بينما إحتدمت المسألة الإجتماعية فى مصر فيما بين العشرينات والأربعينات، وتعالت الأصوات التى نادت بالبحث عن حل فى إطار النظام الليبرالى القائم أو خارج ذلك الإطار، جاء صوت "جماعة النهضة القومية" ليطالب بالإصلاح الإجتماعى من منظور ليبرالى، فقدمت فيما بين 1944-1949 مجموعة من الأدبيات السياسية التى إتخذت طابع النقد الإجتماعى.
وهذا الكتاب دراسة غير مسبوقة لتاريخ الجماعة وفكرها من خلال وثائقها التى حصل عليها المؤلف، ومن خلال تحليل مضمون أدبياتها، كما يضم أهم ما صدر عنها من وثائق، مع تقييم كامل للجماعة من وجهة نظر المؤلف.
والكتاب لا غنى عنه للمعنيين بدراسة الفكر السياسى والإجتماعى المصرى المعاصر.
Professor Raouf Abbas was a leading Egyptian historian and a professor of modern history at Cairo University and president of the Egyptian Society of Historical Studies.
Academic career - Vice Dean for Graduate Studies and Research, Faculty of Arts, Cairo University, 1996–1999. - Visiting Full-time Professor, Department of Arabic Studies, The American University in Cairo, 1992-1996. - Professor of Modern History, Faculty of Arts, Cairo University, from 1981-2008. - Chairman, History Department, Faculty of Arts, Cairo University, 1982-1988. - Associate Professor of Modern History, Faculty of Arts, Cairo University, 1977-1981. - Lecturer, Qatar University, 1974-1978. - Lecturer, Faculty of Arts, Cairo University, 1971-1976. - Teaching Assistant, Faculty of Arts, Cairo University, 1967-1971.
Academic Activities - Visiting Fellow, Institute of Developing Economies, Tokyo, April 1972 - January 1973; May - September 1977. - Visiting Fellow, Institute for the Study of languages and Cultures of Asia and Africa, Tokyo University for Foreign Studies, February - September 1973; July - September 1987; October 1989 - September 1990. - Visiting Professor, Sorbonne University, Paris IV, February 1980. - Visiting Professor, Essen, Kiel, Hamburg and Freiburg Universities, Germany, November - December 1982. - Part-time Lecturer, CASA, The American University in Cairo, 1983 - 1991. - Lecture Tour in USA organized by MESA, covered UCLA, USCLA, SCULA, Stanford University, Georgia State University, Mills College (November 1990). - Organized and Chaired six symposiums and conferences in Cairo and Ain Shams Universities, Egypt, 1978 - 1993. - Chairman, Historical Studies Unit, Center of Political and Strategic Studies, Al-Ahram Organization, Cairo, since February 1980. - Member, The Permanent Academic Committee of History, Supreme Council of the Egyptian Universities, since October 1985. - Member, History Committee, The Supreme Council of Culture, Egypt, 1991-2008. - President, The Egyptian Historical Studies Association, 1999-2008. - Editor in Chief, Ruzname, Annual Bulletin of the Egyptian National Archives, Cairo 2003-2008.
Honors - Holder of Science and Arts Decoration, First class, Awarded by the President of Egypt, February 1983. - State Prize of Distinguished Academic Achievement in Social Science, Egypt, June 2000.