Written Works

Khalil Gibran, El Profeta, translated into Lombard Language by Marc Tamburell, Monza (Italy): Menaresta, 2015.

Koliswa Moropa, "The initiator in the translation process: A case study of The Prophet by Kahlil Gibran in the indigenous languages of South Africa", South African Journal of African Languages, Volume 32, Issue 2, 2012, pp. 99-109. 
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This article examines the role played by the initiator in the translation of The Prophet by Kahlil Gibran into the indigenous South African languages and the resulting influence on the translator's decisions. This is achieved through an exploration of how this work came to be translated into the indigenous languages of South Africa, with a discussion of who initiated the translation process, and the intention behind the decision. Translation scholars generally agree that the translator is seldom given an explicit brief; it then becomes his or her responsibility to ask for one. In considering the function of the initiator in the translation of this work by Gibran, the aim was to establish whether the brief provided by the initiator was useful. The article seeks to establish some guidelines as to what constitutes a clear translation brief, in the case of literary translation in particular.

 

Lebsir Mohamed & Louiza Akram, "Misinterpretation in Literary Translation in Gibran Khalil Gibran’s The Prophet", The University 8 Mai 1945 (Algeria), 2016. 
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This study aimed at investigating the difficulties that translators who deal with the English and Arabic language may face when translating literary expressions. Particularly, it aimed at answering the following questions: 1. What are the main difficulties, related to translation that may lead the translator to misinterpret the source text (English) into (Arabic)? 2. What are the elements that should be taken into consideration to translate, interpret adequately from ST to TT? To achieve the goal of this study, the researcher selected The Prophet by Gibran Khalil Gibran translated work from English to Arabic following the two translations by Tharwat Okasha and Antonious Bachir. The researcher focused on two key elements which are subjectivity and equivalence taking into account many odd elements that are mainly related to literary works such as cultural aspects and linguistic as well as extra-linguistic features of the language. The results show that in order to avoid misinterpreting the source text, the translator has to carefully select the equivalent words and expressions taking into account all aspects of the source language as well as being objective while translating. Adequate literary translation must bring an equivalent and objective production of the source text’s style, meaning, and sometimes structure. Otherwise, the subjective and distinctive literary use in the original text will not transmit the three aspects in the target text.

 

Mirrors of Heritage, Special Issue–Centennial of The Prophet, Lebanese American University, September 2023.

Three Arabic translations of Khalil Gibran’s “The Prophet” are chosen among other available Arabic translations. Fifteen translated texts from the book were included for the analysis in this study. The three translations are by Basheer (1934), Abdelahad (1993), and Okasha (2008). The study investigates and analyzes different linguistic levels: discourse, stylistic, semantic, syntactic, and lexical among others as well as different choices made by the translators in rendering the same source text (ST) elements. The study found out that adopting different translation strategies by the translators led to different versions of the same ST. These strategies are based on the aesthetic ornamentation approach by As-Safi (2016). They include idiomaticity, stylistic considerations, cultural orientation, semantic/lexical accuracy, and syntactic accuracy. 

Nidaa Hussain Fahmi Al-Khazraji - Mardziah Hayati Abdullah - Bee Eng Wong, "Critical Reading of Gibran’s World in The Prophet", English Language and Literature Studies, Canadian Center of Science and Education, Vol. 3, No. 4, 2013. 
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Gibran Khalil Gibran (1883-1931), the Lebanese writer, poet, artist and philosopher, was the bearer of faith in the unity of all religions. He was a key figure in the history of modern EnglishandArabic literature in early 20th Century.The present paper is to show how Gibran represents the world and undesirable social practices in the time of writing his greatest book The Prophet (1923). Gibran lets the readers fell that the prophet (Al-Mustafa) doesn’t belong to this very world; he comes to Orphalese to teach humanity and to correct the society under the tenets of all major religious. Each character in The Prophet, except Al-Mustafa, resamples one member of the deformed society who seeks deliverance. Gibran shortens the process of life and its needs in the 28 texts allowing the readers take an active role to interpret and to dictate the context on oblique hints and innuendo. Gibran views the world as a place that lacks love and peace, where individuals’ life is depraved and corrupted. The most obvious, Gibran is speaking through the mouth of Al-Mustafa preaching many commandments, disciplines and rituals.

 

Reem Mohammed Alzaid, "The Ethics of Prophecy, Utopian Dream, and Dystopian Reality: A Comparative Study of Thomas More’s Utopia and Kahlil Gibran’s The Prophet", University of Alberta (Canada), 2016. 
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The main purpose of this study is to compare Thomas More’s Utopia and Khalil Gibran’s The Prophet in relation to their context, as well as to determine how they were received by the academic community. More and Gibran created imaginary worlds in order to criticize their own communities, and to outline what could be the elements of an ideal society. They were educators who created imaginary places in order to fashion their utopian dream. Although they came from different cultures and eras, they touched on common social problems that are still relevant today in our modern society, such as materialism, fanaticism, and the restriction of individual freedom. They were concerned with what constitutes a utopian society and what are the necessary characteristics of an ideal state. Chapter one focuses on Khalil Gibran’s life and on how his personal life and historical background are reflected in his main work The Prophet. The chapter also examines the impact of his hybrid identity as a Lebanese-American immigrant on his writing. Gibran spent his life between the East and the West, and was influenced by both cultures and literatures. This chapter examines how Gibran’s biography contributed to the success of The Prophet and to what extent it is a multireligious and multicultural text. The Prophet went through a long process of gestation before it was published in English which, as now, was the universal language at the time, and which contributed enormously to the popularity of the work. Chapter two looks at More’s biography as the author of Utopia and evaluates how it can be read as a critique of England in the fifteenth century. Utopia has been interpreted in many ways given the contradictions which arise in the text which are responsible for its many ambiguities. In Book I, More appears to criticize English tradition by presenting his Utopia as an ideal commonwealth. Hythloday, the main character of the work, admires these Utopian traditions when in fact More satirizes them for these same reasons. What More criticizes in Book I corresponds to what is said to be positive in utopian society in Book II. This chapter also discusses how interpretations of Utopia differ over time and how some critics have read it as a representation of an ideal commonwealth while others have viewed it as a criticism of English society and culture. Chapter three is a comparative study of More’s Utopia and Gibran’s The Prophet and it deals with their different versions of utopia. The first part of the chapter discusses the major themes that these works have in common such as pride and how it can be destructive in a society when linked to religion or material possessions. Individual freedom is the other major topic they have in common. Both More and Gibran embrace the concept of individualism and reject the idea of a collectivist society. For them, what is destructive of a community is the repression of the individual and his desires. More’s and Gibran’s dream of Utopia, while related to their specific and different backgrounds, find a common ground in their hopes for a similar ideal society. The thesis concludes with a Conclusion that summarizes the differences and similarities between these two authors.