Jonas Elbousty

Jonas Elbousty holds a few graduate degrees, including an MPhil and a Ph.D. from Columbia University in the City of New York. He is the Director of Undergraduate Studies and a faculty member in the Near Eastern Languages and Civilization at Yale University. He also directs the Yale Summer Abroad Program in Rabat, Morocco.

He previously taught at Al Akhawyeen University, Emory University, Georgia Institute of Technology, and Columbia University. He has taught widely in the areas of North African and Middle Eastern, with a special focus on literary narratives. His research interests focus on the theories of world literature and its inextricable tie to Eurocentrism, problematics of literary translation, the Image of the Arab in U.S literary narratives, Postcolonial literature, Modern Arabic Fiction, Maghrebi Studies, and the life and works of Mohamed Choukri.

His courses include “Tracing the Image of the Arab “other””; “Mohamed Choukri’s Narratives”; “Aesthetic and Politics in Modern Arabic Literature”; “North African Literature”; “Literature and Justice: Arab Writers on Trials”; “The Trilogy of Mosteghanemi”; and “Literary Icons of North Africa: Self and the Other.”

He works as a consultant and external examiner to numerous academic institutions, offering consultations to language development, running workshops for language faculty. He also consults for NGOs, offering advice that pertains to North African and Middle Eastern Affairs, and has directed diverse programs in the MENA region.  He also serves as member on many advisory boards, including American Councils for International Education. He is also on many governmental and non-governmental boards and his advice is often sought by numerous agencies.

Elbousty is a recipient of the  Ordre des Palmes Académiques.

Publications

Advanced Arabic Literary Reader. Routledge, 2016. With Muhammad Ali Aziz.

Vitality and Dynamism: Interstitial Dialogues of Language, Politics, and Religion in Morocco’s Literary Tradition. Leiden University Press, 2014. With Kirstin Ruth Bratt and Devin J. Stewart.