Patronage and Poetry in the Islamic World

Social Mobility and Status in the Medieval Middle East and Central Asia

Jocelyn Sharlet

• Publisher: I.B. Tauris
• Year: 2011
• Print ISBN: 9781848853690
• eBook ISBN: 9780857720047
• Edition: 1
• Topic: History
• Subtopic: European Medieval History
• Index: History

Panegyric poetry, in both Arabic and Persian, was one of the most important genres of literature in the medieval Middle East and Central Asia. Jocelyn Sharlet argues that panegyric poetry is important not only because it provides a commentary on society and culture in the medieval Middle East, but also because panegyric writing was one of the key means for individuals to gain social mobility and standing during this period. This is particularly so within the context of patronage, a central feature of social order during these times. Sharlet places the medieval Arabic and Persian panegyric firmly within its cultural context, and identifies it as a crucial way of gaining entry to and movement within this patronage network. This is an important contribution to the fields of pre-modern Middle Eastern and Central Asian literature and culture.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Contents
• Acknowledgements
• INTRODUCTION
• 1. THE PROBLEM WITH POETRY
• 2. POETS TAKING RISKS TO GET AHEAD
• 3. INTRODUCTION TO ABU TAMMAM, AL-BUHTURI
• 4. TOOLS FOR THINKING: MOTIFS AND SYNTAX
• 5. PRE-INDUSTRIAL LIGHT AND MAGIC: RETHORICAL DEVICES AND FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE
• 6. GETTING TO KNOW YOU: CLOSE OBSERVATION AND EVALUATION
• 7. DOING BUSINESS: COMMUNICATION AND INTERACTION
• 8. THE COSMOPOLITAN PROFESSIONAL POET
• 9. THE SOCIALLY MOBILE PROFESSIONAL POET
• Conclusion
• Notes
• Bibliography
• Index