The transmission of humanistic ideas in the translations of Al-Tahtawi: A modernization project for a translator and cultural mediator

Document Type : Original Article

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Yarmouk University

Abstract

This study focuses in particular on the translations of texts related to both humanist ideas and human rights, with a view to presenting the translator and thinker Rifa"a Al-Tahtawi, who distinguished himself by his great efforts to introduce new concepts of reform in the Arab world, especially Egyptian society. He tried to Arabize French laws to liberalize traditional Egyptian institutions and universalize human rights. Therefore, this study, at first glance, focuses on a biographical and bibliographical reminder, which is the subject of the first and second parts, with the aim of paying homage to a man who marked our history, and who is harnessed to a colossal task: to sow the first seeds of freedom and modernity in a still uncultivated land. At second glance, Using a descriptive-analytical method, our interest will be more to study some of the texts of Al-Tahtawi in the third part, which proposes to study one of the most important works of Al-Tahtawi, namely the translation into Arabic of the Constitutional Charter of 1814 included in his famous book Takhlis Al-Ibriz fi Talkhis Pariz (The Gold of Paris). Thus, we have presented an exhaustive description of the articles of the first theme of the Charter (French public law) in order to highlight the humanist principles that the eminent writer considered essential for the modernity of the people and the progress of society, in in this case justice, equality, liberty and the right to property.

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