Batahir, Bin Eissa. “Islamic Literature and its Critique in the Thought of Shaykh Abdul Hassan Al-Nadawi,” Year 3, Issue 12 (Spring 1418-1419 AH/ 1998 CE), Pp. 99-131.

Abstract

Bin Eissa Batahir discusses the concept of Islamic literature in the thought of Shaykh Abdul Hassan al-Nadawi, including its function, relationship with entertainment, and the contribution of literature to civilization. He analyzes the literature of travel in the writings of al-Nadawi’s two books, Memoirs of a Tourist in the Arab East and Two Weeks in the Far Maghrib. He then discusses al-Nadawi's views on literature critique, the ta’ṣīl (framework established upon referral to principal Islamic sources) of Islamic critique, its function, and the characteristics of a Muslim critic, explaining that critique is a means not an end in itself, and the impact of values on critique. He also presents practical examples of critique in poetry by Jalal al-Din Rumi and Muhammad Iqbal, and in prose, concluding with the global outlook of Islamic literature and critique in the thought of Shaykh al-Nadawi.