14126

The Quran in Light of Ancient Arabic Poetry

Ghassan El Masri

Comments

In this course we will explore the text and event of the Quran from the perspective of the history and literature of Arabia in the sixth century. As a first step, we will start by revisiting the history of pre-Islamic Arabia as narrated in Muslim sources, then we critically examine this narrative in light of the interests of the rising Islamic state. For our critical re-examination we will consider recent finding from archaeology and epigraphy. As a second step, we will revisit the poetic corpus of pre-Islamic Arabs as a whole, to understand the significance of its recurrent themes and motifs. As a third step, we will closely examine sample poems/verses from the poetic corpus and read them in conjunction with Suras/verses from the Quran. These three exercises will clarify the Quran’s dialogue with one of the most dominant forms of literature of its age, poetry. They will also (re-)locate Muslim scripture and ancient Arabic literature in the historical context of Arabia shedding new light on the social and cultural contexts that lead to the event of the Quran. For the course, a good knowledge of classical Arabic will be a plus. However, students with less than perfect mastery of classical Arabic, need not worry. The readings of the primary sources, will be selected in light of the ability of the group. close

Suggested reading

Abu-Deeb, Kamal. "Towards a Structural Analysis of Pre-Islamic Poetry." International Journal of Middle East Studies 6.2 (1975): 148-184. Al-Kindy, Salam, Le voyageur sans Orient:Poésie et philosophie des Arabes de l'ère préislamique, Sindbad, 1998. Caskel, Werner, Das schicksal in der altarabischen poesie: beiträge zur arabischen literatur-und zur allgemeinen religions-geschichte. Vol. 1. No. 5. Leipzig: E. Pfeiffer, 1926. Drory, Rina. "The Abbasid construction of the Jahiliyya: cultural authority in the making." Studia Islamica 83 (1996): 33-49. El Masri, Ghassan, "Ma?sal: what the ?alal would tell us." Qur'anic Studies Today. Routledge, 2016. 261-273. El Masri, Ghassan, The Semantics of Qur?anic Language: al-A?ira. Vol. 16. Brill, 2020. El Masri, Ghassan. "The Quran and the Character of Pre-Islamic Poetry: The Daliyya of al-Aswad b. Ya fur al-Nahshali (dc 600 CE)." (2017): 93-135. Hämeen-Anttila, Jaakko. "Paradise and nature in the Quran and pre-Islamic poetry." Roads to Paradise: Eschatology and Concepts of the Hereafter in Islam (2 vols.). Brill, 2017. 136-161. Hamori, Andras. On the art of medieval Arabic literature. Vol. 1447. Princeton University Press, 2015. Homerin, T. Emil, "Echoes of a Thirsty Owl: Death and Afterlife in Pre-Islamic Arabic Poetry." Journal of Near Eastern Studies 44.3 (1985): 165-184. Jacobi, Renate, "Die Altarabische Dichtung (6.–7. Jahrhundert)." Grundriss der arabischen Philologie 2 (1987). Jacobi, Renate, "Time and reality in nasib and ghazal." Early Islamic Poetry and Poetics. Routledge, 2017. 201-218. Kooper, Erik, ed. The medieval chronicle: proceedings of the 1st international conference on the medieval chronicle. Vol. 120. Rodopi, 1999. Neuwirth, Angelika; Scripture, Poetry, and the Making of a Community, Oxford University Press, 2014. Ringgren, Helmer. "Islamic fatalism." Scripta Instituti Donneriani Aboensis 2 (1967): 52-62. Sinai, Nicolai. "Religious poetry from the Quranic milieu: Umayya b. Abi l-?alt on the fate of the Thamud1." Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies 74.3 (2011): 397-416. Stetkevych, Suzanne Pinckney. The mute immortals speak: pre-Islamic poetry and the poetics of ritual. Cornell University Press, 1993. Tamer, Georges, Zeit und Gott: Hellenistische Zeitvorstellungen in der altarabischen Dichtung und im Koran, Walter De Gruyter, 2008. Von Grunebaum, Gustave E., "The nature of Arab unity before Islam." Arabica 10.Fasc. 1 (1963): 5-23. Webb, Peter, "Al-Jahiliyya: Uncertain times of uncertain meanings." Der Islam 91.1 (2014): 69-94. close