Ahmad Dayf and Comparative Critical Study Method

Abstract

This is an analytical study of Ahmad Dayf’s Introduction to Arabic Rhetoric’s, published in 1920. It will try to shed light on the contribution of Dayf’s book towards the establishment of comparative studies in the Modern Arab World. It will also show to what extent Dayf made use of the methodologies of French critics such as Hippolyte Taine, Madame de stael, sainte Beuve, Ferdinand Brunetier, Jules lemaitre, and Ernest Renan, in his quest to establish new methodology for the study of Arabic literary discourse. Furthermore, this study will show how Dayf benefited from the Works of previous Arab critics, which in inaugurated his work as important preparatory step in the development of comparative literature in Arabic.