Al-Rbiah al-Qalamyah, 1916

Author(s): Richard Alan Popp

Source: Journal of Arabic Literature, Vol. 32, No. 1 (2001), pp. 30-52
Published by: BRILL
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 AL-RABITAH AL-QALAMIYAH, 1916

That a small band of like-minded men formed a literary society in 1920

called al-Rabitah al-Qalamiyah (The Pen Bond) to promote Arabic literary
and linguistic goals is well-known; however, no scholarly work on this soci-
ety has addressed the history behind its formation, nor what role it was orig-
inally conceived to play before its formation, to the degree that it deserves.'
One would think that in order to understand better the mission of this soci-
ety, efforts would have been expended to uncover how it evolved and what
environment gave it life; yet, this has not been the case.2 Unfortunately,
those scholars who do delve into the history of the society's creation typi-
cally dig no deeper than Mikhail Naimy's [Mikha'il Nu'aymah] autobiogra-
phy and accept unconditionally his statement that it was he who conceived
of the society and he who determined its "raison d'etre."3
But, it must be stated here firmly that Naimy's assertion is only partly
true regarding the establishing of the society's goals and an overstatement
regarding its conception. For although it is true that Naimy composed al-
Rabitah's 1920 statement of purpose, in point of fact his conception of what
the society's goals should be, like that of everyone else present in Kahlil
Gibran's [Jibran Khalil Jibran] studio on those two nights, was based upon
the society's earlier 1916 formation, in which Naimy had little or no input.
Little has been written about al-Rabitah al-Qalamiyah's earlier formation,
but it first became an official society in 1916, publishing its members' works
in both al-Funuin and al-Sd'ih. This formation is beyond doubt, since on the

The only monograph found devoted to the topic of al-Rabitah al-Qalamiyah was:
Muhammadal-Din al-Sayyid,Al-Rdbitahal-Qalamiyahwa-Dawruhdfi al-Naqd al-'Arahial-
Hadith(The Pen Bond and Its Role in ContemporaryArabCriticism)(Cairo:al-Majlisal-A'la
li-Ri'ayatal-Fununwa-al-Adabwa-al-'Ulumal-Ijtima'iyah,1972), which does not presentany
new informationon the topic of its formation.
2 This short paperwill not delve into the environmentthat gave birthto al-Rabitah,nor to
the themes and literarygenres that it pursued.Rather,this paperwill present the facts that
prove al-Rabitahwas formed in 1916 and the reasonsfor its formation.
3 Mikha'il Nu'aymah [Mikhail Naimy], Sab'tin (Seventy), 3 vols. (Beirut: Mu'assasat
Nawfal, 1983) 2:56. Regardingthose who have acceptedNaimy's statement,see for example
Nadeem Naimy, Mikhail Naimy: An Introduction(Beirut: American University of Beirut,
1967), p. 121 and Nadirah Jamil al-Sarraj, Nasib 'Aridah: al-Sha'ir al-Katib al-Suhufi:
Dirdsah Muqdranah(Nasib 'Aridah:The Poet, The Writer,The Journalist:A Comparative
Study) (Misr:Dar al-Ma'arif,1970), pp. 31-32.

Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, 2001 Journal of Arabic Literature,XXXII,I

 AL-RABITAH AL-QALAMIYAH, 1916 31

one hand it published its own statement of purpose in al-Sd'ih, and on the
other hand each of its nine members signed his name as "A Member of al-
Rabitah al-Qalamiyah" ('Udw fl al-Rabitah al-Qalamiyah), thereby indicat-
ing his membership in the society during the brief course of its existence,
which extended from May 4, 1916 to September 1916.4
Without the publication of a statement of purpose one could perhaps
claim that it was not a real or an official society, but the fact remains that
a month after its formation the society published the statement. One may
argue, too, that the author of this earlier 1916 "manifesto," Amin Mushriq,
did not outline the society's by-laws and membership affiliations nor elabo-
rate upon its goals as precisely as Mikhail Naimy, who had a legal educa-
tion, did in 1920, thereby negating its validity as a statement of purpose.
However, the young Amin Mushriq, who was only 18 when he wrote it, did
emphasize that the society's main goal was the rejuvenation of the Arabic
language-the same goal that the 1920 formation attempted to achieve and
that Naimy repeated throughout his life whenever he discussed al-Rabitah.5
What is important and proves its validity beyond doubt is that some sim-
ilarities can be seen between the 1916 statement of purpose and that of
1920, which prove a continuity of thought and purpose between the two for-
mations. In the 1916 statement of purpose, for example, Amin Mushriq said

4 See Amin Mushriq,"al-Rabitahal-Qalamiyah,"al-Sd'ih 5, no. 378 (June 29, 1916): 4-5

regardingthe statementof purposeof al-Rabitah.This statementis reproducedand translated
in AppendicesB and C. See Appendix A for a complete list of works submittedto either
al-Fununor al-Sd'ihwith the label "A Memberof al-Rabitahal-Qalamiyah."Each of the fol-
lowing writersbelongedto the 1916 formationof al-Rabitah:Nasib 'Aridah,Ilyas 'AtAAllah,
RashidAyyfub,WilliamCatzeflis,KahlilGibran,'Abd al-MasihHaddad,NadrahHadded,Amin
Mushriqand Amin al-Rihani.It is unclearwhethertherewas a tenth memberor not, since one
submission was signed "One of al-Rabitah's Members."Seven of these nine writers later
became "Workers"in al-Rabitah's1920 formation.The two writerswho did not partakein
the 1920 formationwere Amin Mushriqand Amin al-Rihani,whose places were filled by
Wadi' Bahut, Iliya Abf Madi and MikhailNaimy.
5 See Mikhail Naimy, Kahlil Gibran: A Biography (New York: Philosophical Library,
1985), pp. 154-5 and al-Rabitahal-Qalamiyah,Pamphlet,"Al-Rabitahal-Qalamiyah,New
York, 1920," (The Pen Bond, New York, 1920) (New York: The Syrian-AmericanPress,
1920) Nasib 'AridahPapers,Dr. RobertHaddad.In addition,Amin Mushriqstatedthat mem-
bershipwas by invitationonly, ratherthan subscription,which was similarto the membership
policy of the 1920 formationtoo. Not every writer could become a memberof the society.
This may explainfurtherwhy Amin al-Rihaniwas not a memberof the 1920-1931 al-Rabitah,
since on the one hand he was abroadand not physicallypresentin New York City, while on
the other hand he never received an invitationto be a memberor even a correspondantto al-
Rabitah.
As for not being invited to be a full member while outside New York City, al-Rihaini
was not alone in this situationeither, for Ni'mah al-Hafijj
contributedgreatly to al-Sd'ih and
visited New Yorkfrequently,however,he was neverinvitedto be a full memberof al-Rabitah,
in large partbecause of his residencein NorthCarolina.Yet al-Hajj,as opposed to al-Rihani,
submittedmaterialas a correspondant.
32 AL-RABITAH AL-QALAMiYAH, 1916

