Jorge Luis Borges, (1899-1986), an Argentinian short-story writer, essayist, poet and translator
Jorge Luis Borges’s acquaintance with Persian literature dated back to his childhood and the great English library of his father, Jorge Guillermo Borges Haslam, contained more than one thousand books which he later called the chief event in his life (New Yorker). It was through this library that he became familiar with the great treasures of the world of literature like One Thousand and One Nights, and the Mantiq-ut-Tayr (The Conference of the Birds in English), and great Persian poets like 'Attar of Nishapur', a mystic and theoretician of Sufism, and 'Omar Khayyám' which later he called the former one of his philosophy teachers. As a child, he read Attar’s Mantiq-ut-Tayr and One Thousand and One Night day by day which had some influences in shaping his infant mind and later showed its influence in his own works. In addition to his father, Borges met some people during his lifetime which made him more interested in Persian Literature like Farid Hoosh Far, a Persian physicist, whom he met in 1962 in USA and Rafael Cansinos-Asséns, a Spanish writer and scholar, whom Borges met in Madrid and called one of his masters who compiled a book named “Anthology of Persian poets” and translated some parts of One Thousand and one Nights from Arabic to Spanish for the first time. On the other hand, Borges’ familiarity with Khayyam went back to his father’s translation of FitzGerald’s English version into Spanish which was published in several issues of Gran Guignol y Proa in 1924 and 1925. It is also interesting to know that it was Edward FitzGerald who translated The Rubáiyát into Spanish for the first time. Moreover, He wrote a brief introduction ...
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...’s Gulistan, their interests in discovering one of the world’s oldest literatures has been increasing and led to great numbers of scholars and influential researches, essays, and books. But, what is the mystery of these verses which make a traveler or scholar of a western country to stay afloat in this special Persian rose water, to become overwhelmed in a great Persian philosophy of life and being? What is in this burning wine which intoxicates those like Goethe and Nietzsche to just name a few in such manner? One possible answer could be the fact that whatever comes from the heart carries the heat and color of its birthplace as the Persian idiom says. The universality of their themes in which the heart of humanity and love for the whole of the human race are throbbing is the secret of their perenniality lead many people to find a voice they needed to hear in them.
His text offers philosophical and cultural meaning that is completely original. Certain beliefs are threaded through out the content of the
Literature shows us the changes of our society from time to time. It also gives us an idea about people, culture, politics, gender traditions, as well as an overall view of previous civilizations. As a part of literature, poetry introduces us to different cultures with different perspectives. Ancient Egypt and ancient China may differ in terms of culture, politics, economic stability, tradition, or even in religious belief. However, in poetry, especially in love lyrics both Egyptian and Chinese poems portray common area of describing women, social attitudes toward love, sexuality and the existence of romance or selfishness in relationships. . If we look at the Egyptian poem “My god, my Lotus” and the Chinese poem “Fishhawk”, we will see both poems have similarities in describing relationships. Also, they have the similarity of imagining the lovers and their expression of love toward each other. However, both poems have some significant differences in terms of representing female sexuality, gender disparity and the display of love.
In this period, there are the bases for the creation of a new movement that will culminate during the 14th century. This particular view is enclosed in a sub-movement called humanism: humanists encouraged to put in the centre of the universe the man. The man is the main centre of the universe and of the thoughts. In this period intellectuals obtained answers in the works of the ancient classics, they embraced the classic culture, especially the ancient Greek culture, leading to the birth of a new science: The Philology, whose main learner was Lorenzo Valla. Classic themes are the inspiration for the artists: from poets to painters, they are all under this influence.
With the passing of the notable ancient Greek greats, a new era in philosophy emerged. The Medieval period fostered an outburst of Islamic culture and thought, with many significant philosophers leading the way. Amongst these was Averroes, who thrived during the early 12th century. His many areas of interest allowed him to be a very learned and experienced individual, enabling him to produce many publications elaborating his thoughts. One of these publications is The Decisive Treatise, in which he discusses the role that philosophy plays in religion and how that impacts society. According to Averroes, in The Decisive Treatise, philosophy is a required part of religion that provides educated individuals with a deeper understanding of sacred texts.
Felix Gonzalez-Torres is a continuation of that historical influence, only when he adopted the languages of minimalism
Art has had a major influence in both Islamic, representing the East, and non-Islamic Christians, representing the West. In the book, My Name Is Red, author and famous Turkish novelist Orhan Pamukr, dissects the heart of 16th century Turkey as is straddles the edges of both Europe and Asia. Through his storytelling, Pamuk uses unusual perspectives to demonstrate the struggle against what some on the Turkish court considered a negative influence of the west creating the idea of the binary. While writing from unique outlooks, Pamuk also metaphorically uses red the color of love, describing Islam as the love between the Prophet Muhammad and Allah. This idea of a binary is exemplified between members of the Sultan’s inner circle or advisors and artists. In this tale of struggle, the book focuses on the court of Sultan Murat III, who r...
How can someone who lived hundreds of years ago have such a lasting impact on individuals throughout history? Today, Rumi’s influence can be seen throughout humanity. Even though he has been deceased for more than eight hundred years, he is the most widely read poet. Rumi’s poetry reflects the spiritual, political, and social aspects of his time as well as these same characteristics in modern society. With two of his poems, entitled “Those Who Don’t Feel This Love” and “One Who Does What the Friend Wants Done,” Rumi successfully demonstrates his keen cognizance of these aspects in mankind. His beliefs and dispositions, depicted in his work, emulate humanity as a whole, making it relevant in our world today.
