Episodes: Series - Rifa'a al-Tahtawi - 1987

• episode #1
• episode #2
• episode #3
• episode #4
• episode #5
• episode #6
• episode #7
• episode #8
• episode #9
• episode #10
• episode #11
• episode #12
• episode #13
• episode #14
• episode #15
• episode #16
• episode #17
• episode #18
• episode #19
• episode #20

Rifa'a and his parents flee from Tahta to Nidah after the Mamluk attack, after which the Mamluks find Badawi, Rifa'a's father, and seize everything he owns.

As Badawi falls ill and becomes unable to work, Rifa'a is forced to work in farming behind his father’s back. Years pass by and Rifa'a becomes a young man.

Rifa'a travels to Cairo to enroll in Al-Azhar. Ibrahim, Muhammad Ali’s son, returns after achieving great victories and conquests for his father’s army.

When Muhammad gets arrested, Rifa'a turns to Hasan and Abd al-Rahman to intervene and get him out. Rifa'a passes Al-Azhar's exams and joins it.

After 7 years of studying at Al-Azhar, Rifa'a is appointed to teach at the Mohammed Lazoglu School. Rifa'a refuses to marry Sharifa, while Safinaz falls in love with him.

After Muhammad Ali refuses to let Egyptians study at the Mohammed Lazoglu School of Translators, and decides to limit the study of languages to the Turks and Circassians, Rifa’a refuses to teach there. Karima confesses to her teacher Zahira her love for Rifa’a.

Hasan marries Sharifa after Rifa'a refuses to marry her, while the latter tries to convince his uncle Muhammad to wed him his daughter Karima.

Hasan al-Attar convinces Muhammad Ali to send Egyptians on scientific expeditions. As Hasan chooses Rifa'a, Tantawi and al-Tunisi to go on an expedition to France, Rifa'a decides to postpone his marriage to Karima.

Rifa'a begins studying French to ensure that he goes on the expedition, whereupon he wins the grand prize for translation and travels on the France expedition.

As news of Rifa’a stops coming in, Karima suspects that he married a French woman. When Rifa’a returns to Cairo, he is appointed as a translator at the School of Medicine, and marries Karima.

Rifa'a is distressed by Sacura's reservations about his work at the School of Medicine, whereupon Sacura refers Rifa’a to the Disciplinary Council for disobeying orders. Meanwhile, he writes his first book ‘A Paris Profile’.

Ghobash asks Rifa'a to help him reach the governor and recover his stolen land. The governor, Muhammad Ali, offers a large reward and a plot of land in Tahta to Rifa'a.

The governor agrees to Rifa'a's idea to establish Al-Alsun School of Translation and appoints him as its principal. Ghobash asks Rifa'a to help him persuade Safinaz to marry him. As years pass by, Rifa'a becomes a father and his children grow up.

Hasan al-Attar becomes the Grand Sheikh of Al-Azhar. As Muhammad Ali’s condition deteriorates after being pressed hard by foreign countries, he suffers from dementia, and Ibrahim plans to take over the rule instead of his father.

After Muhammad Ali’s illness and subsequent death, Ibrahim takes over, then Abbas succeds Ibrahim. Rumors spread of Abbas’s wish to remove Rifa’a from his positions due to his neglect of the Turkish language, whereupon Abbas issues a decision to close down Al-Alsun School.

Abbas banishes Rifa'a to Sudan, where he’d be the head of an elementary school. When Sa’id succeeds Abbas, Rifa'a's hopes of returning to Egypt are renewed.

Sa’id appoints Rifa'a as an assistant to the head of the Military School, Soliman al-Faransawi. But when the latter falls ill and steps down from his role as principal, Sa’id appoints Rifa'a as director of the Military School.

Rifa'a establishes a department for translation and heritage preservation and makes Arabic a primary language in the Military School. Sa'id removes Rifa'a from office upon his demands to re-establish the Bureau of Schools.

Sa’id, with the help of de Lesseps, lays the foundation stone for the building of the Suez Canal, with France as a usufructuary. Isma’il succeeds Sa’id after his death.

As Rifa'a establishes a department to translate French laws, he clashes with Isma'il's entourage, whereupon he starts editing Rawdat Al Madaris magazine to educate young people. Rifa'a's remarkable journey finally comes to an end.