NES 4717 - [Medieval Arabic Poetry]

(GHB) (LA-AS)

Fall. 4 credits.

Next offered 2014-2015. Co-meets with NES 6717.

S. Toorawa.

In this course we explore the splendor of medieval Arabic poetry-in English translation-through 12 poets in the pantheon, including the Arabian al-Khansa, renowned for elegies on her brothers slain in battle; the Baghdad poets Abu Nuwas, lover of wine and boys, and Abu Tammam, patronized poet of the Abbasid court; al-Mutanabbi, the Syrian “would-be-prophet,” praiser, and satirizer of princes; the Iberian Ibn Zaydun, one-time vizier and lover of the poetess Wallada; and the Egyptian mystical poet, Ibn al-Farid. In addition to learning about the lives and milieux of these and other poets, we will focus on one or more of their most celebrated poems. (An option will be available for students interested in reading the poems in Arabic.)