the Arabic language was not a god to be worshipped; neither was it mori-
bund to the degree that it could not express the feelings and aspirations of
its people. Rather, the Arabic language was a living entity that unfortunately
had been thrown into a sea of indolence after its age of radiant florescence,
the age of al-Andalus (Islamic Spain).
According to the Statement, this abandonment had occurred due to two
factors, that of a resurgent Europe and that of the Turks' entrance into the
Arab world in order to spread their power and language. Of the two, the
role that the Turks played in hastening the decline of the Arabic language
was greater than that of Europe, since the Turks knew how to ensure their
control over the Arab Nation, which was to separate and control each of its
different communities. They worked to loosen the linguistic bond that con-
nected Christians with Muslims and each of the various sectarian groups
within both communities in order to promote the separation of the different
religious communities, by which they could then control the region as a
whole.
In this statement of purpose, what Mushriq asserted needed to be done to
counter the Turkish "authority" was to restore the Arabic language to its
past glory so that the chains strangling the Arab Nation could then be bro-
ken. A choice had to be made between two paths to accomplish that restora-
tion, however. The first path, and the one that the new al-Rabitah society
based itself upon, was that of the path of life. This path would "sift out"
those (i.e., the old guard) who continued past patterns at the expense of pro-
moting the evolution of new linguistic ideals that would liberate Arabs from
their passivity. The second path was that of the path of death, which repre-
sented the continuation of what had gone on under the Turks without
thought to the future.
The main intent of the 1916 statement of purpose, however, as in 1920,
was to proclaim to the Arabic-speaking world several Arab-American writ-
ers' readiness to work as a unified group to confront the "old guard," those
who promoted the "path of death," so that the Arabic language could be
roused from its inertia. They aimed at providing Arabic-speakers a new
vision of themselves. Interestingly, however, this 1916 statement differed
from the latter on only one major point: it addressed more directly the rights
of each writer to be the master of his work rather than an instrument that
the owners of the various Arab-American periodicals used to produce mate-
rial that flattered their subscribers.
This is the key distinction between the 1916 and 1920 formations of al-
Rabitah al-Qalamiyah, and what lends weight to the earlier assertion that the
society's original conception was not attributable solely to Naimy. This ear-
lier formation had as its underlying goal, in addition to its main goal of
rejuvenating the Arabic language, the creation of a writers' union that would
 AL-RABITAH AL-QALAMlYAH, 1916 33

work to promote the rights of its members to use the Arabic language as
they saw fit. The originators of this concept were Nasib 'Aridah and 'Abd
al-Masih Hadd5ad,because both wrote about the need for this writers' union
shortly before the 1916 formation.6 Both called for a union that promoted
literature that would benefit the Arab-American community, in addition to
affording its members the power of numbers to stand up to individual pub-
lishers in demanding their rights. Writers within the field of Arab-American
journalism, as in the Arab world, were rarely paid for their works, or if they
were paid, the amount was inconsequential. Most publishers considered the
fame that individual writers received from their works sufficient payment.
Gibran, who had the largest readershipduring this time, was rarely paid for his
submissions, and when he was, not in any amount on which he could survive.
'Aridah and Haddad differed slightly, however, regardinghow they promoted
the union's orientation: 'Aridah advocated a purely literary union, whereas
Haddad called for a more journalistic-based one. 'Aridah wanted a union
composed of those who were true literati because he feared that writers with-
out clear literary goals might fall into the trap of political bickering and pos-
turing. His experience with "SuiriyaHurrah"(Free Syria), an Arab-American
association devoted to an independent Syria and Lebanon under French pro-
tection, had taught him this could very likely happen, which would destroy
any chance of success the union could accomplish.7 In 'Aridah's opinion,
members of the union should be solely concerned with their literary goals,
leaving to the organization the duty of safeguarding each member's rights
and imposing upon each writer the duty of not wasting his or her writings
by publishing them in periodicals without recompense. His concern was for
the development of Arabic literature and its genres, which he undoubtedly
believed to be vehicles for social reform. He saw it as important, further-
more, that each writer be able to exchange his or her ideas freely with oth-
ers in the union so that they did not work in isolation due to distance or
political ideology; for by working in isolation, each writer was empowered
only by the factor of one, whereas in a union each received the mutual sup-
port of his or her fellows that all writers need.8

6
'Aridahwrote to Naimy the first week of March 1916 about the possible creationof a
writers' union in the near future,while Haddadwrote about it in al-Sa'ih the last week of
March1916.See Naimy,Sab'un,2:56,regarding'Aridah'sconceptionand'Abdal-MasihHaddad,
"al-Sih.fah al-Suiriyahfi Amirika,"(Syrian-AmericanJournalismin America)al-Sd'ih 4, no.
351 (March27, 1916): 1-2 for Haddad'sconceptionof a writers'union.
7 Naimy, Sab'un, 2:55.
8 See 'Abd al-Masih Haddad,Intibd'dtMughtarib Suiriyah(Impressionsof an tmigr6 in
fi
Syria) (Damascus: Wizarat al-Thaqafahwa-al-Irshadal-Qawmi, Mudiriyatal-Ta'lif wa-al-
Tarjamah,1962), p. 154 regardinghis estimationthat each of al-Rabitah'smembersshared
similar inclinations and that they needed each other, and Naimy, Sab'iun,2:55 regarding
Nasib's opinion of the power writersgatherwhen they join together.
34 AL-RABITAH AL-QALAMIYAH, 1916

