This book highlights the so far unappreciated merit of the Syrian playwrights Durayd Lahham and Muhammad al-Maghout, whose plays are representative of the new wave of Arab theatrical realisation in general and Syrian protest plays in particular. 'Ghawwar', the famous character type created by Lahham, combines art with politics, the past with modern times, lower class-consciousness and identity with Pan-Arab nationalism, and East with West. He also symbolizes a poetical link between the 'bitter cup' of a miserable present and the 'holy rain' of a better future.