Al Ghazali a significant person in Islam has helped shape Islam to be what it is today - a living religious tradition for the lives of its adherents. His contribution to Islam though his theories, knowledge and works have left a positive impact upon the Islamic world that continues into the present. An everlasting impact upon the faith, Muslims and the expansion of Islam to be one of the most popular religious traditions in the present world for the lives of its adherents is seen as Al Ghazali’s
Among the many short stories that the Argentinian writer Jorge Luis Borges has written, "The Circular Ruins" was published in 1964 in a collection of his works entitled Labyrinths: Selected Stories & Other Writings. Even though "The Circular Ruins" may be classified as a Magical Realist text, one may wonder if this short story could be classified as the Sublime as well. By examining "The Circular Ruins," a reader will be able to see several similarities between Magical Realism and the Sublime.
To analyze this part, the writer focuses on the nature of the source text and the ideal reader. In the nature of the source text, he gives and example from La Première Gorger de Bière et autre Plaisirs Minuscules by Philipe Delerm: "Les Loukoums Chez L'Arabe." This text presents certain aspects of French life in both cultural and linguistic concepts. It contains several culturally specific words and notions whose implications for translation have to be considered.
There are many terms used to describe the period after the fall of Rome and before the Renaissance, three main terms being the Middle, Medieval, and Dark Ages. In general, these terms are used interchangeably, but are these fair substitutions? In recent years the term “Dark Ages” is becoming less and less acceptable as a phrase which describes the span of years it is meant to refer to. The use of the term “dark” implies a period of stagnation, which is becoming a questionable concept. In particular, the span of time referred to in this paper is 530-1452 BCE, with specific attention paid to the scientific discoveries and innovations rather than art or literature. These dates are significant because in 529 the Academy and Lyceum in Athens were shutdown by the Byzantine emperor, thus ending the Greek intellectual influence. The date of 1453 is chosen because many Greek texts arrived in Europe in 1453 after the fall of Constantinople at the hands of the Turks, thereby reviving the struggling European scientific fields (Bunch 93). This essay will show that the medieval period was not a so-called “dark age” because of scientific innovation in the Islamic world, and is only referred to as such because of the popular bias in the West of focusing on Europe. In order to make this clear, firstly, two objections to this proposition will be analyzed and clearly refuted. Following these counter arguments, the main weight of historical facts and events in the identification and explanation of Islamic scientific innovation will be presented, showing the inaccuracy of referring to the medieval period as dark. Finally, I will show that the misleading perception of the medieval era as stagnant is due to the modern bias for the superiority of Western...
Gabriel Garcia Marquez background has been influenced as many people in small Colombian towns with magical stories loaded of divinity when the strange event of nature has no other way to be explain from them(Latin people) that divinity, even when any event has an scientific explanation is not accept for them because of the culture. This...
Those whom had wealth, such as the lawyer, had knowledge of Zaabalawi but had set aside the need for it. Suggesting that due to his good fortune, he had forgotten the need for God and become more consumed with selfish and judgmental behaviors. The book seller, whom is selling books about wisdom and truth is full of greed. This represents that true “higher understanding” has nothing to do with material items. Those with civil authority, like the local district shiekh, try to rationally plan and control the search but it still did not guarantee their relationship with the Great Divine. The shiekh admits, "I myself haven’t seen him for years, having been somewhat preoccupied with the cares of the world”. The book seller, whom is selling books about wisdom and truth is full of greed. The calligrapher and the musician have a deeper connection with the mystic. Gad admits he owes his greatest moments of musical inspiration to the saint but reminds the narrator that no one can control the comings and goings of Zaabalawi, for saints and/or God refuses to operate on our timetables: "He might well come right now; on the other hand I mightn’t see him till death". He gets close to finding him when he meets the artist. By explaining the fact that time is never wasted when you are able to get to know someone, he is symbolizing that religion is focused on the relationships between
Poets shared their experience of the lives in poetic verses. For this reason, history is full of the stories with passionate and deep love. The same idea was also the central point of one of the most famous poet of the history named Galib. He was a famous poet of the seventeenth century, and has several touching poetries in Urdu and Persian language on his credit. In his poetry, deep love seemed to be the main idea, but the true essence was the deep sorrow and a sad impression which made his poetry stands out among others. In his magnificent and truthful poetry, Ghalib unfolded the distinctive relation between the love and sorrow. He demonstrated this unique relation by sharing his personal stories, for example the love with the God, love and passion with the lover and with the love with his nephew. In these relations hopelessness, grief and depression was a common attitude which made his poetry exceptional.
The enigmatic man, who is William Butler Yeats, has a life full of intense emotion and feeling that causes his experiences to be quite radical to say the least. His early childhood, interest in occults, and many encounters with questionable women truly shaped his lifetime of poetry in many ways. As well his poem “Sailing to Byzantium” had many complex themes, a central theme of time, and gave interesting views on art and experience. There were people of the poetry world that analyzed William Butler Yeats’ work and saw quite an interesting use of symbolism and a strikingly unique use of fantastical imagery. William Butler Yeats genuinely was a spiritualist poet.