الشعب يريد الحياة... هل سيستجيب القدر؟

Over two years ago Mohammed Bouaziz, a fruit vendor holding a degree in engineering, set himself on fire protesting the Tunisian government's treatment of its people. This act and the protests that it sparked quickly led to protests and "people's movements" across the Arab world and beyond. Today, despite some political re-shuffling, meaningful reforms have yet to be realized in most of the regions countries and the protests continue. A quick look at the Middle East section of any major news outlet can leave someone following the region feeling a bit pessimistic.

However, it is important to remember that these movements of the "people" seeking "change" (both amorphous terms) are not a new phenomenom in the Middle East or elsewhere. In fact one the most heard pieces of poetry heard chanted in Tunis and elsewhere is a poem by the Tunisian poet Abi- Qassim Ash-Shabbi written over eighty years ago during his countries struggle for independence from French occupation. The poem has been translated many times and this is my attempt. This is my first attempt at poetry so bear with me. Of course I welcome criticism and advice and if any of you would like to add you own translation you can send it to me at opwilcox@gmail.com or post it in the comments section.
ارادة الحياة: بقلم أبي قاسم الشابي

"The Desire to Live" : Translated by Orion Wilcox


إذا الشّعْبُ يَوْمَاً أرَادَ الْحَيَـاةَ = فلا بُدَّ أنْ يَسْتَجِيبَ القَـدَر
If the people were to yearn for life - there is no doubt that fate will be fulfilled 
وَلا بُـدَّ لِلَّيـْلِ أنْ يَنْجَلِــي = وَلا بُدَّ للقَيْدِ أَنْ يَـنْكَسِـر
And no doubt that there will be an end to the night - and no doubt that the shackles will be shattered 

وَمَنْ لَمْ يُعَانِقْهُ شَوْقُ الْحَيَـاةِ = تَبَخَّـرَ في جوهـا وَانْدَثَـر
 And who has not been embraced by the desire to live-  vanishes in her midst,  and is forgotten

فَوَيْلٌ لِمَنْ لَمْ تَشُقْـهُ الْحَيَاةُ = مِنْ صَفْعَـةِ العَـدَم المُنْتَصِر
So woe to who has not desired life - from the slap of the vanquishing void
كَذلِكَ قَالَـتْ لِـيَ الكَائِنَاتُ = وَحَدّثَنـي رُوحُـهَا المُسْتَتِر
This is what the creatures have told me - and what was said to me by nature's unseen spirit.

Translator's notes:

1. I have translated لا بد as "no doubt." The direct translation would be inevitably, "no doubt" being لا شك but I felt that no doubt fit better without changing the meaning. 
2. تبخر literally means to "be vaporized" but I thought that was a bit much.

Al-Kitaab Grammar III

الإضافة  - The Construct Phrase

The إضافة (literally addition) or “the construct phrase” is one of the building blocks of Arabic grammar ((القواعد. Becoming accustomed to using the إضافة can be challenging to learners of Arabic because like most things in Arabic it requires the student to think in the exact opposite way that she or he would think in English. The construction is formed by stringing together two or more nouns to form a relationship of possession which resemble the _______ of ________ construction in English (example: )

Rules:

11)      As I stated previously, the most difficult part of using the إضافة is “re-directing” your thinking. For example in order to say “My brother’s wife” you have to say زوجة اخي. This is a simple enough rule to remember when writing. Where I have trouble is when employing the إضافة when speaking. We are all linguistically hardwired to think a certain way but if you are thinking in English and translating into Arabic forming the إضافة can be very difficult. This is one of the many reasons why I am against learning by translating at the beginner level. I think that when you are first learning a new language you have to try your hardest to “forget” your native language, ie limit its influence as much as possible. This way you can get used to thinking in the syntax of your new language.

22)      Only the final noun is “definite.” This can be formed in three ways a) adding an ال b) using a possessive pronoun; ie قطتي, سيارتي  c) using a proper noun; ie نو يورك.

33)      When reading out loud (this is apparently a very important skill) the ة must be pronounced as a ت in all nouns except the final noun.

44)      The final noun in an إضافة is always مجرور and takes a كسرة.

الضمائر الملكية Possessive Pronouns

At this point Al-Kitaab has introduced 8 ضمائر. The following chart includes the ضمائر ملكية for them:

نحن                                                                 نا	انا                                                                    ي
انتم                                                                  كم	انتَ                                                                   كَ انتِ                                                                   كِ
هم                                                                    هم	هو                                                                      ه هي                                                                    ها