The Vanishing of the Public Intellectual
Public intellectuals no longer exist, argues Moustafa Bayoumi; they have been ursurped by "influencers."
Category: Essays
Edward Said: Writing in the Service of Life
Academic and novelist Layla AlAmmar interrogates her life's creative and scholarly achievements against the teachings of Edward Said.
Editors’ Picks: Public Intellectuals
The editors of The Markaz Review made the difficult choice of selecting just two of their go-to public intellectuals.
The Contemporary Literary Scene in Iran
Salar Abdoh reports from Tehran on the beauty and complexity of Iranian literature that thrives despite warring factions.
In and Between Languages: Writing on the Fault Line
Nektaria Anastasiadou writes about her decision to pen her works using the historically fractured language of the Istanbul dialect of Greek.
The Task of the Public Intellectual? Translation
Deborah Kapchan calls for public intellectuals who can speak in many registers amidst the rise of attacks on intellectualism everywhere.
Why Fawwaz Traboulsi?
Twenty years ago, argues Amal Ghandour, it would have been Edward Said. It’s Traboulsi, his best translator, in 2023.
Fairouz: The Peacemaker and Champion of Palestine
In her new book, Dima Issa argues that the influence of Lebanese vocal artist Fairouz on the Arab diaspora has been profound.
Alaa Abd El-Fattah: Political Prisoner and Public Intellectual
Yasmine Al Rashidi on writer-thinker Alaa Abdel Fattah who advocates for the rights of those without platforms to campaign for themselves.
Donkeys and Mules—Motors of the High Atlas Mountains
Aomar Boom describes the centrality of donkeys and mules to life in the unforgiving earthquake-shattered terrain of the High Atlas Mountains.
Disaster and Language—the Disarticulation of Seismic Pain in Tamazight
Brahim El Guabli argues that Morocco's disaster survivors must be able to communicate in their mother tongue.
Memory Art: Water and Islands in the Work of Hera Büyüktaşçıyan
Arie Amaya-Akkermans does a deep dive into the fascinating career of Istanbul-born Greek Armenian artist Hera Büyüktaşçıyan.