by Chris Hitchcock
This research paper offers an insightful window into the late Ottoman era by exploring the intersection of politics and literature represented in the works of the poet Ma’rūf al-Ruṣāfī.Loyal to the idea of a cosmopolitan Ottoman polity, incipient Arab nationalism, and Turkish republicanism, al-Ruṣāfī illustrates the complexities and flexibility of Middle Eastern national identity in the early twentieth century. Hitchcock’s use of literature as a means to reflect on political identity not only contributes to a growing scholarship on the criticism of the historiography of the Ottoman period, but also offers new possibilities for research beyond Ottoman studies by challenging limited interpretations of the nation and preferred forms of government.
Oxford Middle East Review 