The Kushnameh : the Persian epic of Kush the Tusked / Iranshah.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Īrānshāh ibn Abī al-Khayr, active 11th century, author.

Series:

World Literature in Translation

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Epic poetry, Persian--Translations into English.

Epic poetry, Persian.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (433 pages)

Place of Publication:

Oakland, CA : University of California Press, 2022.

Summary:

The first English translation of a strange and unusual Persian epic, this action-packed tale of an evil, monstrous king explores questions of nature and nurture and brings the global middle ages to life. The great Persian epic known as the Kushnameh follows the entangled lives of Kush the Tusked--a monstrous antihero with tusks and ears like an elephant, descended from the evil emperor Zahhak--and Abtin, the exiled grandson of the last true Persian emperor. Abandoned at birth in the forests of China and raised by Abtin, Kush grows into a powerful and devious warrior. Kush and his foes scheme and wage war across a global stage reaching from Spain and Africa to China and Korea. Between epic battles and magnificent feasts are disturbing, sometimes realistic portrayals of abuse and oppression and philosophical speculation about nature and nurture and the origins of civilization. A fantastical adventure story stretching across the known world and a literary classic of unparalleled richness, this important work of medieval Persian literature is a valuable source for understanding the history of racism and constructions of race and the flows of lore and legend from the Central Asian Silk Road and the Sahara to the sea routes of the Indian Ocean and the Mediterranean. The Kushnameh is a treasure trove of Islamic and pre-Islamic Persian cultural history and a striking contemporary document of the "global middle ages," now available to English-speaking readers for the first time.

Contents:

Cover

Title Page

Copyright

Contents

Acknowledgments

Note on the Text

Introduction

The Epic of Kush

Invocation

Frame Tale

A Story [of Alexander's Travels in the East]

The Story of Kush the Tusked

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Epilogue

Index

Series.

Notes:

Description based on print version record.

ISBN:

9780520385306

9780520385313

0520385314

OCLC:

1286674580