The Arabian Knights
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I will tell you about the tales I have just read in Arabian knights, but I will do it in far less nights than Shahrazad did. To start, Arabian Knights is a story told by one woman named Shahrazad. She tells these stories to King Shahrayar in a series of 271 knights. While these stories are entertaining and fictional, they also teach us about the Muslims. The events that took place werent real, but in the text we get a sense of life and morals for these people back then. Not only that, but many lessons are taught as well.
Before even Shahrazad begins telling the stories, we read the prologue in which sets the stage. We learn of two brothers, King Shahrayar and Shahzaman, and their tale of how they come to hate women. As it turns out, after some moving about and talking to god, the two brothers end up in the same place. While they are there they go on a voyage. On this Voyage they saw a “huge black pillar cleaving the sea.” (pg. 8) They get scared and climb a tree. It turns out the big mass is a demon, and he is keeping a woman captive.
When the demon falls asleep, they woman spies the bothers and forces them to make love to her. If they dont she will wake the demon and kill them. The two men reluctantly agree, and they are saved. From this they learn the cunningness of women, and assume all women are manipulative and deceptive. King Shahrayar starts a habit of marrying a woman for a night, and then killing them the next mourning. Obviously people are in outrage and try to make him stop, but there is nothing they can do. Well Shahrayar gets sick of all this and decides she can be the one to talk some sense into him, literally.
A lot is learned in the prologue, and some things are shocking. The first thing we understand is they view of women. In the Muslim world, they do not think to highly of women. Even the gods tell them “Women are not to be trusted.” (Pg. 4) By far the most shocking thing we learn is the “heroine” of the story is not only is a woman, but she isnt even Muslim. The icing on the cake is that she is well educated. All of these things are peculiar considering these stories are told to teach Muslim culture.
When the prologue first ends, Shahrazads father tell his own tale. He uses his tale to try to get Shahrazad not to go through with her plan and marry the king. She is not persuaded, and still follows through with marrying the king.
So Shahrazad has her father marry her to the King, and it begins. She is an excellent story teller, and begins to tell her stories on the first knight. He king is so captivated he doesnt kill her until the stories are finished. Shahrazad is smart and knows this, so she tells the story in an interesting way.
It can almost be described as the “Russian doll” story telling method. I say this because each story is told inside of another. Shahrazad will