Ebook The Shahnameh: The Persian Book of Kings, by Dick Davis
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The Shahnameh: The Persian Book of Kings, by Dick Davis
Ebook The Shahnameh: The Persian Book of Kings, by Dick Davis
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The great national epic of Persia—the most complete English-language edition and definitive translation by Dick Davis, available in a deluxe edition by Penguin Classics.Wherever Persian influence has spread, the stories of the Shahnameh become deeply embedded in the culture, as amply attested by their appearance in such works as The Kite Runner and the love poems of Rumi and Hafez. Among the greatest works of world literature, this prodigious narrative, composed by the poet Ferdowsi in the late tenth century, tells the story of pre-Islamic Iran, beginning in the mythic time of creation and continuing forward to the Arab invasion in the seventh century. The sweep and psychological depth of the Shahnameh is nothing less than magnificent as it recounts classic tales like the tragedy of Rostam and Sohrab.Now Dick Davis, “our pre-eminent translator from the Persian” (Washington Post), presents a comprehensive translation of Ferdowsi’s masterpiece in an elegant combination of prose and verse, allowing the poetry of theShanameh to sing its own tales directly, interspersed sparingly with clearly-marked explanations to ease along modern readers.For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.
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Product details
Paperback: 928 pages
Publisher: Penguin Classics; Deluxe edition (February 27, 2007)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0143104934
ISBN-13: 978-0143104933
Product Dimensions:
5.9 x 1.7 x 8.7 inches
Shipping Weight: 2.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review:
4.3 out of 5 stars
77 customer reviews
Amazon Best Sellers Rank:
#99,500 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
The content itself is obviously great, 5/5 stars for that. It has been rewritten in English very well and reads fluidly. The only disappointment I have with this purchase that lead to this one star review is the condition the book is in when it arrives... This is my second time buying this book, and BOTH times the book arrived beat up, especially around the edges. This is not how books should arrive, especially if bought brand new. Amazon has more than enough boxes to address this problem, yet they insist on shipping books in bags.
Instead of translating the poetic original, the translator, Mr. Dick Davis, wisely chose to use the storytellers' version and only sprinkling occasional poetry for emphasis and flavor. It makes for easy reading for foreigners but still conveyed the essence of Persian culture. To complement the popular verse version, he used popular art of the market place as illustrations instead of the highly refined style of the elite. However, I do miss the elegance of miniature paintings and the beauty of courtly illustrations.I have always wondered why Shahnameh is considered by the Persians/Iranians as their national epic even though the mythical period took place in Central Asia and Afghanistan with no mention of the traditional Persian origin or the Achaemenids until Alexander showed up. Mr. Dick Davis explained that the poet Ferdowsi was writing for the Samanid shah who ruled only in eastern Iran. Besides, the Samanids claimed descent from a Parthian general who started his career in Khorasan and Tranoxiana and later even briefly claiming the Sassanid throne. As the epic was an assertion of national identity, it ended at the end of the Sassanid dynasty when the Arab conquest incorporated Persia into Dal al Islam.Since this is the Book of Kings, it began with the first king. The early mythical kings were the ones who taught the people the necessary skills for the development of civilization. Following the Zoroastrian tradition and Islamic belief, the conflict of good and evil started early and remained front and center. But right and wrong were drawn along the tribal lines as one could always justify his action by claiming the enemy was a demon. And a man's worth was measured by his strength and valor. To this day, strong men and wrestling champions are still highly esteemed in Central Asia. As the world was still small, everything to the west was Rome, everything to the east was China, everything to the south was India, and there were only demons in the north. The quarrels of the feuding princes explained the historical hostilities between the Iranians of Persia, the Turks from Transoxania, and the Greeks of the West. Since angels and demons and magical creatures lived among men, it's not surprising that some men lived hundreds of years. That's one of the reasons why the great Rostam was able to accomplish so many fantastic heroic feats. There were even some love stories and one had hints of Rapunzel and the Firebird. While the heroic house rose in Sistan, the royal house degenerated into chaos. Right and wrong were perverted and vengeance became the main theme as China and India were drawn in.To transition from myth to legend, Ferdowsi borrowed the ancient Akkadian story of Sargon the Great for Darab and had him rescued from the Euphrates. Of course Darab turned out to be the secret heir to the Persia royal house. After defeating the Greeks, Darab had an unacknowledged son by the daughter of the Greek king Filqus. This son just happened to be Sekandar. After abandoning the Greek princess and her son, Darab went home to civilization and had a legitimate son Dara by a proper wife. Because Sekandar the Greek was now the first born son of Darab, his conquest of Persian, though still a disaster, was no longer