This volume discusses The Thousand and One Nights' themes of space and travel showing how they are used not only as a setting in which the story unfolds, but also as the dynamic force which propels the heroes and the story to the final dénouement. These events often symbolize a process of transformation, in which the hero has to search for his destined role or strive to attain the object of his desire. In this way, themes of travel are the narrative backbone of stories of various genres including love, religion, magic and adventure. This book not only gives a fresh approach to many stories of the collection, but also proposes new insights in the nature of The Thousand and one Nights as a self-reflexive narrative and is essential reading for scholars of Arabic literature.
Author(s): Ric van Leeuwen
Edition: 1
Year: 2007
Language: English
Pages: 192
Book Cover......Page 1
Title......Page 6
Copyright......Page 7
Contents......Page 8
Preface......Page 9
1 Background......Page 10
2 Travelling, boundaries and narratives......Page 24
3 Roads to power......Page 37
4 Night and day: the two faces of man......Page 54
5 Marginality, individuality and the traveller......Page 69
6 The spirit of place......Page 86
7 The domains of love......Page 99
8 Magic and the logic of narrative space......Page 116
9 Some conclusions......Page 133
Notes......Page 151
Bibliography......Page 156
Index......Page 165
