Patronage and poetry in the Islamic world
Subtitle: social mobility and status in the medieval Middle East and Central Asia
By: Jocelyn Sharlet
Series: Library of Middle East history -- 24; Library of Middle East history -- 24.
Publisher: I. B. Tauris; Distributed in the United States exclusively by Palgrave Macmillan
Published: 2011
Place of publication: London; New York; New York
Language: eng; ara
Number of pages: 326
ISBN-13: 9781848853690
Subjects: Arabic Laudatory poetry; History; Authors and patrons; Persian Laudatory poetry; History and criticism
Description: 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.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references (p. [305]-318) and index.