The Exemplum in Classical Persian Literature

Classical Persian literature is rich with entertaining narrative examples in the form of anecdotes, fables, tales, reports, and parables. Typically identified by terms such as hikayat, tamthil, qissah, and khabar, or introduced by phrases such as “it was said” or “I heard,” these stories can be read as what rhetorical theory refers to as "exempla" (singular, “exemplum”). Although often treated as literary ornaments or simple moral lessons, exempla were among the most powerful literary tools through which premodern writers explored topics in philosophical ethics, rhetorical persuasion, and moral truth. This book offers the first sustained study of the exemplum in Persian literature. Moving from Aristotle and Galen to the Arabic philosophical tradition of Al-Farabi, Avicenna, and Averroes, and drawing on a range of medieval and early modern poetry and prose genres, Alidina illuminates the use of exempla by one of the tradition’s boldest and most daring exponents: Farid al-Din ‘Attar. This book demonstrates how the study of Attar’s exempla not only sheds light on his philosophy of ethics, but also raises deep questions about the limits of deductive moral reasoning, the relationship between literary fiction and moral truth, and the power of stories to inspire spiritual and political transformation.