Humanism in the poetry of Mahmoud Hasan Ismail

This thesis sheds light on an important aspect in the poetry of the Egyptian poet Mahmoud Hasan Ismail, namely the humanitarian side which characterized his poetry over successive phases.Despite the fact that our poet was subject of several studies both in the present and in the past, none of these studies was dedicated to “humanism” which the researcher believes was a prominent characteristic of his poetry. This characteristic was present in different situations and scenes through the contents he presented reflecting a close connection to his very experience over more than four decades. Therefore, this study starts with a general introduction about Mahmoud Hasan Ismail and his creative experience. Chapter one will then address the meaning and ideological and philosophical roots of the term “humanism”. After that, the researcher discusses samples of poetry summarizing the major aspects of humanism in the modern Arab poetry. Chapter two focuses on this genre in Ismail’s poetry where he demonstrated his humanitarian feeling in a number of notions, particularly glorification of human and spiritual values. These values determine how human a human being is, and they set the ideals of human community where goodness, love, and virtue are dominant and evils and grudges are avoided.The second notion the poet demonstrated was supporting the marginalized peasants who represent, in his opinion, a major pillar of society and inseparable element of the nation as an entity in its struggle for independence and freedom. Ismail’s third notion was Pan-Arabism which he preached and defended as he believed it was a noble project at the Arab and Islamic level which should unite the Arab nation and close ranks to counter the hardships and challenges it faces. This leads us to the fourth notion, the question of Palestine and the necessity to support the Palestinian revolution just as other revolutions of peoples looking forward to gaining freedom. The fifth notion, where the poet demonstrates “humanism”, is alienation and its consequences which include yearning, pain, bewilderment, worry, rebelliousness, and anger amongst other feelings he experienced and as a result adopted several attitudes towards humans, life, the universe, and existence. In chapter three, the researcher reveals the major artistic components and methodological techniques which Mahmoud Hasan Ismail adopted to express ٚ his “humanism”. These included the poetic dictionary, poetic figure, symbol, semiotics in titles, intertextuality, and repetition which will be spotlighted in selected samples from his numerous works. In the conclusion, the researcher presents the major results he reached about the poet in terms of his subjects and methods as well as recommendations hoping to present a clear vision about “humanism” in the poetry of Mahmoud Hasan Ismail