Reading Notes: Arabian Nights, Part A

For this week's reading, I read Arabian Nights and was amazed by it. I am in love with the character of Scheherazade. Scheherazade probably grew up in comfort and by being the grand-vizir's daughter, she was almost guaranteed safety. Yet she chose to risk her life in order to save countless others. She doesn't know if her plan will work, only that she must try. I really like how she is depicted as so brave and strong and clever. The Sultan, on the other hand, is a ridiculous character, so full of bitterness and anger. The fact that he would take out his hurt on innocent women shows him to be selfish and to have no value on life. Still, his character is deep and very interesting. Dinarzade is also a great character. She is described as not having any gifts to set her apart, but I think her love for her sister is admirable. I wonder what she must be feeling during all of this. It could be interesting to write from her perspective.
The story of the Merchant and the Genius is interesting so far. The merchant, only having a year to live, most likely did everything good he could in that year. After all of that, he deserves to live I think. It would be fun to write a story about someone who only has a short amount of time to live. I also like how Scheherazade is so clever in pausing the story, and then connecting the stories so she reels the Sultan in even more.
The first old man and the hind is a really interesting story. I like the mystical elements of it and the plot is really fascinating. I like the suspense of it, not knowing who will die, as well as the tragedy of it. The second old man and the two black dogs is a really good story as well. I found myself furious with the foolishness of the brothers, and then with their cruelty toward their brother who saved both of them. They are so full of selfishness. This could be really good inspiration for a story, though I am not sure what story yet.
I like the use of genies in the fisherman story. I also like how Scheherazade transitioned from the merchant to the fisherman and how she keeps transitioning. The story of the Greek king and the physician Douban is interesting in that the king is in need of healing and Douban heals him easily, causing jealousy from the grand-vizir. I like how uniquely he healed the king. I love how the story of the husband and the parrot and the story of the ogress are stories within a story within a story within a story. It is so creative to be so deep in stories. If I were able to, I would love to write a story like this. I'm actually very sad the king believed the vizir and killed Douban. It is unique how Douban's head continued to talk until the king died, when he got his revenge.
The stories of the sultan and the young king are so interesting. I like how the sultan saved the young king from the enchantress. It would be fun to write a story of a kingdom under a curse.
I enjoyed Scheherazade's stories and I love the idea of a person using a story to save their life. It is an idea that is not used much anymore, and I think I might like to use that theme to write a story. I also like the idea of the Sultan falling in love with Scheherazade and not wanting to kill her, but that is my romantic nature kicking in. 

Arabian Nights, Andrew Lang. Source link: Part A

Image information: "Scheherazade" painted by Edouard Frederic Wilhelm Richter. Web source: Wikipedia Commons