1. What are the fundamental differences in value systems between the duck and the three other animals; peahen, peacock and antelope metioned in The Tale of The Birds And The Beasts And The Carpenter?

2. What message through the story is meant for the King from Shahrazad in The City of Many-Columned Iram and Abdullah Son of Abi Kalibah?

3. In the opening chapter of The Story of King Shahryar And His Brother, Shahrazad is spared eligibility for beheading because she is one of the Wazir's daughters. Is her request to marry the king an act of fate/Allah's power, or rather an a human aspect of her personality?

4. What does Shahrazad teach the king through The Sweep and The Noble Lady?

5. What is the purpose of Shahrazad deciding to tell this seemingly innocuous story to the king in Ali The Persian?

6. What might Shahrazad be suggesting through her tale to the king in The Hermits?

7. What does the circular nature and connectedness of the happenings in The Tale of The Three Apples imply?

8. In the story of Nur Al-Din Ali And His Son Al-Din Hasan, how does Shahrazad continue to work towards her goal of convincing King Shahhryar to change his beliefs about women?

9. What is one moral implied by Shahrazad in the Tale of Ghanim in Ayyub, The Distraught, The Thrall O'Love?

10. In The Story of King Shahryar and His Brother, the tale within a tale about the fisherman and the Jinni demonstrates the power of what kind of belief system?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

In Ma'aruf the Cobbler and His Wife Fatimah it is shown that one cannot fully escape the past, as proven when Ma'aruf spends most of his life as far away from his wicked wife as possible. Using examples from this story and any others found germane enough to prove the argument, explore in an essay just how Shahrazad uses the workings of fate, and the idea that one cannot escape past evil deeds, to her advantage.

Essay Topic 2

In Abu Kir The Dyer And Abu Sir The Barber, the character of goodness in Abu Sir saves him from the evil actions of his false friend Abu Kir. All lies clearly become revealed in time, and as the saying goes, time heals all wounds. Write an essay outlining and explaining the ways in which the lessons stated above are acted out and proven throughout Abu Kir The Dyer And Abu Sir The Barber.

Essay Topic 3

Shahrazad is clearly an ingenious, persistent, and indelible character in The Arabian Nights and to the people of Persia, both in the book and through the book. Identify the stories she tells that you would find most poignant and pertinent to the People of Persia at the time this book was originally published. Write an essay arguing for the stories that may have been the most important and memorable for the people of the times, and why.

Draw hypotheses and conclusions specifically regarding:

A. What you have learned about Islamic culture/religion.

B. The ages of the stories.

C. The morals offered up in each story.

D. The way by which the stories are told (i.e. fables, humor-based, character sympathy, etc.).

(see the answer keys)

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