The Arabian Nights

In Our Time

BBC

History

4.6 • 9.2K Ratings

🗓️ 18 October 2007

⏱️ 43 minutes

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Summary

Melvyn Bragg discusses the myths, tales and legends of the Arabian Nights.Once upon a time a wealthy merchant grew hot in the sun and sat down under a tree. Having eaten a date, he threw aside the stone, and immediately there appeared before him a Genie of enormous height who, holding a drawn sword in his hand, approached him, and said, “rise that I may kill thee”. This is from The Arabian Nights, a collection of miraculous tales including Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves and Sinbad the Sailor. Forged in the medieval Arab world, it became so popular in Europe that the 18th century Gothic writer Horace Walpole declared “Read Sinbad the Sailor’s Voyages and you will grow sick of Aeneas”.Its origins are Indian and Persian but it was championed initially by an 18th century Frenchman, Antoine Galland. Celebrated for its fabulous stories, it is a patchwork of sex, violence, magic, adventure, and cruelty – a far cry from the children’s book that it has become. With Robert Irwin, Senior Research Associate at the School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London; Marina Warner, Professor in the Department of Literature, Film and Theatre Studies at the University of Essex; Gerard van Gelder, Laudian Professor of Arabic at the University of Oxford.

Transcript

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0:00.0	Just before this BBC podcast gets underway, here's something you may not know.
0:04.7	My name's Linda Davies and I Commission Podcasts for BBC Sounds.
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0:44.3	forward slash radio for I hope you enjoy the program.
0:47.0	Hello once upon a time a wealthy merchant grew hot in the sun and sat down under a tree. Having eaten a date he threw
0:54.7	aside the stone and immediately there appeared before him a genie of enormous
0:58.9	height who holding a drawn sword in his hand approached him and said rise that I may kill thee.
1:05.0	This is from the Arabian Nights a collection of wonderful tales including Alibaba
1:09.2	under 40 thieves, Aladdin and Sinbad the sailor. Forged in the medieval Arab world, it became so popular in Europe that the 18th century
1:16.7	Gothic writer Horace Walpole declared,
1:18.7	Reed Sinbad the Sailors's voyages and you will grow sick of an ears. With me to unpick the complex
1:24.5	and ancient tapestry of stories that is the Arabian Knights are Robert Erwin, senior
1:29.0	research associate at the School of Oriental and African Studies at the University of London.
1:34.0	Marina Warner, Professor in the Department of Literature, Film and Theatre Studies at the University of Essex,
1:39.0	and Gerard Van Helder, Laudian Professor of Arabic at the University of Oxford.
1:44.0	Robert Owen, the heroine of the Arabian Nights is a young woman called to Herod'sard, who's to keep
1:48.2	telling stories to save her life.
	...

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