-Haddad'sconception of a writers' union differedonly slightly from that

of 'Aridah. He agreed completely with 'Aridah in principle that what the
Arab-Americancommunityneeded were literatiwho did not imitatethe past
and who could supply theircommunitywith materialthat representedit his-
torically,culturally,scientifically,socially, politicallyand spiritually,in addi-
tion to receiving just recompense. However, what he conceived of as a
writers' union was more in keeping with the currentstate of Europeanand
American journalism, which mirrored the forward-looking spirit of the
nations they represented.Haddadfelt that Arab-Americanliteratishould be
more socially active in theirworks, as Westernjournalistswere. In his esti-
mation, Arab-Americanjournalismwas merely an instrumentfor publishing
either news or letters (i.e., editorials)that praisedor blamed others;it was
not, as he implied European and American journalism was, motivated
toward or capable of promotinga real literaturethat developed its readers'
ability to understandthe world beyond their immediateconcern.It was the
achievementof a socially active Arab-Americanjournalismthat Haddadfelt
would develop a sense of common purposebetweenmembersof the various
sectarian communities. Haddad wanted a more overt social agenda than
'Aridah,whose literaryorientedvision may have been too subtlefor his liking.
To a degree,both'Aridah'sandHaddad'ssenseof commonpurposeexpressed
itself via a "union of writers"before the first formationof al-Rabitah.Even
before the first submissionpublishedwith the identification"A Memberof
al-Rabitahal-Qalamiyah"after the author'sname appearedin May 1916, a
series of materialwas publishedin al-Sd'ih titled "Ta'ifatal-Udaba'"(The
LiteratiSect).9This series, thoughnot representativeof the breadthof works
al-Rabitahproduced, attempted.to confront the sectarianfactionalism that
was raging in the Arab-Americancommunityand to unify the community.
It appearsfrom a review of al-Sd'ih's subsequentissues that this series had
a positive impact upon the communityand may have acted as an encour-
agement to 'Aridahand the others to form al-Rabitahofficially.In this light,
al-Rabitahwas representativeof a group of individualsthat the community
looked to as its leaders, those who could unite the various sects for the
common good.
Still, one may say that specific thoughtsof al-Rabitahal-Qalamiyah,as
opposed to a writers' union, did not begin until Naimy suggested them. In
response to this, one can only point out that Naimy lived in Walla Walla,

9 See Rashid Ayyfb, "Ara' al-Udaba' wa-Kiram al-Jaliyah fi Masa'il al-Ta'ifiyah al-
Haliyah al-Hammah," (The Opinions of the Community's Literati and Leaders concerning the
Current Important Issues of Sectarianism) al-Sa'ih 4, no. 263 (May 17, 1915): 1; and Wilyam
Katsiflis [William Catzeflis], "Ta'ifat al-Udaba'," 3 parts al-Sd'ih 4, no. 350 (March 23, 1916):
1-2; 4 no. 353 (April 3, 1916): 4; and 4, no. 355 (April 10, 1916): 4-5.
 AL-RABITAH 1916
AL-QALAMIYAH, 35

Washington,as a student,supportedby his brothers,far from the hustle and

bustle of New York City life. He did not have to worry about paying rent,
finding employmentor dealing with publisherswho believed that it was not
their responsibilityto pay writersfor their work. His conceptionof an "al-
Rabitah al-Qalamiyah"in 1916 was at the most philosophical and at the
least theoretical,since he had no practicalexperience in the field of publi-
cation and did not know first-handthe difficulties that his fellow writers
faced when they submittedtheir works to publicationsother than al-Funun
and al-Sd'ih. His contactwith the process of publicationwas limited to sub-
mitting material to either 'Aridahor Haddad,who in turn published it in
their periodicalsunaltered.10
Moreover,and herein lies the most importantproof of al-Rabitah'scon-
ception and evolution before Naimy, the 1916 creation of al-Rabitahal-
Qalamiyahwas more an expressionof the journal al-Funun than it was of
al-Sd'ih, despite the fact that the label "A Member of al-Rabitah al-
Qalamiyah"appearedequally in both periodicals.The type of materialal-
Rabitahpublishedin either periodicalmost representedthe general type of
literarymaterialthat al-Funuinincludedamong its pages-not the journalis-
tic materialone finds in a newspaper.Most of the materialal-Rabitahpub-
lished in 1916 was either poetry or short stories-only a few of its twenty
pieces were materialthat one would typically find in a newspaper,such as
essays. On the whole, the contentof Arab-Americannewspapersduringthis
period concerned each periodical's sectarian community, news from the
front lines of World War I and news from the homeland. Literaryworks
such as poems, much less shortstories, were viewed as secondarymaterial,
used when space allowed. Newspapers such as al-Muhdjir, which gave
Gibran his start, and al-Sd'ih were the exceptions rather than the rule.
Indeed, one can say without exaggerationthat the formationof al-Rabitah
in 1916, and later in 1920, was an expression of al-Funun's literary and

,0 Naimy, Sab'uin,2:56-57. Proof that al-Funuinand al-Sd'ih did not alter submittedmate-
rial can be seen in a comparisonof works submittedto al-Funtin,al-Sd'ih and al-Rabitah
al-Qalamiyah's1921 Collection,since the texts of common materialappearingin each publi-
cation matchwithoutalteration.See for example Samirah'Atiyah,"Jadwalal-Dam',"(Stream
of Tears) al-Funiin 3, no. 3 (October 1917): 173-4 and al-Sd'ih 6, no. 522 (December 10,
1917): 4; Jibran Khalil Jibran [Kahlil Gibran], "Ila al-Muslimin min Sha'ir Masihi," (To
Muslims from a ChristianPoet) al-Funtin1, no. 8 (November 1913): 37-39 and al-Sd'ih 2,
no. 120 (December 15, 1913): 1; Amin Mushriq, "al-Nafas al-Akhir,"(The Last Breath)
al-Funun 3, no. 8 (August 1918): 581-2 and al-Sd'ih 7, no. 615 (December 16, 1918): 5;
Mikha'il Nu'aymah [Mikhail Naimy], "Akhi," (My Comrade)al-Funtin 2, no. 10 (March
1917): 888-9, al-Sd'ih6, no. 457 (April23, 1917): 1-2 and Majmui'at al-Rdbitahal-Qalamiyah
li-Sanat 1921, pp. 27-28; and JibranKhalil Jibran [Kahlil Gibran], "al-Ard,"(The Land)
al-Funun3, no. 3 (October1917): 172 and Majma'atal-Rdbitahal-Qalamiyahli-Sanat1921,
p. 158.
36 AL-RABITAH AL-QALAMIYAH, 1916

