Etudes de genre et population fictionnelle des Mille et une nuits : nouvelle approche

Résumé En

Feminist approaches and gender studies are among the most notable works devoted to the Thousand and One Nights . Šahrazād monopolizes the attention and is treated as a monolithic character, there are in fact several Šahrazāds, depending on the textual version considered. The one who learns history and has three children ( ZER ) is not the same as the one who learns medicine and has no children (G/Kayseri). On the other hand, Šahrazād would benefit from being reintegrated into her universe beside the other characters: in the Nights , a story can occur with male protagonists ( The Second Shaykh ) and be repeated with female protagonists ( The Eldest Lady ), or feature characters who biologically change their gender, through metamorphosis or, in their appearance, through disguise. Such behavioral variations can affect the entire population of the Nights , which new work proposes to approach in the manner of demographers, as has been practiced for illustrated albums (Brugeilles, Cromer, and Cromer) and as Françoise Lavocat’s research on the French novel shows. Now, with some adjustments (Katz; van Renterghem), it seems possible to transpose this type of approach to medieval Arabic literature and more particularly to the Thousand and One Nights .