Date:
Location:
The Department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations at Harvard University presents:
The Medieval Reception of Firdausī’s Shāhnāma: The Ardashīr Cycle as a Mirror for Princes
Nasrin Askari
Postdoctoral Research and Teaching Fellow, Department of Asian Studies
University of British Columbia
Monday, October 6, 4:00 p.m. 6 Divinity Avenue, room 201
Abstract: Firdausī’s Shāhnāma has often been studied as an epic or historical writing, but it does not quite fit either one of these two genres. Drawing on evidence from medieval Persian works, the lecture will demonstrate that the Shāhnāma was primarily understood as a mirror for princes in medieval times. To illustrate how the characteristics of an ideal government are presented in the Shāhnāma, an episode from the Ardashīr cycle will be analyzed and discussed.
Dr. Askari is a candidate for the Persianist position in NELC.