I am a book-worm, and I do enjoy the company of a good book. Nowadays, with modern technology and all the online books available, access to information has become easier than ever before.
Yet, and however useful and hands-on having all these books at our fingertip may be, nothing equals the joy of the physical contact with a book, having a book in one's lap, especially in a place under the sun or by the beach in just out of this world.
Today, in modern day Tunisia, the picture is slightly different, in that one can hardly spot a peson holding or reading a book for purposes other that taking a test. Newspapers, however, seem to have the lion's share.
The thing is that those daring to take a book and read it out there are in most cases looked at with disgust by others. I remember when I was teaching at secondary school and when I happened to be in the staff room having a go at some novel; and most of my colleagues, derisively asking me why on earth did I still read. You have a job now!! So what is the point???!!!
What makes me sad is that books no longer have their reveered place in the minds and hearts of the vast majority of people. We always come by newspaper articles speaking about how cultured the Tunisian citizen is, but the thing some of us tend to forget is that Tunisians read a lot, yes, but they read newspapers in the first place, especially the footbal sections. No grudge against sports!!!
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Proposed translation
With the hectic life I lead it took me some time to translate the text into Arabi. This is my own trnaslation, which is, of course, not the best possible.
و اكتشفت بعد فترة وجيزة أنّ صفة "ضخم" لم تكن لتفيه حقّه، فجسد ابن آفين، الذي هو عبارة عن فوضى من كتل اللحم المتراكم فوق بعض، كان أشبه بنصب تذكاري. تردّدت في الاقتراب منه حينما قابلته عينيا لأوّل وهلة و هو جالس على أريكة في بهو الفندق فلم أكن قد قابلت في حياتي شخصا في مثل ضخامته.
كان واحدا من ذوي الأجساد البدينة الذين قد تصادفهم أحيانا في الزحام، و الذين لا يمكنك، مهما حاولت، أن تمنع عيناك من النظر إليهم حيث كان جباّرا في بدانته، فالاضمحلال هو الشعور الطاغي عليك حين ترى انتفاخ و استدارة جسده.
و اكتشفت بعد فترة وجيزة أنّ صفة "ضخم" لم تكن لتفيه حقّه، فجسد ابن آفين، الذي هو عبارة عن فوضى من كتل اللحم المتراكم فوق بعض، كان أشبه بنصب تذكاري. تردّدت في الاقتراب منه حينما قابلته عينيا لأوّل وهلة و هو جالس على أريكة في بهو الفندق فلم أكن قد قابلت في حياتي شخصا في مثل ضخامته.
كان واحدا من ذوي الأجساد البدينة الذين قد تصادفهم أحيانا في الزحام، و الذين لا يمكنك، مهما حاولت، أن تمنع عيناك من النظر إليهم حيث كان جباّرا في بدانته، فالاضمحلال هو الشعور الطاغي عليك حين ترى انتفاخ و استدارة جسده.
Monday, January 14, 2008
A text to translate
This is a passage I like. Please feel free to contribute with anything
you like. I will provide my own translation in the few coming days
but please feel free to contribute with anything you see fit, even
unfinished senteneces.
As I soon discovered, the word “big” hardly did justice to him. Effing’s son was immense, monumental in his bulk, a pandemonium of flesh heaped upon flesh. I had never met anyone of his dimensions before, and when I first spotted him sitting on a couch in the hotel lobby, I hesitated to approach him. He was one of those monstrous fat men you sometimes pass in a crowd: no matter how hard you struggle to avert your eyes, you can’t help gawking at him. He was titanic in his obesity, a person of such bulging, protrusive roundness that you could not look at him without feeling yourself shrink.
Paul Auster, Moon Palace, p. 235. 1989 edition printed by Clays Ltd
you like. I will provide my own translation in the few coming days
but please feel free to contribute with anything you see fit, even
unfinished senteneces.
As I soon discovered, the word “big” hardly did justice to him. Effing’s son was immense, monumental in his bulk, a pandemonium of flesh heaped upon flesh. I had never met anyone of his dimensions before, and when I first spotted him sitting on a couch in the hotel lobby, I hesitated to approach him. He was one of those monstrous fat men you sometimes pass in a crowd: no matter how hard you struggle to avert your eyes, you can’t help gawking at him. He was titanic in his obesity, a person of such bulging, protrusive roundness that you could not look at him without feeling yourself shrink.
