The famous search engine “Google” celebrated the anniversary of the birth of the great writer and novelist Ihsan Abdel Quddous, which falls on January 1 of each year.
And the late Ihsan Abdel Quddous is considered one of the first Arab novelists who dealt in their stories with love far from virginity, and most of his stories were turned into cinematic films.
The “Al-Fajr” portal reviews all the details about Ihsan Abdel Quddous’ career in the following:
Who is Ihsan Abdel Quddous?
He is Ihsan Abdel Quddous, born on January 1, 1919. He was born in the house of his grandfather on his father’s side, Radwan, whose roots go back to the western village of Mrs. Maymouna, Zifta. He is the son of Mrs. Rose El-Youssef, founder of Rose El-Youssef Magazine and Sabah El-Khair Magazine, and Engineer Mohamed Abdel-Quddous, an engineer with roads and bridges.
Ihsan studied at Khalil Agha School in Cairo from 1927-1931 AD, then at Fouad I School in Cairo from 1932 AD-1937 AD, then he joined the Faculty of Law at Cairo University.
Ihsan graduated from the Faculty of Law in 1942 AD, and failed to be a lawyer. And he talks about this failure, saying: “I was a failed lawyer who was not good at discussion and dialogue, and I used to manage my failure in court either by shouting and quarrels with the judges, or by joking and joking, which made me lose the judges’ sympathy, so that I bid farewell to my dreams of being a brilliant lawyer.”
Ihsan’s career in the press
Ihsan took over the editor-in-chief of Rose Al-Youssef magazine, when he was 26 years old, and it was the magazine founded by his mother. He assumed the editor-in-chief after he matured in his life, but he did not stay long in Rose Al-Youssef magazine to submit his resignation after that, leaving the presidency of the magazine to Ahmed Bahaa El-Din, and after that he assumed the editor-in-chief of Akhbar Al-Youm newspaper from 1966 to 1968, and then he was appointed to the position of president The Board of Directors along with the editor-in-chief from 1971 to 1974.
Ihsan had political articles for which he was imprisoned and arrested. One of the most important issues he raised was the issue of corrupt weapons, which alerted public opinion to the seriousness of the situation. Ehsan was subjected to assassination attempts several times, and after the revolution he was imprisoned twice in the military prison, one of which was from April 29, 1954 to July 13, 1954 in solitary cell No. (91) because of an article he published in Rose Al-Youssef magazine entitled “The Secret Society that Rules Egypt” in which he attacked The Revolutionary Command Council, and the centers of power issued a decision to execute him.
Despite his position on the Camp David Accords, in his stories he was sympathetic to the Jews, as in the stories: “It was difficult and arrogant” and “Don’t leave me here alone.”
Ihsan Abdel Quddous’s literary career
Ihsan Abdel Quddous has written more than six hundred novels and stories, and the Egyptian cinema presented a large number of them, as 49 novels were turned into films, 5 novels into theatrical scripts, 9 novels became radio series, and 10 other novels turned into television series, in addition to 65 of his novels. Translated into English, French, German, Ukrainian and Chinese.
Most of his novels depicted the corruption of Egyptian society and its immersion in vice, love of sex and lusts, and distance from morality. Among these novels are (The Black Glasses), (The Love Seller), and (The Love Maker), which were produced prior to the July 23, 1952 revolution. Ehsan talks about himself as a writer about sex, saying: I am not the only Egyptian writer who wrote about sex. There is Al-Mazni in the story “Three Men and a Woman” and Tawfiq Al-Hakim in the story “The Sacred Bond”. Both of them wrote about sex more clearly than I wrote, but the people’s revolution against them made them retreat, but I did not weaken like them when I was attacked. People are at me for believing in my responsibility as a writer!! Naguib Mahfouz also deals with sex frankly on my behalf, but most of his stories revolve around a non-reading society, i.e. the ancient or modern popular society that does not read or write, or are historical subjects, so the reader feels as if he is reading about people from a world other than his own and does not feel that the story touches him. Or deal with the reality in which he lives, so he does not criticize or revolt.. As for me, I was clear, frank and bold, so I wrote about sex when I felt that I had something to write about, whether among the middle class or the popular classes – without seeking to compliment one class at the expense of another class. Likewise, in his novel (Shih Fi Sadri), which was accompanied by a great uproar in the year 1958, in which he painted a picture of the conflict between capitalist society and popular society, as well as the battle between individual greed and the sense of society as a whole.
