Irreverent Persia: Invective, Satirical and Burlesque Poetry from the Origins to the Timurid Period (10th to 15th Century)
edited by Riccardo Zipoli
Leiden University Press, 2015 eISBN: 978-94-006-0213-7 | Paper: 978-90-8728-227-1 Library of Congress Classification PK6416.Z577 2015
ABOUT THIS BOOK | AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY | REVIEWS | TOC
ABOUT THIS BOOK
Poetry that uses satire, invective, and burlesque to criticize social, political, and cultural life has been a vital part of Persian literature for centuries. This anthology brings together some of the most impressive, important, and, crucially, irreverent poetry from major and minor poets from the earliest days of Persian poetry through the death of Jami in 1492, the moment when the classical era of Persian poetry ended.
AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY
Riccardo Zipoli is professor of Persian language and literature at Ca’ Foscari University in Venice.
REVIEWS
“The western cliché about Persian poetry is that it deals with roses, nightingales, wine, hyperbolic love-longing, an awareness of the transience of our existence, and a delicate appreciation of life’s fleeting pleasures. And so a great deal of it does. But there is another side to Persian verse, one that is satirical, sardonic, often obscene, one that delights in ad hominem invective and no-holds barred diatribes. Perhaps surprisingly enough for the uninitiated reader it is frequently the same poets who write both kinds of verse. Riccardo Zipoli’s Irreverent Persia is a splendidly comprehensive introduction to this fascinating and hitherto virtually ignored side of the Persian literary canon, providing a wealth of examples of the varieties of the genre in accurate and felicitous translations.”
— Dick Davis, Ohio State University
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Contents Notes on Transliteration System, Dates and Biographical Information Acknowledgements Introduction The Genre of Hajv (‘Satire’, ‘Mockery’, ‘Verbal Aggression’) The Genre of Hazl (‘Witticism’, ‘Facetiae’, ‘Bawdy Poetry’) Historical Background Poetic Forms Tradition of Studies Authors and Texts chapter 1 – Invective Poetry Physical Images Actions Involving the Victims of Satire Imprecatory Poetry Composite Poetry chapter 2 – Satirical Poetry Patrons and Ruling Classes Poets Court Milieu Religious Context Women as Habitual Subject for Satire Satirising Members of a Family Peoples and Towns Addressees with no Social Labels Behaviour and Customs chapter 3 – Burlesque Poetry Form and Content Replies to Poems Biographies of the Poets Glossary of Key Literary Terms Notes Bibliography Index of Names, Places and Works
Irreverent Persia: Invective, Satirical and Burlesque Poetry from the Origins to the Timurid Period (10th to 15th Century)
edited by Riccardo Zipoli
Leiden University Press, 2015 eISBN: 978-94-006-0213-7 Paper: 978-90-8728-227-1
Poetry that uses satire, invective, and burlesque to criticize social, political, and cultural life has been a vital part of Persian literature for centuries. This anthology brings together some of the most impressive, important, and, crucially, irreverent poetry from major and minor poets from the earliest days of Persian poetry through the death of Jami in 1492, the moment when the classical era of Persian poetry ended.
AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY
Riccardo Zipoli is professor of Persian language and literature at Ca’ Foscari University in Venice.
REVIEWS
“The western cliché about Persian poetry is that it deals with roses, nightingales, wine, hyperbolic love-longing, an awareness of the transience of our existence, and a delicate appreciation of life’s fleeting pleasures. And so a great deal of it does. But there is another side to Persian verse, one that is satirical, sardonic, often obscene, one that delights in ad hominem invective and no-holds barred diatribes. Perhaps surprisingly enough for the uninitiated reader it is frequently the same poets who write both kinds of verse. Riccardo Zipoli’s Irreverent Persia is a splendidly comprehensive introduction to this fascinating and hitherto virtually ignored side of the Persian literary canon, providing a wealth of examples of the varieties of the genre in accurate and felicitous translations.”
— Dick Davis, Ohio State University
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Contents Notes on Transliteration System, Dates and Biographical Information Acknowledgements Introduction The Genre of Hajv (‘Satire’, ‘Mockery’, ‘Verbal Aggression’) The Genre of Hazl (‘Witticism’, ‘Facetiae’, ‘Bawdy Poetry’) Historical Background Poetic Forms Tradition of Studies Authors and Texts chapter 1 – Invective Poetry Physical Images Actions Involving the Victims of Satire Imprecatory Poetry Composite Poetry chapter 2 – Satirical Poetry Patrons and Ruling Classes Poets Court Milieu Religious Context Women as Habitual Subject for Satire Satirising Members of a Family Peoples and Towns Addressees with no Social Labels Behaviour and Customs chapter 3 – Burlesque Poetry Form and Content Replies to Poems Biographies of the Poets Glossary of Key Literary Terms Notes Bibliography Index of Names, Places and Works
ABOUT THIS BOOK | AUTHOR BIOGRAPHY | REVIEWS | TOC