social ideals as expressed in its pages and in its various statements of

purpose, since it was entirely devoted to literary material (albeit social lit-
erature) rather than news items. Therefore, credit for the conception of
al-Rabitah al-Qalamiyah on this basis must be given first to 'Aridah, then to
Haddad and finally to Naimy."1
Use of the label "A Member of al-Rabitah al-Qalamiyah" first appeared
in al-Sd'ih on May 4, 1916 and in al-Funuin with its June 1916 issue, the
first after a long interruption.'2 Appropriately, this label appeared in al-
Funuin attached to Gibran's poem "Ru'ya" (Vision), which promoted love,
rebellion and freedom, each of which were popular themes in the journal.'3
Other works that appeared in al-Funutn with "A Member of al-Rabitah al-
Qalamiyah" attached to them and which echoed these themes were
Haddad's short story "Athman ma Natharathu al-'Uyfin" (The Dearest of
that which the Eyes have Shed) that told the story of a mother's love for
her son; William Catzeflis' [Wilyam Katsiflis] "Min Mayyit Hayy ila Ahya'
Amwat" (From the Living Dead to the Living who are Dead), which was
allegedly written by an Armenian named Sarkis Aramyan and recounted a
dispute between the prophets Muhammad and Jesus, with the disciple Peter,
Abfu al-'Ala', Moliere and others joining in, too; and Amin al-Rihani's
"Budhur lil-Zari'in" (Seeds for the Planters), which discussed personal free-
dom as it related to women.14
It is necessary to note here that Amin al-Rihani was a member of the
1916 formation of al-Rabitah al-Qalamiyah. For whatever reason, be it due
to the fact that he was absent from New York City or due to a personal dis-
agreement with Gibran, as Naimy maintained, al-Rihani was not a member
of the 1920 formation of al-Rabitah; yet, it is beyond dispute that he
belonged to the 1916 formation, contributing a total of three works in which
he identifies himself as "A Member of al-Rabitah al-Qalamiyah."'5

" Naimy, Sab'un, 2:56-57. If one studies each of Naimy's nine suggestions to 'Aridah
regarding his conception of an "al-Rabitah al-Qalamiyah," one finds that each of the sugges-
tions presented by him echo al-Funtin's basic principles as expressed in its various statements
of purpose, from publishing works done by the best writers to presenting new forms of liter-
ature not previously seen in Arabic literature, in addition to translating works by European
writers and supporting a younger generation of writers so that they can develop their talents. If
any doubt remains that al-Rabitah al-Qalamiyah drew its influence from al-Funtin, a comparison
of al-Funun's statements of purpose with Naimy's suggestions will dispel those doubts.
12 See [Ilyas 'Ata Allah], "'Adad Ilyas 'Ata Allah: Yuharrir Hadha al-'Adad Ilyas 'Ata

Allah, 'Udw fi al-Rabitah al-Qalamiyah," (Ilyas 'Ata Allah's Issue: This issue edited by Ilyas
'Ata Allah, A Member of al-Rabitah al-Qalamiyah) al-Sd'ih 5, no. 362 (May 4, 1916): 3.
13
Jibran Khalil Jibran [Kahlil Gibran], "Ru'ya," al-Funun 2, no. I (June 1916): 1-3.
14
'Abd al-Masih Haddad, "Athman ma Natharathu al-'Uyun," al-Funuin 2, no. 3 (August
1916): 249-51; William Catzeflis, "Min Mayyit Hayy ila Ahya' Amwat," al-Funun 2, no. 1 (June
1916): 71; and Amin al-Rihani, "Budhiir lil-Z5ri'in," al-Funun 2, no. 2 (July 1916): 106-8.
15
Naimy, Sab'un, 2:173-4. As for al-Rihani's works signed as "A Member of al-Rabitah
 AL-RABITAH 1916
AL-QALAMiYAH, 37

Al-Rihani's relationship with al-Rabitah has been often depicted over

time as oppositional, as he has been regarded by some as an anti-Romantic
writer among a plethora of Romantics,16 one who preferred to promote his
political ideas more directly than his fellow Arab-American writers. How-
ever, this is not exactly true for two reasons, especially as it related to
the 1916 formation of al-Rabitah al-Qalamiyah. The first reason is that each
of his three works submitted as a member of al-Rabitah's 1916 formation
were similar in political tone to his fellow members' works. One must
remember that this period saw the unfolding of the Syrian famine crisis in
the pages of Arab-American periodicals, and the Arab-American community
was obviously concerned about what was happening back in the homeland.
It would be quite natural for readers to have expected a "political tone"
from the literary material of this period.
The second reason is that al-Rihani was never truly an anti-Romantic.
Those who have studied his works before and during this period will note
that Walt Whitman influenced much of his style, in addition to the influence
that the Symbolism and Transcendentalism movements exerted on him."7
One need only review al-Rihani's "Book of Khalid" to notice his spiritual
and sentimental tendencies. What al-Rihani, in fact, represented was a
highly motivated essayist, like those current in America's English-language
periodicals, whose true talent was social commentary. His poetry, though
passionate, expressed his concern for the social welfare of his homeland
more than it reflected his emotional soul, as was typical of the poetry of
'Aridah, Gibran, Naimy and others.
What is thought to have contributed to al-Rihani's "exclusion" from al-
Rabitah in 1920 was his sense of depression regarding Syria's state of
affairs after World War I. As he told Felix Faris on Feb. 20, 1920, shortly
before al-Rabitah's reformation, he felt confused about whether he should
stay in the United States or return to his homeland, whether he could do
something for it there rather than in the States, whose government he now
doubted.'8 He ultimately returned home to Lebanon, whence he began the
next stage of his writings, his travelogues.

al-Qalamiyah,"they are "Budhurlil-Zari'in,"al-Funun2, no. 2 (July 1916): 106-8; "Biladi,"

(My Country)al-Sd'ih 5, no. 368 (May 25, 1916): 4-5; and "Ghida'fi al-Tahuin,"(Food in
the Grinder)al-Sd'ih 5, no. 372 (June 8, 1916): 4. Of these three works, his work "Biladi"
was Arabizedfrom an English originalas stated in the essay's subtitle.
16 Shmuel Moreh,ModernArabic Poetry 1800-1970 (Leiden:E.J. Brill, 1976), p. 294.
17 See Ameen Rihani,"A SyrianSymbolist,"Papyrus5 (February1908): 18-22 regarding
the three books, one of which was by "the good Gray Poet of America,"that he took with
himto Lebanon,andWalterEdwardDunnaventIII,"AmeenRihaniin America:Transcendental-
ism in an Arab-AmericanWriter"(Ph.D. diss., IndianaUniversity,1991).
18Amin al-Rihani,Rasd'il Amin al-Rihdni, 1896-1940 (The Letters of Amin al-Rihani,
1896-1940)(Beirut:Dar Rihanilil-Tiba'ahwa-al-Nashr,1959), pp. 180-1.
38 AL-RABITAH AL-QALAMIYAH, 1916

