Scope and Content Note
The papers of Ameen Fares Rihani (1876-1940) span the years 1897-1940 and focus on Rihani's work as an author and poet and his role as a pioneer in Arab-American literature. Written in English, the material consists of reproductions of originals housed in the Ameen Rihani Museum in Freike, Lebanon. The photocopied items include correspondence, biographical material, and drafts of Rihani’s essays, historical and political analyses, literary criticism, novels, shorts stories, plays, poetry, and travel literature. A small addition to the collection includes reproductions of a photograph of Rihani and a drawing of him by William Oberhardt. Correspondents include Rihani's former wife, Bertha Case, Marie-Louise Fontaine, Michael Monahan, Charlotte Teller, and Charmion von Wiegand.
The correspondence relates to philosophy; writing styles; cultural and political matters; criticism in the fields of art, literature, and the performing arts; and discussions of business matters with publishers and of personal matters with writers, friends, and family members. Subjects of Rihani's writings include art, civilization, culture, history, literature, love, politics, religion, theater, and travel in both the Middle East and the West.