Also, former Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser objected to his novel Girls and the Summer, in which he described cases of sex between men and women during the summer vacations, but he did not care about that and even sent a letter to Gamal Abdel Nasser, showing him that these stories of his are inspired by reality. The reality is uglier than that, and he writes these stories in hopes of finding solutions to them.
Works by Ihsan Abdel Quddous
Stories
It was never for her
Love Maker, Rose Al-Youssef House, 1948.
Love Seller, Rose Al-Youssef House, 1949.
Black glasses, Rose Al-Youssef House, 1952.
I am free, Rose Al-Youssef House, 1954. A long story.
Where is my life, Rose Al-Youssef House, 1954.
The Empty Pillow, Rose Al-Youssef House, 1955.
The Dead End, Rose Al-Youssef House, 1955. A long story.
I Don’t Sleep, Rose Al-Youssef Publishing House, 1957. A long story.
There is a man in our house, Rose Al-Youssef House, 1957. A long story.
Something in my chest, Rose Al-Youssef House, 1958. A long story.
My Mind and My Heart, Rose Al-Youssef House, 1959.
Endless Love, Rose Al-Youssef House, 1959.
Girls and Summer, Rose Al-Youssef House, 1959.
Do not extinguish the sun, the National Distribution Company, 1960. A long story.
Ahmed’s wife, Rose El-Youssef House, 1961. A long story.
His Lips, The Arab Company, 1961. Holes in the Black Dress, Egypt Clerks, 1962. A long story.
The Well of Deprivation, The Arab Company, 1962.
No, not your body, The Arab Company, 1962.
Nothing Matters, The Arab Company, 1963. Long story.
A nose and three eyes, two parts, The Arab Company, 1964.
long story. Bint Al-Sultan, Misr Library, 1965.
A Lady at Your Service, Dar Al-Maaref, 1967.
A rusty tin can, Dar al-Maarif, 1967.
Women Have White Teeth, Akhbar Al-Youm, 1969. My Blood, My Tears, and My Smile, Dar Al-Raed Al-Arabi, 1972.
I Can’t Think While Dancing, Al Shorouk House, 1973.
The defeat was called Fatima, Dar Al-Maarif, 1975.
The Bullet Is Still in My Pocket, Dar Al-Shorouk, 1977.
The Virgin and the White Hair, Dar Al-Maarif, 1977.
Threads in the Puppet Theatre, Please Take Me in This Barrel and She Lived Between His Fingers, The Egyptian General Book Organization, 1977.
So that the smoke does not fly, Bare Feet Over the Sea, The Egyptian Authority…, 1977. A collection of stories.
And I forgot that I am a woman, Dar Al-Maarif, 1977. A long story.
The Dancer and the Politician and Other Stories, The Egyptian Authority…, 1978.
Don’t Leave Me Here Alone, Rose El-Youssef, 1979. Long story.
Sorry, I can no longer, Library of Egypt, 1980.
O my daughter, do not confuse me with you, Rose Al-Youssef, 1981.
Lost Wives, The Egyptian General Book Organization, 1981. Long stories.
Love in God’s Respect, Library of Egypt, 1986. Stories.
Novels
I will not live in my father’s robes, Gharib Bookshop, 1982.
My dear, we are all thieves, Gharib Bookshop, 1982.
And the sun set and the moon did not appear, Gharib Bookshop, 1983.
The scent of roses and a nose that does not smell, Gharib Bookshop, 1984.
The days of pearls passed, Gharib Bookshop, 1984.
The Color of the Other, Gharib Library, 1984.
Life Above the Fog, Misr Library, 1984
In our house a man 1985
Articles
At a café on the political street, Dar al-Maarif, 1979-1980.
Political Thoughts, Abdel Moneim Montaser, 1979.
My Youth Days, The Modern Egyptian Office, 1980. Thoughts
Away from the Earth, Cairo, The Egyptian Authority 1980. From cinematic literature.
Awards obtained by Ihsan Abdel Quddous
Former Egyptian President Gamal Abdel Nasser awarded him the Order of Merit, First Class.
Former Egyptian President Mohamed Hosni Mubarak awarded him the Medal of the Republic.
State Appreciation Award in Literature in 1989.
First prize for his novel: “My Blood, My Tears, and My Smiles” in 1973.
Best Film Story Award for his novel “The Bullet Is Still in My Pocket.”
The death of Ihsan Abdel Quddous
Ihsan Abdel Quddous died on January 12, 1990 at the age of 71
