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Article: Beyond the notion of influence: notes toward an alternative.(Comaparative Literature: States of the Art.)
- Article from:
- World Literature Today
- Article date:
- March 22, 1995
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1995 University of Oklahoma. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Writing in 1936,(1) the Syrian/Lebanese Arab critic and author Khalil al-Hindawi (1906- 76) - who was the first to introduce the term comparative literature (al-'Adab al-Muqaran) into the Arabic language - refers to the Arab philosopher 'Abu al-Walid 'Ibn Rushd (known in the West as Averroes) as a pioneer comparatist in classical Arab culture. According to him, the Arab engagement with comparative literature, or what the French call "litterature comparee," goes as far back as Averroes (1126-98) and his commentary on the Poetics of Aristotle. Yet Arabs' interaction with Aristotle and other Greek philosophers goes back even further than the philosopher of Cordoba. In addition ...