Indeed, as Naimy stated, al-Rihani's absence from New York City did
contributeto his not being enrolled once again as an al-Rabitahmemberin
1920; however, his non-participation was more voluntarythan forced;it was
not a result of his opposition to Romanticism nor a disagreement with
Gibran,which is unproven.19 This is in contrastto the reasons for the dis-
solution of the 1916 al-Rabitah,which were the exclusion of Amin Mushriq
from its ranks shortly before Naimy came to New York City, and, accord-
ing to Haddad,the role of Najib Diyab.20
The term exclusion may be too harsh for what seems to have been
Mushriq'sbanishmentfrom al-Rabitah'sinner circle due to an ideological
difference of opinion between him and Naimy. The banishment,however,
was not total, since Mushriq continued to contribute to al-Sc'ih from
Ecuador and was even termed a "Correspondent"of al-Rabitah after its
reappearance.2'
This differenceof opinion began a year before the 1916 al-Rabitahwas
formed when Mushriq offered some personal observationsabout Naimy's
essay "Huquqal-Da'if" (The Rights of the Weak).22These observationscon-
cerned the role that great powers should play in the affairsof weaker coun-
tries. Naimy's initial essay in a series of nine exchangedbetween the two
men promotedthe idea that great powers had no business in the affairs of
weaker countries and consequently should leave them alone. His position
was that althoughthey had much to offer to the various weak countriesof

19 As for the 1916 formation, al-Rihani was an active participant/member and there is no
indication of any internal strife that would lead to the society's dissolution due to his partic-
ipation.
20 'Abd al-Karim al-Ashtar, Al-Nathr
al-Mahjari: Kuttdb al-Rdbitah al-Qalamiyah
(Emigrant Prose: The Writers of the Pen Bond) (Cairo: Matba'at Lajnat al-Ta'lif wa-al-
Tarjamah wa-al-Nashr, 1961), p. 27. 'Abd al-Masih stated that the 1916 formation dissolved
because Najib Diyab was a member whose ideas disagreed with those of the others regarding
the "ideas and feelings" of the group.
21 See "Al-Sd'ih al-Mumtaz," (al-Sa'ih's Special Edition) al-Sd'ih 10, no. 899 (January 12,

1922): 30. In addition to Amin, the following writers also had the label "A Correspondent of
al-Rabitah al-Qalamiyah" affixed to their names in this special edition, they were Rashid
Salim al-Khuri (al-Sha'ir al-Qarawi), Mayy [Ziyadahl and Ni'mah al-Hajj. This issue also car-
ried a photograph of the Damascus-based group "al-Rabitah al-Adabiyah" (The Literary
Bond), p. 16.
22 This exchange of essays began with Mikha'il Nu'aymah [Mikhail Naimy], "Huq(uqal-

Da'if," al-Sd'ih 3, no. 254 (April 15, 1915): 4-5, which was followed by Amin Mushriq's "Kalimah
fi Maqilah: Huqfq al-Da'if," (A Word about the Essay: The Rights of The Weak) al-Sa'ih 3,
no. 256 (Thursday, April 22, 1915): 5-6; which was followed by Naimy's, "Huquq al-Da'if,"
4 parts al-Sd'ih 4, no. 261 (May 10, 1915): 5-6; 4, no. 262 (May 13, 1915): 5-6; 4, no. 263
(May 17, 1915): 5-6; and 4, no. 264 (May 20, 1915): 5-6. Mushriq answered these four parts
with "Kalimah Ukhrah fi Huquiq al-Da'if," (Another Word on "The Rights of the Weak") 3
parts al-Sd'ih 4, no. 267 (June 1, 1915): 5; 4, no. 268 (June 3, 1915): 5-6; and 4, no. 269
(June 7, 1915): 5-6.
 AL-RABITAH 1916
AL-QALAMIYAH, 39

the world, the cost of each great power's interferencefar outweighed the
benefits. Naimy believed it was incumbent upon the citizens of weaker
countries to try to develop and strengthenthemselves rather than depend
upon the beneficence of the great powers, which acted only in their own
self-interestratherthan for humanitarianor civilized reasons.
Mushriq,on the otherhand, believed it was one of the duties of the great
powers to protect weaker countries;this is what made them great powers.
He thoughtthat if assistance was offered, it should be accepted. He felt it
was inappropriatefor anyone who had benefitedfrom living in one of the
powerfulcountriesto criticize their intentions.He concluded that in a world
fraught with dangers, aid should not be discarded, even if it has strings
attached.
In large part, Mushriq'sobservationswere those of a younger generation
of Arab-Americanswho had grown up in Americaand felt more at ease and
confidentabout their dual identity than previous generations.They did not
necessarilysee the United States, or any other Westerngreat power for that
matter,as a strangeror an outsider.To them it was not a matterof "us and
them" but a matter of "we," though one may argue a "we" in which the
Arab-Americanwas marginalised.
To those of Mushriq'sgeneration,the United States was their homeland
and they were proudof that fact, which must have struckthe previous gen-
eration, that of Naimy and 'Ari.dah,as contrary to their sense of Arab iden-
tity.23Naimy's generationwas thatof the olderbrotherwho hadbeen a teenager,
or older, when he emigratedto the United States, while Mushriq'sgenera-
tion was that of the younger son who either emigratedas a young child or
was born in the United States and consequentlyrememberedless of the old
homelandthan did his older sibling. This is how the difference of opinion
between Naimy and Mushriqshould be seen, despite the fact that Naimy
possibly felt personallyoffendedthat a much youngerman, with possibly no
highereducationthan a high school certificate-Mushriqwas only seventeen
at the time of the exchange-thought to criticize somethingthat Naimy had
written at the conclusion of his collegiate career.
Naimy undoubtedlysaw himself trying to develop a sense of Arab iden-
tity among the readersof al-Funun and al-Sd'ih that was independentand
free of outside influence.Evidenceof this growing sense of Arab identityis
seen in the developing interest in Arab historical figures and the attention
that al-HusaynI, leader of the Arab Revolt of 1916, received in al-Funuin.
As a result, one can say that both al-Funuinand al-Rabitahal-Qalamiyah

