Shishir Neelakant

Discussion Paper 4
Cultures and Contexts: Islamic Societies
Discussion Paper: 4
In the history of the tenth to twelfth centuries, three types of stories broadly
ranging from the fable-like to the comic, satirical storylines, convey the essence of what
is Islamic. Intertwining facets of literature and religion in storytelling, first,
exemplifying the perfect citizen becomes an important facet of Islamic literature.
Second, didactic, fable-like tales mixed with sharp, dry wit, progressing slowly to the
satirical end of the spectrum, delivers a strong foundation of Islamic values for readers.
And finally, through humor and trickery, many authors presented maqamats: stories about
trickery and downfall, but when looked at a deeper context, reminded readers of
inescapable fate.
One of the most important Islamic qualities in literature includes the model
citizen storylines where fable-like stories are told. In the story of, The Authentic
Gentleman, the steward of Abu Mundhir recounts his masters philanthropic acts in the
name of God for the community. When he has clothes from the previous season, he sells
them cheaply and donates the funds to either debts of prisoners or the poor. And Abu
Mundhirs only rationale is that I would rather sell the goods by way of thanking God
for preserving me till I no longer need [the goods] (Schroeder 619). Even in matters of
food, Abu Mundhir would never waste but would rather donate the extra morsel of food
from his very own table to the beggars outside his house. And when asked why he would
ever donate the same meal to the beggars outside, he replied, I like to share my

pleasures (Schroeder 619). This ideal, romanticized concept of charity is a trademark of

what is Islamic. Not only does this writing evoke a sense of a role model Abu
Mundhir being questioned for his unique character and later proving himself to be
eccentric for a noble cause. This elevates the subject in the story as well as the values of
Islam as well. By showing role models who exemplify the religion, in this case in terms
of charity, Islam is remembered to be a benevolent religion.
Progressing from the ideal values and ethics storyline, oddly comical, though
fable-like storytelling is prevalent throughout many stories, and with sharp wit and
generally, dryly humorous endings, these stories mark what is Islamic. For example, in
the story of The Prodigal, which recounts the story of a young man who transforms his
living conditions from riches to rags and then to a moderately successful lifestyle, the
interactions between the narrator and the aforementioned young man lead to interesting
conclusions about Islamic literature. The story is first of all, didactic and teaches the
merits of saving money, frugal spending, and abstaining from frivolous pursuits of
wealth. This part of the story is shown when the main character first wanted to get rid of
[his money] as fast as possible, so as to see what he would do when all was gone
(Schroeder 640). This initial, nave, lack of respect towards inheritance and money then
transforms into reflection of his own destitution as he realizes that slave girls burst out
laughing (Schroeder 641) at his poverty, and more importantly, even his trusted friend
leaves him. When he finally collects enough money through his uncles inheritance, he
finally understands the value in wealth. Furthermore, he doubly tells his friend, the
narrator, who avoided him when he was poor, and recounts to the narrator: do you
remember how you treated me? (Schroeder 643). The main character understands the

value in maintaining friendship in times of wealth and poverty, and with disgust, he kicks
the narrator out of his home. The conclusion to the story involving the story ends the
story with a moral for the readers as well as a witty end to the story a staple to Islamic
literature. The didactic ending was also shown in the story of The Authentic Gentleman
when the kind, charitable Abu Mundhir told his guest that he did not want to just give
money to the poor but also, he wanted to give the delicious desert on the table because
[they] wouldnt in any case know how to cook such a dish even with money. The
didactic ending there shows the value in sharing joy rather than sharing wealth. The
implicit difference marks another hallmark facet of Islamic literature subtle storytelling
to convey a powerful teaching.
Finally, the most outrageous of the writing styles, which marked Islamic literature
in the tenth to twelfth centuries were maqamats. One particular example of a maqamat, is
Tanukhis story of the thief and the backgammon game. In this story, a thief stages a
game of backgammon in a house by dropping nuts (as was the way to play
backgammon), which he is about to steal from. The thief then proceeds to wrap up as
many of the goods in the house as he could carry (Irwin 164), and proceeded to run
away. If caught, the thief would pretend he won all of the items in the game of
backgammon (which the thief stages), and creating a huge ruckus, he would proceed to
attract the attention of the neighbors finally leaving the owner of the house utterly
humiliated in front of the neighborhood, and he, on his way, happily procuring as many
of the nuts and the owners possessions as he could carry. Even though this story is
conclusively, the least didactic of the three, in the progression towards satirical
storytelling, it exemplifies it. The tales of trickery among many show the inscrutable

fate (Irwin 165) of people; something that is inescapable and must be accepted rather
than fought. This story of trickery does a lot more than show humorous moments of
thievery and foul play, and the author, Tanukhi, posits this story as part of his
conversational repertoire stories that are casual but serve to show a point as well.
Progressing through the three stories, readers can see the rising level of cynicism
finishing every story. While the first was innocently commending the virtues of good
behavior and model citizenry upholding the virtues of Islam, the last goes as far to show
how people cannot escape their fate something that they must accept. Throughout the
tenth and twelfth centuries, these stories showed the range of the types of stories
prevalent while defining what is known to be the time periods Islamic literature.

Works Cited
Schroeder, Eric. Muhammad's People: An Anthology of Muslim Civilization. Mineola,
NY: Dover Publications, 2002. Print.
Irwin, Robert. The Penguin Anthology of Classical Arabic Literature. London: Penguin,
2006. Print.