Class Discussion Summary
Jackson D Smith
9/15/2022
FYS
Many books such as the bible and Shakespeare’s plays obtain their power from cruelty, prejudice, violence, and hatred. The Arabian Nights, translated by Husain Haddaway, includes some of these elements. The Dark Side of “The Arabian Nights”, by Robert Erwin, discusses the multiple issues found in the story. The class today mostly spoke about racial issues that derived from the book, but it branched off into multiple different realms of discussion. Also, the history of the book has affected consumers and translators. In regards to the discussion about race, the main point was the English and French translators of the book glorified the racist and sexual areas of the book. Did the author of the article mean to write things such as sex with slaves in an effort to shine a light on white supremacy? The answer can only be found by comparing the two versions(original Arabic and European versions) of the Arabian Nights and seeing what key details have been switched up. Furthermore, the authors of stories within European versions of the Arabian Nights were declared anonymous which therefore gave them an ability to include whatever they wanted- if the author was anonymous, then “anybody” could have written it, thus allowing room for any heightened racist or sexist writings without punishment. In regards to the history included in the story, the history is only as honest as the people who wrote it. Aside from the original version of the Arabian Nights, the aspects of Arabic culture has been changed throughout the translation by different French and British authors. Were the French and British trying to exaggerate the racism in the story to sell more copies? The answers can only be told by the authors themselves.