23 It should be noted that most of the membersof al-Rabitah,most notably its majormem-
bers such as Gibran,'Aridahand Naimy, never obtainedfull Americancitizenship.
40 AL-RABITAH 1916
AL-QALAMIYAH,

were expressions of a generation of Arab-American youth who felt stronger

and more direct ties to their Arab roots than did following generations, who,
although still Arab, had come to terms with their Americanization.
Ironically, the label "A Member of al-Rabitah al-Qalamiyah" disappeared
from al-Sd'ih the issue after Mushriq published his "al-Rabitah al-
Qalamiyah" statement of purpose and from al-Funun's pages four months
later. The reason for the prolonged life of this label in al-Funtin may have
been 'Aridah's unwillingness to allow his dream of a writers' union to die
a needless death due to a philosophical difference of opinion begun between
two talented writers eleven months earlier, with the approaching arrival of
Naimy in New York City. 'Aridah may have hoped that the union could
overcome this disturbance in order to accomplish its goals, rather than
falling an easy victim to ideology and personal rancor. Undoubtedly, 'Aridah
must have felt that once his old schoolmate arrived in October 1916 he
would help develop al-Rabitah's reputation and prestige and patch up any
differences of opinion; yet, unfortunately, this did not happen, since Amin
Mushriq emigrated to Ecuador the first of August 1916.24 The 1916 forma-
tion dissolved completely after al-Funin's September 1916 issue and al-Rabitah
al-Qalamiyah as a society of writers did not resurrect itself until April 1920,
after which the label "A Worker in al-Rabitah al-Qalamiyah" began to
appear in al-Sd'ih.25
Finally, as mentioned above, Haddad stated that the dissolution of the
1916 al-Rabitah was due to the unfortunate inclusion of Najib Diyab within
the society. Whether Diyab was a member of al-Rabitah or not one can-
not be sure, for no mention of the label "A Member of al-Rabitah al-
Qalamiyah" appeared beside his name in either al-Funuin, al-Sd'ih, or even
in his own newspaper Mir'dt al-Gharb during the existence of the 1916 al-
Rabitah. Accepting Haddad's statement as fact leaves one to assume that
Diyab worked as a dissident force at al-Rabitah's meetings. This assumption
is based upon 'Aridah's letter to Naimy, in which he wrote that while
Na'fim Mukarzil was interested and positive regarding the formation of a
writers' union, Najib Diyab was not.26 It is interesting in this light that

24
[al-Sd'ih's Administration],"Mahalliyat:Abhara ila Jumhfriyat al-Ikwadfr... Amin
Mushriq,"(Local News: Amin Mushriqsailed to the Republicof Ecuador)al-Sa'ih 5, no. 389
(August 7, 1916): 2.
25 The first appearanceof the new label occurredMay 6th of 1920 and was attachedto an
article William Catzeflis wrote to Gibran.See Wilyam Katsiflis [William Catzeflis],"Kitab
MaftfihilA JibranKhalil Jibranmin Wilyam Katsiflis,"al-'Amilfi al-Rabitahal-Qalamiyah,"
(An Open Letterto JibranKhalil Jibranfrom William Catzeflis, A Workerin al-Rabitahal-
Qalamiyah)9, no. 739 (May 6, 1920): 4. The term "Worker"is used here because Naimy
used it in his biographyof Gibran.See Naimy, Kahlil Gibran,p. 155.
26
See note 6.
 AL-RABITAH AL-QALAMIYAH, 1916 41

Diyab was allowed to join the society at all, and his inclusion poses two
important questions: Why was he allowed to join, and who supported his
inclusion if he was opposed to the union's formation?27
Naimy, usually very informative about Arab-American affairs, is silent
regarding this topic. Surprisingly, he made no mention of the 1916 al-
Rabitah in his autobiography, although it was impossible for him not to
have known of its existence. If, in fact, al-Rabitah was allowed to dissolve
in order to expunge itself of undesirable elements that had "infiltrated" the
society (i.e., Najib Diyab and Amin Mushriq), as Haddad alleged, then one
must ask why Naimy was silent about relating the facts of this infiltration
well after any of the participants to the formation could be offended by his
description. He offered his opinion on other similar matters without hesitation.
An answer to this question would be important in illustrating not only the
history behind the early attempts to create al-Rabitah al-Qalamiyah, but also
the role of Nasib 'Aridah's journal al-Funuin as a vital force in the forma-
tion of al-Rabitah. Al-Funuinpromoted the formation of a writers' union and
the very themes and goals al-Rabitah represented, since, contrary to normal
practices regarding the evolution of literary societies and their publication
organs, al-Funuin helped form al-Rabitah rather than vice-versa.28
Further study of al-Rabitah, in addition, would lead to a better under-
standing of what the society itself tried to accomplish over the entire period
of its existence, rather than during one small segment of it. Any critical
examination of al-Rabitah's content, whether from the 1916, 1920-1921 or
the 1922-1931 periods would undoubtedly illustrate that al-Rabitah was
more than a society composed of Transcendental writers. As material from
the 1916 period shows, al-Rabitah's members were concerned with the spir-
itual and material welfare of their countrymen, whether in the United States
or in the homeland. No study has been done to date that has examined the
specific works whose authors were identified as "al-'Amil fi al-Rabitah al-
Qalamiyah" (A Worker of the Pen Bond) to ascertain how al-Rabitah's goals
as outlined in 1916 and 1920 were applied.
In conclusion, this paper has sought to demonstrate that al-Rabitah al-
Qalamiyah was first formed in 1916, rather than 1920, and that the main
motivators for a society of writers were Nasib 'Aridah and 'Abd al-Masih
Haddad, rather than, as is commonly maintained, Mikhail Naimy or Kahlil
Gibran. Moreover, it has been shown that both formations (i.e., 1916 and
1920) shared strong similarities. These similarities derived from the journal

27 An answer to these
questionsrequiresa careful study of the Arab-Americannewspaper
Mir'dtal-Gharb,which unfortunatelyis beyond the scope of this article.
28
Haddad,Intibd'dt,pp. 63-64. Haddad,stated that it was al-Funuinwhich helped develop
the writing skills of the futuremembersof al-Rabitahal-Qalamiyah.
42 AL-RABITAH 1916
AL-QALAMIYAH,

al-Funun that Nasib 'Aridah published between 1913 and 1918, and which
promoted the same goals that al-Rabitah would later adopt. This fact
becomes clearer only after a review of al-Funuin's issues and its statement
of purpose is undertaken. In addition, this paper has shown that, contrary to
previous claims, Amin al-Rihani was indeed a member of al-Rabitah al-
Qalamiyah, albeit its 1916 formation. His absence from the 1920 al-Rabitah
is attributable more to his absence from New York City than to a disagree-
ment with Gibran, since the men of al-Rabitah-as expressed by 'Aridah's
desire to encourage direct exchanges of thought between members-all
resided in New York City, implying that this was a condition of membership.

