Fouad Haddad, geboren 1927, ist der erste ägyptische Dichter, der eine Gedichtsammlung in ägyptischem Dialekt veröffentlicht hat. Er wird als der König der in diesem Dialekt schreibenden Dichter bezeichnet. “Der Clown” ist ein Beispiel seiner durchaus politischen Dichtung, geprägt durch ein Leben, dass den politischen und gesellschaftlichen Wandel in Ägypten gelebt und beeinflusst hat. In den 70er Jahren erschienen, ist dieses Gedicht heute aktueller denn je. Unter der arabischen Version finden Sie eine englische Übersetzung meinerseits.

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The Clown
by Fouad Haddad

I have a short story for you, good boy
It is my father who lived it
Nobody before me engraved it, to make it a message or a written piece
My father was like me a clown, but sad
And I was a cute child
My head is like his head
Its shape is like the shamoot [a breed of orange]
His voice – God bless his soul – was like a whistle
His body moved back and forth like a plow
His bones were bouncing in his dress

Once upon a day… pay attention
Here comes the main point of the story
The king called my father and the king was greater than the mayor
He hired him as a court jester for the heir to the throne
And he said to my father: „You are more playful than the eel“
If you can make the boy laugh I will increase your income
If you make the boy sad I will cut your throat
Understand my words and walk with your head up high

My father – God bless his soul – had enough problems
He raised the white weapon and cut his own throat by himself

The boy continued to cry and my father died satisfied
My father died satisfied because he opposed the orders of the king

The days when the king was the king
The pocket money of hope was compressed
Since these days I have a cold
And my eyes are like a tap
And my tears are faithful
A sea without coasts