The Intellectual Discourse of Interwar Egypt

At a time when the post-Arab Spring Middle East is permeated with political turmoil, extremism and violence, Dr. Giora Eliraz invites readers to join a refreshing intellectual journey back in time to the years of interwar Egypt. Dr. Eliraz sheds light on a fascinating, colourful chapter in the modern intellectual history of Egypt, a country that has been commonly known as a center of gravity for the Arab world.

The exuberant discourse of Egyptian intellectuals of the interwar period is examined through several main themes: navigating between tradition and change with an emphasis on limits for cultural borrowing from the West; the debate on women’s status and their rights; and the debate on linguistic reform. The book also exposes Egypt’s distinctive function as an impressive “peripheral actor” within the arena of early Western-oriented globalization of ideas.