SOURCE: Beaumont, Daniel. “Alf Laylah wa Laylah or The Thousand and One Nights.” In Slave of Desire: Sex, Love, and Death in The 1001 Nights, pp. 15-31. Cranbury, N.J.: Associated University Presses, 2002.

In the following excerpt, Beaumont traces the literary history of The Arabian Nights, offering an overview of European translations that he contends have influenced modern versions of the tales, examining the original sources of the stories, and discussing the research and criticism generated a “multiple text” that he considers not at all representative of medieval Arabic literature.

By the night when she hides with her veil, By the day when he reveals, By that which created male and female— Truly your paths are varied 

—Qur’ān, Surah “Night” (92: 1-3)

Like one of the Jinn who suddenly materialize and vanish in its pages, Alf laylah wa laylah or The Thousand and One Nights is a book that...