FYS: Formal Essay 1st Draft
In the early seventh century in Mecca and Medina, the new religion of Islam was born. Islam was a slow-growing religion that did not take off until after Muhamad died. After he died in the mid-six hundreds, Muhammad’s followers started to spread the new religion. From this religion, many new cultures and stories started to appear. It is often thought that women do not have many rights in the Muslim world. On top of this, it was very rare that women would speak up to men, let alone speak up to the King. They were supposed to be submissive to their father or husband. Despite these stereotypes, Sharazad acts as an independent woman who stands up for what she believes.
“The Arabian Nights,” translated by Hussin Haddaway, is a compilation of stories that together make up the book. In the introduction of “The Arabian Nights”, Haddaway writes about the stories being passed down from generation to generation. He acknowledges that the details of the stories have changed over time, but the ideas have never changed. He writes about how these stories would be read to children as bedtime stories and how they would tell the stories when they grew up. The book starts with a story about King Shahraya being betrayed by his wife. In anger, he has his wife killed and decides that from then on, he shall sleep with a new woman every night, and in the morning, he will kill them so they can not betray him. After many nights of doing this, the kingdom is running out of women.
The Vizier’s daughter, Sharazad, watches this happen night after night and decides to do something about it. In the story of Arabian Nights, Sharazad is overlooked and not appreciated for the heroic role that she plays in the story. Sharazad saw what the King was doing to these women and decided to stand up for them. She went to her father and said, “I would like you to marry me to King Shahraya, so that I may either succeed in saving the people or perish and die like the rest” (15). The Vizer was hesitant, but Sharazad did not stop fighting. He convinced her father that she needed to try. She took this courageous step because she knew the risk that she might be killed in the morning. Sharazad believed in herself and was willing to make the ultimate sacrifice in order to save others. This was not the only time that Sharazad acted as the heroine. With all her knowledge, Sharazad came up with a whole plan with her sister so that she could tell the King a story. She would tell him a story, and at the end, she would say, “Tomorrow night I shall tell you something even more entertaining if the king lets me live” (29). This is a bold statement for Sharazad to make. The King could easily have her executed just for saying this, but Sharazad does not care and continues saying things like this for many nights. Sharazads actions save many women’s lives, making her a true heroine.
Sharazad did not care about what she was expected to do; instead, she paved her own path. Sharazad stood up for what she believed was right. The fact that a character like Sharazad is in the stories of “The Arabian Nights” is shocking. Interestingly, the author of these stories chose to include a strong female role because this does not align with how women were seen at this time. It is often believed that “The Arabian Nights” was a story passed down from generation to generation. This poses the question of why there was a strong female role in this story. What was it trying to teach the future generations? One can assume that it is trying to teach young women that they need to have their own voice and fight for what they believe is right. If this is the case, it definitely causes some confusion. It is often taught that Muslim women can not do anything without the permission of their fathers or their husband’s permission. This idea directly contradicts Sharazads role in “The Arabian Nights”. Time and time again, Sharazad stands up to the King and does things to help others. On the other hand, since we do not know how the book ends, maybe Shahrazad is meant to be a cautionary tale of what happens if you stray from the path. As of now, one can assume this is not the case; otherwise, it would be a very short book. Shahrazad’s character could not have empowered future generations without the stories being passed down.
If Shahrazad had not stood up to her father and the King, many more women would have died. Thanks to her, many women lived, and even more learned from her. It is important to remember that you need to fight for what you believe, even if no one else supports you. One should not do something because you are not supposed to. Think of all the women who have broken stereotypes and made the world a better place. What would our world be if women were complacent?
This essay was a really well-done analysis of the Arabian Nights! My biggest note is just for you to make your argument clear. Your detailed analysis really does explain a lot of backstory on the book and how Sharazad is an independent woman that helps others, but I wonder what would happen if you connected back to your argument more and what each thing means for women. For smaller notes; as we discussed in class, I suggest fixing the typo with Muhammad and briefly explaining who he is because otherwise, it is just a random name that’s not much connected to the story, or see if including it is even necessary. I also suggest making your first paragraph flow better and explaining your argument compared to the point a bit more in that. Additionally, at the end of the third paragraph, I suggest explaining a bit more about the manipulation Sharazad did and how exactly she saved the women’s lives. The 4th paragraph seems to have a lot of repeat sentences and stuff that may not be necessary or needs more explanation, so I would go over that and see what is most important to your argument. I really did like your concluding paragraph, it was witty and very powerful. Overall, a very good essay about Arabian Nights.
I think this essay was a well-written summary of the Arabian Nights with sufficient analysis in certain places! Note, I said summary, because as beautifully as you’ve described the story and the roles of each character along with the historical context, your argument does not come through very clearly. I would suggest making it clear from the start so that it’s easier for the reader to follow through. What are you trying to let the readers know? I assume your claim to be that women are given less importance in the stories, especially in the case of Sharazad.
I found the concluding paragraph particularly well-written; it was quite inspiring and you did a good job of tying it together with the rest of your essay. Your use of quotations are really good, but I suggest you elaborate a little more on the role of women and how they have been depicted throughout the story. It might help to compare different instances of how women were treated throughout the Arabian Nights. Overall, it was a good read and I liked the way you incorporated so many details into your essay. Good job, Sophia!