Arab literary culture is steeped in a long-standing history of the fantastic; the upsurge in Arabic-speaking countries in the production of speculative and science fiction, however, is a decidedly more recent phenomenon. While a plethora of academics concur with Vahid Behmadi’s claim that “forms of the genre known in academia as proto-Sci-Fi have been present in the [sic] Arab culture since the middle ages” (qtd. in Mucci,
LA Review of Books), writers and critics are now turning their attention to the many contemporary Arab authors engaging with themes and tropes of science fiction, fantasy, and surrealism. Ahmed Khaled Towfik’s prolific publishing career both precedes this contemporary rise of Arab science fiction and is a critical component of it. Having begun publishing…
2092 words
Citation: Murphy, Sinéad. "Ahmed Khaled Towfik". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 07 July 2016 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=13666, accessed 23 November 2024.]