Q-Between poetry and translation, and the political article. Do you count yourself as an organic intellectual?

-With the exception of some scientific translations and one scientific book I was commissioned for

, I did not write only a few political articles and mostly predominantly literary satire, and for this I can say that the bulk of my writing is literary creation (including literary translation) and all of these literary forms: poetry , the story, translation, article, literary and critical research, are the varied and different to what you called organic intellectual whom I  aspire to be. It imposes itself sometimes without planning or selection. I am guided by the genre that I choose for the message I send to the other. Man who is the substance and purpose of writing at the same time.

Q-Do you believe that Iraqi culture and literature can have a role in making man?

-If we assume that man is a product of his environment, history and culture and that culture and the arts and literature are the basic components that make up that environment, history and culture, this belief would be true and justified. But I do not think that this role can be seen in a simplified, single way as if we describe a way to build a house or a machine by collecting raw materials that can be reproduced over and over again. It is a complex role of, long-term, and it works indirectly in many cases. It works by drilling and constructing in the depths of popular memory and collective imagination, which starts from the myth and the popular proverb. It does not end in schools, universities and printing houses, theaters and galleries.

Q-Some believe that the Iraqi intellectual is in his autumn ... negative role and high narcissism?

-The intellectual in general and not only in Iraq is a special case within the social and cultural system, which he "belongs" to. He is extremely sensitive, faster and deeper affected by what goes on around him. It is for this he has constantly the feeling (whether rightly or not) of alienation and uniqueness which is converted in extreme cases to the sorts of vanity or arrogance, or depression, or isolationism or excessive narcissism. So  he is always in his fall season .. Was not that the sense of the intellectual who created the Epic of Gilgamesh who mourns the golden time a thousand years before ?  That was also the feeling of the  old Iraqi great writer and philosopher Abu Hayyan who had burned his books while he was more than ninety years old? But this sense of frustration or autumn season grows and dominates in times of political and cultural crises.

Q- The Faily Kurds had great contributions in building a civilized Iraq after the founding of the modern Iraqi state ... Who are the most prominent writers and creators of this sect?

-The Faily Kurds as an essential and integral component of the Iraqi people have had their share in the founding of the state, society and culture and we can mention only a few examples in literature such as  Bulend Haidari and Jamil Sidqi Zahawi and Mohammed al-Badri and Zahid Mohammed Jalil Haider, Fouad Mirza. In politics there are the martyr Latif Al-Hajj and Aziz Al-Hajj, Habib Mohammad Karim and in art there are  Khalil Zahawi and Abdul-Jabbar Abbas, and Salman Shukur Naseer Shamma and Mohammed Hussein Gumar and Saifuddin Wala'ie and Ridha Ali and  Haider Al Haider Jabbar Nizari and Jassem Al-Khayyat and many others whom we do not have the space to remind.

Q- Could the Faily  innovators contribute in the signs of modernity in Iraq?

- Sure. Whether they are at home or in the diaspora they are key contributors to the enrichment of the cultural scene of modern Iraqi. The few names that I mentioned for examples are only a proof of that.

Q-Is there a bright future for the Iraqi culture?

-What do we mean by" bright"? Is it calculation of  the quantity, type, or account, or calculation of  the degree of social and cultural impact? What do we mean by the future? Is it calculating of  the near future months and years, or calculating of  the ages and generations? Finally, what do we mean by Iraqi culture? Is it the product of  literature and technical support for the citizens of this area and the unknown restless political entity, which we call the future of Iraq? Or is it the result of creativity, research and reflection of all who belong to both the spirit of nationality or history for the sum of these sunken civilizations, in the ancient times , I mean civilizations of Mesopotamia? (Which is  an understanding that makes, for example, Sumerian Lamentations of Dumoszi or a European building designed by an Iraqi architect or  an Israeli player  of an Iraqi origin but he did not see Iraq, a part of the concept of Iraqi culture).

I do not want to shirk the answer through these Socratic questions, , but the first question carries a lot of complexity and the ramifications that should be dealt with before  finding an convincing scientific answer which is outside the scope of my abilities, but if you ask me for my personal view in term of my optimism for such a future, I will answer simply: Yes, I am optimistic about the future (and the role of) culture and either in Iraq or in the East or in the whole world, but this optimism is governed  by the  condition of success of the enlightenment project that is not limited to culture only.

Q- Is there a border between politics and literature?

-If the intention is a commitment in the , practical political party sense (not to say narrow), there are definitely too many limits between the two sides of human activity, both in methods or visions, but it is different when we look to politics as an activity that permeates and penetrates all the joints of life even impossible for a human (not to mention the writer) that does not affect and be affected or to stand neutral in the serious issues related to people's lives and their present and future .Here the border between politics and literature dissolves completely.

< Prev		Next >