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ABU DHABI - Within the framework of the preparations for the upcoming Abu Dhabi International Book Fair, which will open its doors to the public from the 28th of March to the 2nd of April, the Kalima project for translation, affiliated to the Abu Dhabi Authority for Culture and Heritage, published a new translated book, entitled "Banned Books". The book is authored by Italian writer Mario Infelise with original title "I libri proibiti: da Gutenberg all' Encyclopédie" and translated to Arabic by Wafa Al-Bih.
“Banned Books” aims at providing a general review of the history of censorship in Western civilization, examining the thorny path of freedom of expression, and the forms of censorship that have been hanging over books and writers, including the restrictions imposed on all kinds of publishing. As the author, as he adopts methods of research and examination, deals with the emergence of censorship, the preparation of the lists of banned books, and the role the Inquisition played until the beginning of the Age of Enlightenment, he emphasizes clearly the role of theology, and the various tools, and establishments that were created, as a result of the advance of knowledge, to take over the censorship function.
The book is divided into four chapters. The first chapter deals with the history of censorship which is linked to the emergence of the evident and obvious power of the printed book, and its ability to circulate easily among peoples, who were unacquainted with the written culture in the past. The printing industry and the emergence of a trading system, that spread quickly to all parts of Europe, revolutionized the conditions of intellectual cross-fertilization, increasing the number and events of printed publishing. Some cities in Europe turned into publishing hubs, drawing a high number of publishers, writers, and readers. This development raised the concern of the Church, which rushed to adopt general principles so as to implement an anticipative monitoring of all the printed European production.
The second chapter deals with the lists of banned book that were prepared by the professors of theology, and sponsored by the Inquisition. These lists included widespread publications, which were not inconsistent with anything in the thorny theological realm. The controversy spilled over to the legitimacy of reading the Torah among the public. The effort of observers, also, took in both science, and literature. Some of the most famous literary works were distorted at the hands of famous editors. The different tools adopted by the official censorship bodies and the decrees reflect the degree of the confusion witnessed by the cultural and social scene in the second half of the sixteenth century.
The third chapter examines the control limits, and the insistence of the Church of Rome on the implementation of a very accurate plan so as to make sure of the application of the lists and the preservation of the central characteristics. The plan required the preparation of a project that aimed at the acquisition of all the lists of banned books, compiled by the investigators in Rome, and all the lists of the books present at the libraries of the different religious communities. Such an effort contributed to the formation of a rich scene of readings by the clergy, the Jesuits and Dominicans. The author refers to the inability of the Holy Court to establish an effective control upon the circulation of banned books, and the scarcity of trials of people found in possession of such writings.
The last chapter focuses on the sixteenth century, during which the restrictions and the regulatory activity, which were exercised through strict legislative channels, increased dramatically. Cooperation between the Inquisition and the Universities of Salamanca and Alcala, which were tasked with the identification of heresy, expanded. The Inquisition, afterwards, began to work independently. In the last years of the sixteenth century, the practice exceeded the entire regulatory limit, as books in popular dialect, widespread religious works, as well as scientific and academic works were subjected to restrictions.
In the wake of this period, the state began to impose its authority on the printed materials. The censorship did not collapse entirely, but its severity loosened, which meant - essentially, and in almost all countries - a clear breakthrough in the regulatory scope accompanied by a proliferation of the black market. The repressive power of the Holy Court tumbled as the Church, during the tenure of Pope Benedict XIV, adhered to the calls for social reform, which emerged during the Age of Enlightenment. However, this relative relaxation, of a formal character, in the second half of the eighteenth century often raised in the hearts of readers boredom or rejection. Groups of knowledge-pretenders, and books of poor quality were printed with the approval of the Royal Charter, which led the public to draw attention towards other subjects, notably towards what is uncommon, and contrary to the prevailing rules.
Despite the decline of censorship in Europe, the freedom of publishing has been adopted officially only when the "Declaration of Rights of Man and Citizen" was adopted in Paris on the 26th of August 1789, which stipulates "the exchange of free thought, and opinions, a most admired human right. Every citizen has the right to speak, write and publish freely, except for what is considered a violation, according to the cases stipulated by laws."
“Banned Books”, is authored by Mario Infelise, an Italian university professor and researcher teaching at the Universities of Milan and Venice. He is currently holding the position of Chair of Printing and Publishing. Infelise has been, for along time, interested in issues of censordhip, and circulation of publications in modern Europe. He published, in this regard, a number of studies and works, including "The Publishing Industry in Venice in the Eighteenth Century" (Milan 1989). Infelise is currently writing the history of political media.
The translator of “Bannd Books” is Wafa Abdul Raouf Al-Bih, a professor of modern Italian literature at the Faculty of Arts, Helwan University. She has many published studies. Al-Bih has already translated the novel "Christ Stopped at Eboli" by Carlo Levi 2010, and the novel "The Handsome Antonio" by Vitaliano Brancati 2010.