The Egyptian Cultural Office in Kuwait hosted a seminar titled “What Does a Critic See in a Novel? Between the Reader’s Perspective, the Critic’s Tools and the Writer’s Creativity,” gathering critics, academics, and intellectuals to discuss the role of literary criticism. The event, held under the patronage and attendance of Egyptian Ambassador to Kuwait Mohamed Abu Al-Wafa, took place as part of the office’s cultural salon initiative, which began in September 2025 to foster cultural dialogue between Egyptian and Kuwaiti literary communities.
The seminar featured presentations by Dr. Ayman Bakr, Professor of Criticism and Literature at Gulf University for Science and Technology; literary critic Dr. Jehan Al-Demerdash; and critic and writer Dr. Barak Al-Qaiet. Discussions focused on the interplay between authors, readers, and critics, examining how literary criticism employs specific analytical tools to explore the intellectual and aesthetic layers within novels.
Dr. Barak Al-Qaiet highlighted the distinction between impressionistic and critical readings, emphasizing the importance of assessing both a novel’s thematic content and its artistic execution. He underscored the influence of personal taste on literary evaluations and advocated for developing readers’ critical awareness beyond narrative events to a deeper comprehension of artistic structure and meaning.
Dr. Ayman Bakr addressed cultural criticism’s function in identifying embedded social and intellectual patterns and power dynamics in literary works, while maintaining their artistic integrity. He stressed the urgent need to cultivate an Arab critical discourse that balances scholarly rigor with accessibility for non-specialist audiences, particularly in light of evolving contemporary Arabic fiction’s diverse forms, techniques, and themes.
Dr. Jehan Al-Demerdash contributed by analyzing the characterization of Egyptian Nobel laureate Naguib Mahfouz’s fictional figures, reflecting on their significance and influence within literary experiences.
In his remarks, Ambassador Mohamed Abu Al-Wafa highlighted the complex relationship among writers, readers, and critics. He noted that writers draw from their personal experiences, cultural backgrounds, and imagination, while readers engage through their own contexts. Critics, he said, utilize analytical frameworks to reveal the intellectual, aesthetic, and symbolic dimensions of texts, acting as partners in expanding literary interpretation.
The ambassador also reflected on the expanding role of artificial intelligence in literature, questioning whether AI can be considered a true creator or if it remains limited to imitation without the depth of human experience. He emphasized the importance of employing technological advances to support human creativity rather than replace it.
The seminar encouraged active audience engagement, with discussions touching on challenges confronting literary criticism amid cultural shifts and technological innovations. Participants concluded with recommendations for encouraging writers to embrace criticism as a constructive tool, advocating for critics to maintain objective, methodologically sound approaches free from personal biases. They called on cultural and academic institutions to foster the development of an independent Arab literary criticism tradition, grounded in regional cultural identity and creative practices, while thoughtfully integrating relevant international perspectives.