| Publication |
2009.
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| Summary/Abstract |
This article examines male/female dynamics in three versions of the classical story of the Sassanian prince Bahr m G r and his lyre-playing slave girl: that of the Sh hn ma of Firdaws?, the Haft Paykar of Niz m? Ganjav?, and the Hasht Bihisht of Am?r Khusraw. It argues that each version provides progressively more positive depictions of intergender dynamics, ones that are contingent upon more egalitarian understandings of the male/female dichotomy. The later authors destabilize the categories of "male" and "female," equalizing and even uniting the dichotomous pairs, so that men and women draw nearer to each other in qualities rather than remaining in their usual polarized positions. In the Hasht Bihisht, moreover, we witness a reversal of hierarchies in which traditionally feminine qualities receive preference over masculine virtues-an act that suggests fresh possibilities for harmonious interactions between the sexes.
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