This “jewel” is really the art of storytelling itself – the great sense of adventure, truth, fantastic imagination, justice and faith embodied by the great civilizations that contributed stories and ideas to the collection. The stories of Arabian Nights have been likened to a precious jewel that, when it comes into contact with people, actually changes them, in the same way that King Shahryar is changed. And they explore the essence of humanity – from the earthy and ridiculous ( How Abu Hassan Broke Wind) to the epic and redemptive ( The Story of the Envious Sisters). They include the whole of storytelling: fables, romances, parables and legends. More importantly, the stories vary greatly also in theme, subject matter and style. But there is a huge variety in the stories – some of them comprising only a few lines. (Cooke admits that the adaptation process in creating this “family-friendly” version was daunting: “there was so much to choose from that I wanted to do an adult version, but got distracted!”) So, at least some of them were quite lengthy. These 1,001 stories were published in eight volumes, and by the time Dominic Cooke began his research for the play Arabian Nights, he used as his source the eighteen-volume set at the British Library. It isn’t until the 19 th century, and the collaboration between Maxmilian Habicht and Murad Al-Najjar, that we reach the total of 1,001 stories, compiled to add authenticity to the works’ title. Interestingly, the original compilation contained only two hundred stories. It is generally believed that this story frame is Persian in its origins. The earliest of the stories date to about the early 8 th century and come from India and Persia, with the earliest translations into Arabic taking place soon thereafter under the title Alf Layla or “The Thousand Nights.” By the ninth and tenth centuries, there were added Arabian stories, and the first collection, called the Fihirst, was made by Ibn al-Nadim, in Baghdad.Īl-Nadim is the first to provide the frame story of the tales – that of the despondent king ordering the execution of a succession of wives after their wedding night until one, Shahrazad, has the wit and intelligence to save herself by telling a story every night and providing a “cliff-hanger” until the next, thus delaying her demise. The tales that comprise Arabian Nights had their origins in this era. While Europe struggled through the Dark Ages, the Middle East was experiencing a glorious renaissance equal to any in human history. Chinese and Indian societies were writing down stories not long after they were first created. Four thousand years ago, Sumerians wrote the first epic, Gilgamesh. The birth of agriculture itself gave birth to more time – time to tell stories. The 17,000 year-old paintings on the walls of the Lascaux caves in France may be the oldest story illustrations – meant to help the hunter tell the tale of “the one that got away.”īy 2000 BC, our ancestors had settled into a more sedentary lifestyle. The need to explain about the bison not killed, or the spear that just missed that giant elk (through no fault of the hunter himself, naturally) may be the most ancient of tales. There are scholars who believe that storytelling had its beginnings with the hunter who returned empty-handed. Storytelling may have its roots, at least in part, in the most ancient and universal of human experiences – our mistakes. Storytelling is as old as humanity and as universal. They connect us to a larger self and to universal truths. Stories have always been a primal form of communication – timeless links to ancient traditions, legends, archetypes, myths, and symbols. Stories contain the surprises, the tensions, the disappointments and the achievements of our lives and are as real as actual experience. When Shahrazad says this to the troubled king, she begins to restore his humanity and melt the ice that has encased his heart – to make him, “not as alone” as he believes. Someone says, “Let me tell you a story,” and the magic begins. The nightlight is flicked on in a child’s room. The dying firelight dances on the cave wall.
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