Women's Roles in "Arabian Nights and Days"

A Comparison of Women's Roles in Naguib Mahfouz's "Arabian Nights and Days", adapted from "One Thousand and One Nights"

Presenter: Jessica Kenitzer

Presenter Status: Undergraduate student

Academic Year: 20-21

Semester: Fall

Faculty Mentor: Razzan Zahra

Department: English

Funding Source/Sponsor: SYRCE Symposium

Screenshot URL: https://drive.google.com/uc?id=1dmIZcPEAkCba_wJaPlGN4eyNk6htqruY

Abstract:
The purpose of this project is to conduct an analysis of how Naguib Mahfouz's "Arabian Nights and Days" demonstrates aspects of female roles of the Middle East that are adapted from the original tales of "One Thousand and One Nights". The powerpoint slides begin with presenting a thesis and introducing Naguib Mahfouz's background and literary career. The following slides go into detail of how the stories of "Arabian Nights and Days" connect to the "One Thousand and One Nights" collective tales. Then a picture and word collage is presented to demonstrate a collection of representations of the female frametale, Scheherazade/Shahrzad, along with her sister Dunyazad. The powerpoint slides cover similarities and differences among the two literary works as it pertains to female roles and patriarchy that are then followed by excerpt examples and analysis. Lastly, the remaining slides discuss 1980s feminism act and patriarchy in the Middle East as it pertains to the female roles highlighted from the two literary tales.