Paul Auster, Moon Palace, p. 235. 1989 edition printed by Clays Ltd
Friday, January 4, 2008
Translation
I have have been cherishing, for some time now, the idea of translating some literary texts into Arabic and putting them on this blog, and then inviting others to contribute to my work with their suggestions. My aim is to bring people together and to do something for the betterment of all of us.
I think novels would be a good start and I have been juggling several titles, butI have to admit that a decision on which novel to start with is not easy to make. I believe I have to start with something I like, something I go on doing even when I am not in the mood. I read Moon Palace two years ago and I may start with an extract from it.
I think novels would be a good start and I have been juggling several titles, butI have to admit that a decision on which novel to start with is not easy to make. I believe I have to start with something I like, something I go on doing even when I am not in the mood. I read Moon Palace two years ago and I may start with an extract from it.
Monday, December 17, 2007
Tuesday, December 4, 2007
Merry Christmas
Merry Christmas to all Christians!!
I hope this is an opportunity for people coming from different religions to celibrate the values cheriched and preached by Jesus Christ.
As a muslim I must believe in Jesus as a messenger sent by God for the best of All humanity.
With due respect to him, and to all other messengers; and with due respect to all religions and to all people all over the world. MERRY CHRISTMAS.
Thursday, November 29, 2007
Personal experience in the London underground
A few months ago, I was boarding the London tube from Brixton to my daily destination: the British Library which is at a walkable distance from King's Cross. Everything was OK untill we got at Green Park station. What happened was that when the tube stopped, everybody around me started to run away. It took me a few seconds to understand what was going on because I was fully immersed in a book. The tube carriage was all smoke. We all thought that it was an attack, similar to that of July the 7th. I was not sure if any explanations were given on the causes of what happened but the thing I was sure of was that nothing was said on any of the TV channels I watched that night.
Immediately after that and for my whole stay in London, I could easily notice the tense faces at all the tube carriages I happened to get on board. The fear that something was about to happen, that a bomb would explode any second; and you start thinking about whether or not you are going to listen to the expolsion before you die. I was wondering what would happen in that fraction of a second between the bomb blowing and me being killed.
That horrendous experience was enough to fully understand the feelings of the British people in the aftermath of July the 7th. Now, it was not something I watched on TV or read in the papers; now it was me facing death. Now, It was me grabbing hold of my heavy bag and running away from the tube wagon which could blow up any second. Now, It was me being dogged by death and trying to jump the station rolling stairs in one step without being certain that all would be well there where I was going. Now, It was me, a muslim trying not to get killed in the London underground. Time to understand that, regardless of our differences, we all have to live together- in peace. Please enough with pointing fingers. One cannot blame relgions for what some might have done. Islam never preached violence but there are black sheep everywhere, in every religion. I hope those black sheep cease to exist, not with the gun and the bomb, but with the word. You cannot fight violence with more violence; we all know that violence begets violence. But with the word, understanding, tolerance, respect, and also with the ability and courage to see and acknowledge one's failings, for the best of all of us.
Immediately after that and for my whole stay in London, I could easily notice the tense faces at all the tube carriages I happened to get on board. The fear that something was about to happen, that a bomb would explode any second; and you start thinking about whether or not you are going to listen to the expolsion before you die. I was wondering what would happen in that fraction of a second between the bomb blowing and me being killed.
That horrendous experience was enough to fully understand the feelings of the British people in the aftermath of July the 7th. Now, it was not something I watched on TV or read in the papers; now it was me facing death. Now, It was me grabbing hold of my heavy bag and running away from the tube wagon which could blow up any second. Now, It was me being dogged by death and trying to jump the station rolling stairs in one step without being certain that all would be well there where I was going. Now, It was me, a muslim trying not to get killed in the London underground. Time to understand that, regardless of our differences, we all have to live together- in peace. Please enough with pointing fingers. One cannot blame relgions for what some might have done. Islam never preached violence but there are black sheep everywhere, in every religion. I hope those black sheep cease to exist, not with the gun and the bomb, but with the word. You cannot fight violence with more violence; we all know that violence begets violence. But with the word, understanding, tolerance, respect, and also with the ability and courage to see and acknowledge one's failings, for the best of all of us.
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