Georgetown University RICHARDALAN POPP

APPENDIXA

The list of names that follows is of all those who submittedwork to either al-
Funun or al-Sd'ih who were identifiedas "A Memberof al-Rabitahal-Qalamiyah"
('Udw fi al-Rabitahal-Qalamiyah)in 1916. The Arab-AmericannewspaperMir'at
al-Gharb was reviewed duringthe same period that this label appearedin the pre-
vious two periodicals;however, no indicationof the use of this label was found.
Works have been presentedaccording to their chronological order ratherthan
alphabeticallyin order to illustratethe span of time that this label appeared.At the
end of the following list of works is an alphabeticallist of those individualswho
signed as "A Memberof al-Rabitahal-Qalamiyah."

al-Rabitahal-Qalamiyah(1916)
['Ata Allah, Ilyas]. "'Adad Ilyas 'Ata Allah: Yuharrir Hadha al-'Adad Ilyas 'Ata
Allah." al-Sd'ih 5, no. 362 (May 4, 1916): 3.
[Catzeflis,William]."'AdadWilyamKatsiflis:Hadhaal-'Adadbi-Qalamal-Katibal-
Ma'rif Wilyam Katsiflis."al-Sd'ih 5, no. 364 (May 11, 1916): 5.
['Aridah, Nasib]. "Riwayat Ayila--'Nasib 'Aridah, Sahib Majallat al-Funuin."' al-
Sd'ih 5, no. 364 (May 11, 1916): 5.
Haddad, Nadrah. "Ma Ratha la-ha Bal Rathaha."al-Sd'ih 5, no. 367 (May 22,
1916): 3.
Mushriq,Amin. "Al-Zanbaqah."al-Sd'ih 5, no. 367 (May 22, 1916): 4.
Rihani, Amin, al-. "Biladi."Translatedby al-Sd'ih's Administration.al-Sd'ih 5, no.
368 (May 25, 1916): 4-5.
[A Member of al-Rabitah]."'AIl Qimmat al-Jabal."al-Sd'ih 5, no. 369 (May 29,
1916): 4-5.
Jibran,JibranKhalil [Gibran,Kahlil]. "Ru'ya."al-Funuin2, no. 1 (June 1916): 1-3.
Ayyfib, Rashid. "La'allaGhadi."al-Funuin2, no. I (June 1916): 71.
Rihani, Amin al-. "Ghida'fi al-Tiahin."al-Sd'ih 5, no. 372 (June 8, 1916): 4.
Mushriq,Amin. "Zafrat."al-Sd'ih 5, no. 377 (June 26, 1916): 4-5.
. "Al-Rabitahal-Qalamiyah."al-Sd'ih 5, No. 378 (June 29, 1916): 4-5.
Rihani, Amin al-. "Budhfr lil-Zari'in."al-Funun 2, no. 2 (July 1916): 106-8.
Hern, Livikadiyu. "Qisas Yabaniyah."Translatedby 'Abd al-Masih Haddad.al-
Funuin2, no. 2 (July 1916): 118-24.
 AL-RABITAH 1916
AL-QALAMiYAH, 43

A., R. "'Imadat al-Khumud: Tasmid Qasidat Ibn al-Iriki." al-Funuin 2, no. 2 (July
1916): 158-59.
Mushriq, Amin. "Dumu' al-Amal." al-Funiin 2, no. 2 (July 1916): 160-63.
Jibran, Jibran Khalil [Gibran, Kahlil]. "Al-Layl wa-al-Majnun." al-Funuin 2, no. 2
(July 1916): 97-99.
Katsiflis, Wilyam [Catzeflis, William]. "Qissat Umm: A Nathr am ShiCr?"al-Funuin
2, no. 3 (August 1916): 213-18.
Haddad, 'Abd al-Masih. "Athman ma Natharathu al-'Uyin." al-Funuin 2, no. 3
(August 1916): 249-51.
Katsiflis, Wilyam [Catzeflis, William]. "Min Mayyit Hayy ila Ahya' Amwat." al-
Funuin 2, no. 4 (September 1916): 322-28.

"A Member of al-Rabitah al-Qalamiyah" in 1916

Ilyas 'Ata Allah William Catzeflis Nadrah Haddad

Nasib 'Aridah Kahlil Gibran Amin Mushriq
Rashid Ayyfib 'Abd al-Masih Haddad Amin al-Rihani
 j

44 AL-RABITAH AL-QALAMIYAH, 1916

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 AL-RABITAH AL-QALAMIYAH, 1916 49

APPENDIX C

THEPENBOND

What is the Pen Bond and what is its goal? How old is it? Who are its members
and president? Why has it remained hidden till now? What are its politics? Who,
What, Why, Where from and to...??
Everyday, nay, every hour, questions pour down like a downpour of hailstones
that weigh half a pound each on the heads of the Pen Bond's members, which, for-
tunately, are not made of glass; otherwise, they would have been silenced before
they could speak.
Listen up, draw closer and I'll tell you. Quiet. Don't make noise and move
around. Listen. The Pen Bo... Bon... Bond is... is-a hungry ghoul that has
eyes that glow in the dark, claws that cut like knives, on its back are 1001 eyes, its
stomach can hold 1001 men and not even The 1001 Nights can contain it.
Ha, ha, ha, ha. Why did you run away? Come closer and do not be afraid. What
a pity. Did you believe the joke?
But what should I tell you? It is an association. No, it is not an association. It is
a club. No, it is not a club, not Syrian, Chinese or African. It is my dear friends-
if you like-a pen bond. That is all.
Do not worry, dear associations: it is not a new competitor. Calm yourselves,
community leaders: it is not a rival for leadership nor an adversary for the scepter
of your firm authority. Indeed, if I had a mustache, I would swear by it to the verac-
ity of this statement.
Because I am a member of the [Pen] Bond, it has given me the right to dampen
the burning questions of the curious and to present some of its unknown truths
here-not in order to flatter them, but-indeed, life revolves around self-interest-
to protect its members from the hail of questions that pour down on their heads
every day and every hour.
Before I introduce my subject, I hope that the reader will permit me to begin my
discourse with two lines of poetry-as is the custom among our writers and ora-
tors-to chant the praise due them from every lip and tongue. Here they are:
0 noble-heartedpeople, descendantsof the Arabs
You are the owners of glory and pride in the world.
You and Syria remainhigh above the clouds.
You are exquisite now and forever.
Why are you laughing? Why are you chortling on your backs as if I were Charlie
Chaplin?? I spent much time and racked my brain composing these two lines to
honor you, only to have you humiliate and laugh at me as my prize! 0 God, 0
God. How wisdom is squandered among the ignorant!
0 people, do not think that I have departed from my subject, because I know
what I am talking about. I started telling you about the Pen Bond, then two poetic
lines-however, I am still on the right path. Yes, there is an integral relation
between the Pen Bond and those two lines-but, unfortunately-an antagonistic
relation; like the relation of the surgeon's knife to rotten flesh or the relation of the
farmer's ax to dead branches. Do you understand now what the Pen Bond and its
goal is? I do not doubt that.
50 AL-RABITAH 1916
AL-QALAMIYAH,

