走近《一千零一夜》

Theory course, 2 credits. One Thousand and One Nights is regarded “the most magnificent monument” in world folk literature. Although the Nights originated in an Indo-Iranian milieu, the development of the work and the forming of its final version(s) were greatly enriched by Arabic storytelling, so it is often referred to as “The Arabian Nights.” Using the art of Arabic storytelling as a starting point, this course aims to guide the students, who are required to read selected Nights stories in Chinese and/or English translations before each session, to explore the development of the Nights, its framework and various types of its stories, so as to gain a thorough understanding of the importance of Arabic literature in world literature.Towards the end of the 19th century, the Nights was introduced and translated into Chinese. It was well received by the Chinese people who were famed for their own tradition of storytelling. Our course provides a comparative perspective to explore both the Arabic and Chinese storytelling techniques, as well as hopes for direct dialogue between different branches of oriental literature which is characterized by its long history and the ability of self-revitalization over time.