Arabian Nights pp. 87-134

ONLINE VERSION OF ARABIAN NIGHTS

Music for an Arabian Nights

Study Questions: If you have turned in already 9 homework assignments, then you don't need to turn in any more. If you have turned in less, you can make up one by turning in one essay this week.

• Why do you think the porter gets off with a short story, but the others tell a much longer story?
• What do you think is the significance of the first dervish's story? How did the dervish lose his eye? Can you make a rhyme out of the element of incest?
• The second dervish's story bears parallels with the story of the Demon and the Merchant. What are these parallels? What are the differences between the two stories?
• What kind of person is the second derwish, and what kind of character does he have? Is he a hero, or rather a wimp?
• How do the women in this story compare to the dervish? Does he deserve their love and care? What faults does the dervish have?
• Why is the demon's wife so brave and tries to protect him? Why is the king's daughter ready to sacrifice herself for the ape/dervish?
• Is there a parallel between what happened to the second and third dervish and the porter?
• In all the dervishes' stories, there is plenty of color symbolism, particularly about the color black. What does it seem to stand for?
• Can you detect manifestations of manhood in the stories that seem to be at odds with contemporary American notions of manhood?
• What happens to the third dervish at the black magnetic mountain? How is his fate fulfilled?
• From there he goes back to dry land and meets 10 men who all lost their right eye and covered themselves with black ashes. How is the second dervish re-living their story?
• What is the significance of the repeated phrase: "There is no power and no strength save in God, the Almighty, the Magnificent." For example on p. 132. Who tends to cite this phrase, in which predicament?
• Explain the reoccurring significance of "I would still pretty but for my curiosity." It comes up repeatedly, particularly in the story of the dervishes. Is curiosity a good or a bad thing?
• What role does curiosity play in each of the stories of the three dervishes? How does this curiosity relate to the outer story of the Three Ladies and the Porter? How does the dervishes' curiosity relate to the loss of their eyes? (see p. 132)
• If you consider that Arabian Nights have been circulating in the "Western world" for a couple of hundred years, and have become a staple in children's stories, what kind of image do you think does it create about "the East"?