The Arabic language, my brothers, is not a god, nor a devil, nor a jinni. It is like
any other language, which can descend to the lowest or rise to the highest levels. It
dies with its people and comes alive with those who use it. Unfortunately, both for
us and for it, we have tied two stones as big as millstones around our neck and its
neck and have thrown ourselves into a deep sea of indolence and death--I am not
saying it is an eternal death, but a very, very long one. And there in the deep dark-
ness among the whales, fish, sea weed, stones and sediment we settled on the bot-
tom, not as pearls, but as dirt, stones and drowned bodies.
The Arabic language once had glorious days and luminous nights. This was in
the past during the time of the Arab Nation, which extended from the heart of Asia
to North Africa and southwestern Europe. Its enormous fires almost engulfed and
melted down the continent that represented the civilization of its time. But destiny
had another plan when western heroes defeated Arab heroes during that decisive
battle remembered by European history with pride and relief because it determined
a great future for Europe undreamt of on that day. Since that dark hour, the Arabic
language began declining and the sun of the florescent Andalusian age became
eclipsed and the first stone fell from the great edifice of Arab glory. Then the Turks
came as rude guests, attacking and defeating the "head of the household," for he
was weak and they were strong. They started spreading their authority and language
throughout the land, until stone after stone began to fall and edifice after edifice
began to crumble. Destruction spread year after year with astonishing and terrible
speed. For the Turks knew the weak spots of our culture and directed their forces
at religion and language without which a people cannot survive. They planted the
seeds of hatred between one tribe and another, empowering the Muslim over the
Christian, and the Druze over the Jew. Schisms and parties arose, and the Arabs
began to lose the firm bond that binds the parts of a nation together. The Turkish
language started eating up our language ferociously and literature in the Arabic
language gradually exhausted itself, to the point where only a pale recollection of it
was left in a few very old and yellowed books, corroded by the passage of time.
In this manner the centuries went by, and the Arabic language declined due to
the deline of its people, till it nearly became a phantasm. Today, a world war
between nations has begun in order to teach them how to live as nations and to alert
the listless nations to the importance of a national spirit for life in the modem age.
This has caused the remainder of the forgotten nations to look at Belgium, Serbia
and Armenia in many different ways. They looked at life in a new way: they turned
to the past with its prisons adorned with bars and chains, graves full of skulls and
bones, and saw dark tunnels full of insects and foul smells, then they turned to look
at the present and its embarrassing state. They saw two roads opened up before
them: the grave in one direction and freedom in the other.
My brothers, two roads are before us today-either death after which there is no
life or life by seizing available opportunities. Life is fair. It presents each nation in
turn with an opportunity to create a new life for itself. But some nations turn their
backs on progress and regress, only to regret it when it is too late for regrets and
to rail against the injustice of life, though in fact life is fair.
Today it is our turn either to renew our life forever and ever or to die forever,
and rightly so.
The Pen Bond, my brothers, consists of some ten members who have seen an
opportunity in the near future and have carefully started preparing for it. They did
not look at the road to the grave. Instead, they have gazed at the road of the hoped-
for life. They are preparing the Arabic language for its new, coming stage. They
 AL-RABITAH 1916
AL-QALAMIYAH, 51

have left politics to others, as I have mentioned, and focused the goal of their bond
on language only, as indicated by its connection to the pen. The Pen Bond is here
to create a bond among writers which will make them of one heart and of one
vision with its purpose to protect what little is left of the Arabic language and nur-
ture it with innovation-cleansed of the useless; to strengthen the status of writers
of every denomination and class, and to establish a real connection between the
Arabic language and the Arab people.
What do you think of my two previous lines of poetry? Do you believe that three
quarters of our poets are on this level? Every week numerous long poems of this
type are sent to newspaper offices. If you don't believe me, go to the office of al-
Sd'ih and you will find all sorts of gems like this in its wastebasket. And why not?
Al-Sd'ih is the newspaper of writers-and the people who compose these poems are
"writers," too.
We might be able to forgive publishers for giving lofty titles to people who do
not deserve them in order to attract advertisements. We might forgive them also for
publishing news of births, christenings, arrival and farewell ceremonies out of the
need for subscriptions. These are the things that are more deleterious to morals and
values than to language itself. We can never, however, forgive them for encourag-
ing those "poets," entirely devoid of literary sensibility, who assault the language
from time to time with their disgusting chatter that is an insult to both poetry and
poets. Would it not have been more honorable of these stupid individuals and more
beneficial to the community and to themselves if they had spent the time that they
wasted in chatter selling chintz and cotton or repairing old shoes? Or of thinking
about other ways to acquire money, rather than putting words together?
The Pen Bond will put those arrogant people in their place and silence them. The
Pen Bond will remove from their necks the necklaces of coral and pearls and place
them around the necks of people who deserve this honor more, and it will erase
entirely from their minds stricken with melancholia such phrases as:-the versatile
writer-the eloquent poetess-the mellifluous, eloquent, brilliant, witty and out-
standing orator- the precious and resounding poem-the captivating, fascinating essay -
and so forth and so on of the drumming, piping and noise which is similar to the
tinkling of bells that hang from the necks of donkeys and mules.
Yes, the Pen Bond will sift through this group that is assaulting literature and get
rid of them forever; it will select from the field of the [Arab] people, the plants
and bushes that are ready to grow and are fit for life and will nurture them by
including them within the Pen Bond, where they will be fed delicious food and
given pure water. In this way, it will form for the Arabic language a strong, devoted
army that will protect it from the attacks of foreign languages and the attacks of
"our excellent writers and poets" and establish for writers a league that will gather
them under its wings and turn their trampled rights into sacred rights that no hos-
tile foreign hands will ever touch. A day-God willing, not far off-will come when
the Arab world will see the dazzling result of this slow, quite process-nothing is
impossible for God.
Before I conclude my talk, I want to mention an important note to the reader and
writer as well, which was one of our Bond's laws: The Pen Bond does not accept
any membership petitions, rather it extends membership to those with whom
the Bond is pleased, not vice-versa. We do not want to upset anyone with our law,
which might show a little arrogance; however, it will save both of us much trouble.
We believe that there are people in our community who are more capable and
possess a higher status in the world of literature than ours, and we would be honored
52 AL-RABITAH AL-QALAMIYAH, 1916

to invite them to join us in the future. When the reader sees that our law is not
against those but against the intruder group, then no doubt he will forgive this
"arrogance."
This is the Pen Bond and that is all.

Amin Mushriq (A Member of the Pen Bond)

Translated by Richard Alan Popp