the MLA's series on approaches to teaching world literature finally includes a volume on Arabic literature. That this volume is dedicated to Naguib Mafouz is a judicious choice. The Egyptian author is possibly the most often taught Arab writer, not only because he is a seminal figure of Arabic literature, but also because his reception of the 1988 Nobel Prize for Literature was followed by an increased awareness of his works among students and scholars who may not specialize in-or even be familiar with-the Middle East. Consequently, he often finds himself on various syllabi as the sole representative of the region, its language, and its literature. The stated purpose of this book, as indicated in its preface, is precisely to guide the introduction of the Egyptian author and his work into North American and European classrooms.
This is in concurrence with the overarching goal of the series, which is to collect within each volume a number of perspectives on teaching a particular work or author widely assigned at the undergraduate level. In this case, the editors of the volume on Mahfouz offer a collection of outlooks that may assist the addition of a Mahfouz work to a survey course, or even the development of an entire seminar on the author, a decidedly feasible endeavor given...