shameful to the proud Persians. Thus, Persia's national pride was restored. But, strangely, the Greeks were already Christians and Sekandar's title was Caesar. After he made a pilgrimage to Abraham's house in Mecca, he visited the queen of Andalusia and the emperor of China. He then travelled the world and had many fantastic adventures reminiscent of Sinbad's voyages. Creative license indeed!Legend finally yielded to history and five generations in the story covered five hundred years in history thus conveniently skipped over the Greek Seleucid dynasty and the Parthian Arsacid dynasty and jumped right into the Persian Sassanid dynasty. To legitimize his rule, Ardeshir claimed descent from the Achaemenids. Here, he was transformed into a descendant of the Kayanids for the same reason. This being such a long epic, some stories began to repeat themselves. As Sassanid was a Zoroastrian dynasty, astrologers predicted everyone's fate and the chief priest functioned as chief advisor. In an increasingly centralized society where the kings held absolute power, the degree of violence and brutality also increased. However, right and wrong were still subjective. When a Persian king committed horrendous atrocities against his enemies, he was hailed as a great just king. But when he did the same to the Iranians, he was cursed as an evil unjust king. Bahram Gur became the idealized king on whom was hung the dreams and fantasies of the lost golden age. Somehow, the emperor of China had become the lord of Turan and the people of Central Asia became known as Chinese Turks. Then Khosrow Parviz and Shirin's love story was elaborated by later poets into one of the most beautiful love stories in Persian literature. As no empire can be conquered without it being corrupt from within first, the fall of the Sassanids, in my opinion, was due more from the chaos and splintering after the death of Khosrow Parviz than from the Arabs' religious zeal. As Shahnameh keeps telling us, fortunes change as the heaven turns and nothing lasts forever in this fleeting world.Unfortunately, by the time Ferdowsi finished his epic, the Samanids had been replaced by the Ghaznavid Turks, the bad guys in his Shahnameh. Poor Ferdowsi had to find refuge in the home of a Sassanid descendant. Fortunately, Persians/Iranians, seeking their pre-Islamic heritage, took up the tales and kept them alive. As the saying goes, "Why let the facts ruin a good fiction?" In a world of oppression, larger than life heroes and bigger than reality fantasies are what people need to brighten their dreary days and give them hope. That's why the stories of Shahnameh have become immortal.
this is an expanded edition of Davis's earlier excellent translation. more of quite a very good thing. it is a delight to read and invites total immersion in this historical and literary world. as a general reader i was entranced by Ferdowsi's universe and Davis's language. this work elucidates the history of the entire vast region and period in a way which provides great pleasure in the work itself, admiration for its ethical and aesthetic universe, and better understanding of today's shifting alliances and dreadful conflicts (as well as circumstances in our own parlous times and characters in our own deplorable politics.) Davis's fine introduction mentions that it was impossible to include the entire work in this edition and, pressed by this stricture, the decision to leave out some of the moral minutiae (as being of less interest to contemporary readers.) certainly we could all benefit today from contemplation of moral teachings and from access to more of Ferdowsi's compelling work in Davis's felicitous and seemingly transparent translation.
It's a good rendition, BUT, this of course an abridged attempt at Shanameh. I have 3 different copies of Shahnameh, and all of them have things the others don't so if I want to actually enjoy them properly I have to simultaneously read all three, which is kind of cumbersome. There are a few major things missing from the chapters in this book, but other than that it's very good.
The epic is greater than life - and the translator combines rare expertise with beautiful poetic language, and thus conveys some of the heroic spirit of the original. The choice to translate from the nakl version, which is partly prose, can be debated, but it's certainly legitimate. And the result is amazing. If you're interested in myths, legends, Persian culture or even if you want to understand an important edifice in modern Iranian culture, read this book.
Go out and buy this book now! It is a wonderful compilation of Persian legends and the back-stabbing that princes do to those who support them "too much"! Comparable is some ways to The Golden Bough combined with Arabian Nights, the stories related in this superb book are totally unknown by Western readers, which makes them delightful, if occasionally gruesome. Davis' translation is a master work, somehow infusing prose with the kind of poetry myths require. A window into the soul of Persia, perhaps especially relevant now.
Here’s some advice to add up some paceNo need to read the description of every raceContains repetition I totally agreeTranslated well by Davis ‘n it’s worth a readDescription of evil will look like the sameFor good characters you’ll see no changeSo focus on events but not on every wordEnjoy ‘n read like the way you just heard
I love this book and it was very useful for my grad research project. The translation is perfect and the book captures the elegance and grace of Ferdowsi. It is worth reading for any person and I wish that someday, this epic poem will be made into a miniseries for tv so even more people can enjoy this story.
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