| was conceived during conversations
with my tutor, Michael Schmidt, following a trip I made to Palestine
in 2004. It would never have happened were it not for his inspiration
during the first year of my MA at the Writing School at MMU. All
of us at the festival hope that this event serves to demonstrate
what a dynamic and inquisitive environment a Writing School can
be.
MFPL is a completely new event, and to have been blessed by such
an array of literary stars from both the Arabic and English-speaking
worlds is testament in part, I believe, to a desire to break down
the immense barrier which exists between English reading and Arabic
writing. We hope our exciting line-up of events affords many ways
of extending interaction between British readers and Arabic writers.
We hope also that MFPL offers a chance to further our understanding
of Palestine, its culture and people. Palestine is a country under
military occupation which has been in conflict with Israel since
1948. Occupation, war, exile and dispossession inevitably underscore
Palestinian existence. Palestinian literature, as we have discovered,
inherits one of the oldest and most elegant literary traditions
on the planet the Arabic poem and infuses it with a most profound
and unique expression of the will. All of this mighty, beautiful
literature has been produced in the spirit of profound struggle.
The occupation continues. We hope that MFPL offers new ways of understanding
the Palestinian situation in its many contexts.
I would like to thank the English department at MMU for their enthusiasm
and co-operation in hosting this event, Arts Council England and
our other vital sponsors for their support, Chris Gribble, Cathy
Bolton and all at Manchester Literature Festival, and our Event
Manager Maria Ruban who has worked tirelessly to make this festival
happen and likewise everyone who has supported the festival this
year.
Danny Moran |
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