Linking 'Arabian Nights' to the Modern World
The 'Arabian Nights' Collection has been adapted in many different ways throughout the years. This has been been through many different mediums, such as theatre, film and publishing. As I want to try take a modern-day approach to 'the Tale of the Three Apples', I feel it would be very informative and interesting to have a look at how this has been attempted in the past.
1001 Nights, Douglas Rintoul (2014) [1]
In this 2014 stage adaptation of the Arabian Nights collection, a young Syrian girl, Shahrazad, leaves her mother in war-torn Damascus to seek refuge in the UK. In this approach, Shahrazad is telling the stories to her new UK neighbours in a council estate, rather than to the King. The director wanted to distance the production's influence from the well-known Disney 'Aladdin' adaptation (1992). I thought this was highly relevant, as this is also what I want to achieve with my approach - I want to change the way reader's think about the whole 'Arabian Nights' concept. This version is also extremely significant at the moment, due to the Syrian crisis being covered in all news outlets, and the resulting influx of refugees into European countries.
(1001 Nights trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cg12iMmYdgk)
Palestine/Israel Conflict
Amjad Nasser (2015) [2]
In this Al-Araby blog, Nasser suggests that 'Arabian Nights' narrative has an underlining message of resistance. This interesting theory suggests that Shahrazad's actions are a reflection of how the Palestinians' cause ''must have a narrative, otherwise it is futile''. I found this blog eye-opening, giving me another Middle-Eastern issue I could tackle. Amjad Nasser believes that there are only two weapons the King in the story possesses - the sword and speech. The latter obviously being the stronger and more devastating. Shahrazad must rely upon the only weapon she has, speech, in order to prevent the King from using his sword to massacre more women. This is a powerful metaphor for the Palestinians' struggle against the Israeli army, and is also a suggestion for them to use narrative. The idea literally plays upon the idea of 'the pen is more effective than the sword'.
References:
1. http://www.maidenhead-advertiser.co.uk/Entertainment/Theatre/Latest-Theatre-News/Arabian-Nights-with-a-modern-twist-26062014.htm
2. http://www.alaraby.co.uk/english/blog/2015/4/21/arabian-nights-a-lesson-for-modern-palestinians
