In the Foreward to «Voices» John Munro pays Tribute to Haydar’s Poetry
In the Foreward to "Voices"
John Munro pays Tribute to
Haydar’s Poetry
| John Munro taught English literature at the University of North Carolina and the University of Toronto then, between 1966-1988, at the American University of Beirut (AUB). During this period he became a freelance journalist, which led to an appointment as Professor of Mass Communication at the American University in Cairo (AUC) from 1988-1999. Later, he was appointed media and political advisor to the European Commission in Cairo and between 2003-2008 was part-time Visiting Professor in the Faculty of Law at the University of Malta, teaching Human Rights and Democratisation in a Master’s program funded by the European Union. He is the author of several books of literary criticism, including studies of Kahlil Gibran and Ameen Rihani and James Elroy Flecker, a British poet who spent time in Beirut as British Consul, as well as "The Decadent Poets of the Eighteen-Nineties" and the Victorian poet Theo Marzials. He has also written histories of AUB, yprus, Syrian desert transport, and life in Lebanon during the presidency of Amin Gemayel. He is also coeditor (with Karl Beckson) of the "Collected Letters" of Arthur Symons. His most recent publication (2010) is "From the Nile to the Euphrates", a collection of photographs from the archives of the American Colony in Jerusalem for which he has provided an introduction and commentary. |
Jawdat Haydar is a poet who transcends national boundaries. Though he writes with affection about his native Lebanon, evoking, in particular, the natural beauty of his ancestral home in the Bekaa valley with its world famous ruins of Baalbek, his themes are universal rather than local.
He is sensitive to the religious and political
tensions that have from time to time cast a shadow over Lebanon’s history, yet Jawdat Haydar’s message is one of hope. Inspired by nature’s ever-recurring cycle of the seasons, which he describes with great sensitivity and grace, he understands that however depressing the present may be, inevitably spring follows winter, dawn follows the dark. He is driven by optimism and refuses to give in to despair.
Casting his vision beyond Lebanon, Jawdat Haydar also addresses some of the great issues confronting mankind, notably the impact of science on our world. He recognises the benefits that science brings but he is also alive to the potential dangers that may accrue: notably global warming and the threat of nuclear proliferation. He faces honestly the process of aging, and while acknowledging that science may prolong our lives, he strongly believes that what really matters is the quality of our lives not its duration.
Expressing himself in English and writing in a style that is accessible to the ordinary reader, Haydar’s poetry speaks to young and old alike. Containing echoes of some of the great poets of the English literary tradition, particularly those of the Romantic movement, Jawdat Haydar’s poetry will also appeal to more specialised readers. For them, inevitably, his work will be viewed within the context of Lebanon’s other bilingual, English-Arabic literati, notably Kahlil Gibran, Mikhail Naimy and Ameen Rihani. And in erms of his contribution to Lebanon’s literary heritage, Haydar certainly deserves to be included in their company. However, one should also be aware that in terms of his subject matter and poetic technique, his contribution is significantly different.
To sum up: the appeal of Haydar’s poetry is universal and while Lebanese readers will respond to his evident affection for his native land no less than its cultural heritage, his words resonate far beyond the shores of Lebanon. In the final analysis, his audience is global as well as local and, like one of his poetic inspirers, William Wordsworth, his poetry touches on subjects that "lie too deep for tears."
A great poet, a great man, whose sense of patriotism transcended the boundaries of self and personal interest, his poetry should serve as an inspiration to his fellow countrymen no less than to readers in the English-speaking world. More specifically, in a world beset with chaos and despondency, Jawdat Haydar sends a message of hope that should be an inspiration to all.