Karim Shghidel
Iraqi poet signs new poetry collection ‘Traitorous Ancestors’ in Baghdad
BAGHDAD — On Saturday evening, the ‘Culture for All’ organization hosted an event for the new poetry collection “Traitorous Ancestors” by poet Karim Shghidel. Presented by poet Maytham Al-Harbi, the session highlighted Shghidel’s poetic journey, which intertwines modern and contemporary Iraqi history with his family’s experiences.
Shghidel signed copies of his book, which features the poem “Traitorous Ancestors” subtitled “The Plight of Humanity Amid the COVID Pandemic and News of Death.” He explained that he and a group of poets embraced prose poetry not as a trend or for the sake of modernity, but as a stance against classical poetry, which he said “glorified violence and war” at the time.
“Although poetry hasn’t elevated the cultural potential of the Arab nation, we celebrate it for our love of beauty. This session was to sign my new poetry book and to discuss the artistic level of poetic writing, especially concerning what Iraq went through in the 1980s,” Shghidel told 964media.
Literary critic Jassim Mohammed Jassam noted, “Karim Shghidel’s use of poetic heritage transforms the language of the street into a poetic language.”
Poet and translator Suhail Najm remarked, “Shghidel has had a unique experience in prose poetry since the 1980s, benefiting from his culture and spontaneity.”
Karim Shghidel is an academic, poet, and journalist who has held various roles in Iraqi newspapers and magazines. In addition to writing poems, he has authored theoretical books, including “The Discourse of Modernity: A Cultural Research on the Poetic Modernization Project in Iraq.”
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