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Author
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Comment
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sally e
Registered User
(10/19/05 1:16 pm)
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stories within stories
I just discovered this site and I love it. Here's my question, which I think is beyond the "help me with my homework" variety.
I need to write a term paper for my "Image, Metaphor and Symbol" class and the assignment is very open ended. Write about something that interests you, the prof. said. So of course I thought of fairy tales.
Rather than go with the traditional Grimm variety, I'm toying with the idea of something on the Arabian Nights but not sure where to go with it. The thing that's always intrigued me about those tales is that the frame has Scherezade telling a story and then sometimes within her stories someone else will tell a story. (Not sure if it goes another layer past that, but I wouldn't be surprised.) I love that!
First I've got to find a legimate source because all I've got are children's versions. Can anyone refer me to one? I know that, like the Grimm fairy tales, there are more "adult" versions.
Next I've got to come up with a thesis. I've asked myself the questions "What does the frame of Scherezade accomplish?" and "Would the stories be as successful without her as the storyteller?" but I'm not sure where to go with that. Any ideas or ruminations that might get me going?
Thanks for any thoughts you can offer.
Sally
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kristiw
Unregistered User
(10/19/05 2:46 pm)
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source
I recently read an essay called "Narrative Men" in The Poetics of Prose by Tzvetan Todorov. It uses Arabian Nights to discuss the relationship of character and plot, and especially the role of embedding narratives in the book. It's narrative theory, a little dense, but I enjoyed it and I think it would give you a lot to think about. :) Hope that helps!
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Writerpatrick
Registered User
(10/20/05 7:57 am)
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Re: source
If you want an accurate source of the Arabian Nights story then you'll probabaly have to look at the Arabic sources. The translated version that became popular changed it. I understand that some of the better known stories were added in the translation. The translation also added some "adult" content.
There was a mini-series done based on the book a couple of years ago by Hallmark.
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midori
snyder
Registered User
(10/20/05 1:36 pm)
ezSupporter
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Haddawy's Arabian Nights
Probably the best contemporary translation of Arabian Nights is a two volume set by Hussein Haddawy. The first volume is in a very affordable paperback and the second volume is in hard cover. His introduction is excellent...separating the different strands of translations (and the notorious forgeries--Aladdin and His Lamp and Ali Baba--added by over zealous French tale collectors anxious to round out the numbers.)
Gregory Frost wrote a very useful article on the tales--with lots of references to Haddwy's translation which you can find on the Endicott site here
*stay away from Burton...I know he has the reputation...but that's probably all he has. His translation is more a masterpiece of imperialist readings of the "Orient" than a culturally accurate version of the tales. Not to mention that 19th century bone cracking english sentence structure....
Edited by: midori snyder at: 10/20/05 1:37 pm
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Rosemary Lake
Registered User
(10/20/05 11:16 pm)
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graph?
I wonder if anyone has done some sort of graphic map of the layers of embedding? Maybe color coding each storyline.
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sally e
Registered User
(10/21/05 11:53 am)
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stories within stories
Wow, this is great stuff. I will definitely look into the sources you've all mentioned.
Love the idea of a graphic map, but I'm afraid it's beyond my own limited graphic capabilities. I'll let you know if I come across anything like that though.
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catja1
Registered User
(10/22/05 11:27 pm)
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Scholarly source
Also, you may want to check out Robert Irwin's excellent _The Arabian Nights: A Companion_, which has finally come back into print.
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