Khalil Gibran was born in Bechari, Lebanon, a mountain village of Maronite Christians. A talented child, he was modelling, drawing, and writing at an early age. Gibran’s mother took her children to the United States, but their father remained in Lebanon. The family settled first in Boston, then in New York. Gibran returned to Lebanon in 1897 for two years to study Arabic literature in Beirut at al-Hikma College. Gibran’s artistic talents was recognized early and he was introduced to F. Holland Day, a photographer, who tutored him in art and literature. Through Day Gibran was given entry to Boston society, where he acquired valuable contacts. Gibran’s mother died when he was 20. His sister supported him while he established himself as a writer and painter. Gibran’s most ardent benefactress was Mary Haskell, the headmistress of a progressive girl’s school in Cambridge. She supported her protege financially for most of his career.
In 1904 Gibran had his first art exhibition in Boston. His first book, Al-Musiqa (1905) was about music. It was followed by two collections of short stories and a novelette in 1912. From 1908 to 1910 he studied art in Paris with August Rodin. In 1912 he settled in New York, where he devoted himself to writing and painting. Though concerned with the transcendental in his books, the basic subject in Gibran’s art was naked human bodies, tenderly intertwined.
Gibran’s early works were written in Arabic and are considered central to the development of modern Arabic literature. Gibran also wrote for journals published by the Lebanese and Arab communities in the U.S. From 1918 he wrote mostly in English and managed to revolutionize the language of poetry in the 1920s and 1930s. His first book for the publishing company Alfred Knopf was The Madman (1918), a slim volume of aphorisms and parables written in biblical cadence somewhere between poetry and prose. Usually Gibran used prophetic tone to condemn the evils that torment his homeland or threaten the humankind. His style, a combination of beauty and spirituality, became known as ‘Gibranism’.
In 1920 he founded a society for Arab writers called “Aribitah” (the pen bond), and supported the struggle to revolutionise the classically conservative Arabic literature. A very important channel for new ideas was Al Magar, the first New York Arabic newspaper, that Gibran wrote for. Mikhail Nuaima’s critical writings paved way to new freedom in poetic expression. Although Gibran was not a great poetry in verse, and most of his writings in prose should not be regarded as ‘poetry’, he opened doors to a new kind of creativity.
Gibran died of liver disease, in New York on April 10, 1931. Upon his death, his body was shipped back to his hometown in Lebanon, where alongside his tomb The Gibran Museum was later established. In his will Gibran left all the royalties of his books to his native village.
Gibran’s best-known work is The Prophet, a partly autobiographical book of 26 poetic essays, which has been translated into over 20 languages. The Prophet, who has lived in a foreign city 12 years, is about to board a ship that will take him home. He is stopped by a group of people, whom he teaches the mysteries of life. The resulting 26 sermons are meant to emancipate the listeners. Among Gibran’s other popular books is The Earth Gods (1931), a dialogue in free verse between three titans on the human destiny.
