Ghalib Dehlavi’s Ghazals Beyond the Orient

Abstract

The aim of this study is to demonstrate why and how the Persian classical poetic form Ghazal has changed into a commonly used literary genre in North America during the last thirty years of the twentieth century. The study first provides a brief account of how the North American poets got familiarized with Persian poetry, particularly through the Transcendentalist movement and specifically through Ralph Waldo Emerson’s works in the nineteenth century. It then deals with the roles of the two Indian poets and scholars, Aijaz Ahmad and Agha Shahid Ali, as fundamental promoters of Ghazal in the North American literary system. It argues how their efforts in introducing the ghazals of Mirza Ghalib Dehlavi resulted in the extensive translation and adoption of this poetic form by the U.S and Canadian poets, followed by famous poets like Adrienne Rich and Robert Bly who applied the poetic form of ghazl to express their intentions.

Keywords

• ghazal
• north america
• aijaz ahmad
• agha shahid ali
• mirza ghalib dehlavi