Narrating England and Egypt: The Hybrid Fiction of Ahdaf Soueif‪.‬

Writing in The Guardian in September 1999, Andrew Marr was shocked that "the superstars of contemporary English literature aren't English, and haven't been for years." He refers to the finalists for that year's Booker Prize, which included--among South Asian, Irish, and Scottish writers--the Egyptian-English author of The Map of Love, Ahdaf Soueif. Marr goes on to say that "the English, who virtually created the novel, are now being ventriloquised by others." The literary crisis he outlines is one that has been sounded before, especially as England sees writers from parts of the globe it formerly colonized (Egypt, India, Ireland, and elsewhere) now seemingly monopolize the cultural scene with their own particular, postcolonial brand of English. These writers move between two worlds, infusing their Anglophone novels with the essence of their native languages and cultures. Ahdaf Soueif is a case in point: the Egyptian national spent many years of her childhood in England, and then returned for her PhD in linguistics. Her marriage to an Egyptian ended, and she later married English poet Ian Hamilton (from whom she eventually separated). She has been described as a "hybrid" writer, a tense and sometimes intellectually painful role to play; however, it is a suitable adjective: she blends Arabic rhythms and idioms into English; she writes regularly for England's The Guardianas well as for Egypt's prestigious newspaper, Al-Ahram; her two sons from Hamilton have combination Arab-English names, Omar Robbie and Ismail Ricki; she travels frequently between England and various parts of the Middle East. She writes in English because she feels more comfortable in it, but occasionally she gives readings in Arabic as if to satisfy those who think she has "forgotten" her roots (Wassef, "Unblushing Bourgeoisie"). Her lush style is described as exotic and foreign by her Western readers, while her sexual imagery and themes arouse the ire of some Egyptian readers who do not want to claim her as "one of their own."