INTELLECTUAL THEATRE OF TAUFIQ AL-HAKIM: SEARCH FOR ARTISTIC FORM AND CONTENT

Abstract

The article examines the intellectual theater of the Egyptian writer, publicist, literary scholar, and playwright Tawfiq al-Hakim. Particular attention is paid to the intellectual play “People in the Cave,” which is a multi-act work with a complex plot from a fictional point of view, filled with long philosophical dialogues (disputes) on various topics. The actions of the heroes and their conversations allow the inner essence of the characters to be revealed. The theme of the play is connected with the biblical-Koranic plot, with the eighteenth sura of the Holy Quran, which tells about the youths who managed to escape from the Roman persecution of Christians by hiding in a cave. After that, the Almighty plunged them into a deep sleep, waking up from which the youths began to make assumptions about how long they had been in oblivion. Of particular interest is the individual author’s interpretation of the plot, which allowed the playwright to express his attitude to philosophical, social, and theological problems.