Poet and Hero in the Persian Book of Kings

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A masterpiece of Persian Classical epic, the Shahnama or Book of Kings was composed by Abul-Qasem Ferdowsi at the beginning of the eleventh century. Because the Shahnama presents itself as a chronicle of the reigns of the shahs from the primordial founders to the Sasanian dynasty which ended in 651, scholarly attention has centered on the question of its historical accuracy. Addressing the literary as well as the historical and mythological aspects of the Shahnama, Olga M. Davidson makes this centerpiece of ...
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Overview

A masterpiece of Persian Classical epic, the Shahnama or Book of Kings was composed by Abul-Qasem Ferdowsi at the beginning of the eleventh century. Because the Shahnama presents itself as a chronicle of the reigns of the shahs from the primordial founders to the Sasanian dynasty which ended in 651, scholarly attention has centered on the question of its historical accuracy. Addressing the literary as well as the historical and mythological aspects of the Shahnama, Olga M. Davidson makes this centerpiece of Iranian culture accessible to Western readers. Drawing on recent work in epic studies and oral poetics, Davidson considers analogies with Classical and medieval European narratives as she investigates the poem's social contexts. Her interpretation of the Shahnama focuses on both the figure of the poet himself and on his protagonists - the superhuman hero Rostam and the historical or historicized shahs. Exploring the Shahnama as an example, Davidson identifies as a driving force of Ferdowsi's narrative a strong current of antagonism between king and hero. Ironically, she shows, it is the epic hero himself who poses the greatest threat to the concept of kingship that he is sworn to defend. Poet and Hero in the Persian Book of Kings enhances our understanding of the relationship between myth and epic. It will be welcomed by readers working in such fields as comparative literature, Middle Eastern Studies, folklore, literary theory, and comparative religion.
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Editorial Reviews

Booknews
Davidson addresses the literary as well as the historical and mythological aspects of the Persian Classical epic, the Shanama or Book of Kings, composed by Abu'l-Qasem Ferdowsi at the beginning of the 11th century. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
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Product Details

  • ISBN-13: 9781568591872
  • Publisher: Mazda Publishers, Incorporated
  • Publication date: 1/30/2006
  • Series: Bibliotheca Iranica Ser.
  • Edition description: REV
  • Edition number: 2
  • Pages: 189

Table of Contents

Foreword
Acknowledgments
Introduction 1
Pt. I The Poet and His Poetry 17
1 The Authority of Ferdowsi the Poet 19
2 The Authority of Ferdowsi's Shahnama 29
3 Ferdowsi's Oral Poetic Heritage 54
Pt. II The Hero 73
4 Book of Kings, Epic of Heroes 75
5 King and Hero, Shah and Pahlavan 95
6 Rostam, Guardian of Sovereignty 110
7 The Concept of Premature and Immature Fatherhood in the Story of Rostam and Sohrab 128
8 Father-Son Dioscurism as a Model of Authority in the Shahnama 142
9 Feasting and Fighting: Ultimate Occasions for Hero and Poet 156
Conclusion 168
Appendix: A Formulaic Analysis of Samples Taken from the Shahnama of Ferdowsi 171
Bibliography 183
Index 193
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