The story of Prince Ahmed and the fairy Paribanou E-Book

Andrew Lang

• Herausgeber: Booksell-Verlag
• Kategorie: Für Kinder und Jugendliche
• Sprache: Englisch

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2021

Beschreibung

In "The Story of Prince Ahmed and the Fairy Paribanou," Andrew Lang weaves a mesmerizing tapestry of enchantment reminiscent of classic Middle Eastern folklore. The narrative follows Prince Ahmed's perilous quest for love and adventure, guided by the ethereal fairy Paribanou. With its lush descriptive prose and vivid characters, Lang's storytelling captures the whimsical essence of traditional tales, all while incorporating his own unique style that blends elements of fantasy and moral allegory. The work is deeply rooted in the rich cultural heritage of the orient, reflecting both the timeless themes of love and heroism as well as the intricate narrative forms often found in the Arabian Nights tradition. Andrew Lang, a prominent Scottish author and collector of folklore, was deeply immersed in the study of myths and fairy tales, drawing inspiration from various cultures. His extensive background in anthropology and literature enabled him to adapt and reinterpret classic narratives, making them accessible to a broader audience. Lang's passion for storytelling shines through in his collected works, which include a multitude of fairy tales from diverse cultural backgrounds. This tale exemplifies his ability to fuse scholarly insight with engaging prose. I highly recommend "The Story of Prince Ahmed and the Fairy Paribanou" to readers who appreciate fairy tales that transcend their cultural origins while exploring universal themes of love and adventure. Lang's masterful storytelling not only entertains but also educates, making this work a profound addition to any literary collection. In this enriched edition, we have carefully created added value for your reading experience: - A succinct Introduction situates the work's timeless appeal and themes. - The Synopsis outlines the central plot, highlighting key developments without spoiling critical twists. - A detailed Historical Context immerses you in the era's events and influences that shaped the writing. - A thorough Analysis dissects symbols, motifs, and character arcs to unearth underlying meanings. - Reflection questions prompt you to engage personally with the work's messages, connecting them to modern life. - Hand‐picked Memorable Quotes shine a spotlight on moments of literary brilliance. - Interactive footnotes clarify unusual references, historical allusions, and archaic phrases for an effortless, more informed read.

Leseprobe

Andrew Lang

The story of Prince Ahmed and the fairy Paribanou

Enriched edition. A Magical Quest for Love and Destiny

In this enriched edition, we have carefully created added value for your reading experience.

Introduction, Studies and Commentaries by Beatrice Winthrop

Edited and published by Good Press, 2022

[email protected]

EAN 4064066448554

Table of Contents

Introduction

Synopsis

Historical Context

The story of Prince Ahmed and the fairy Paribanou

Analysis

Reflection

Notes

Introduction

Table of Contents

Rivalry, wonder, and the unpredictable justice of magic test what power and love truly mean. In Andrew Lang’s retelling of this classic tale, readers enter a world of dazzling marvels where family bonds strain under ambition and desire. The narrative opens onto a courtly sphere in which choices carry consequences beyond human design, and where encounters with the supernatural ask mortals to measure courage, prudence, and loyalty. Without revealing its turns, the story promises discoveries that glitter on the surface yet reveal deeper costs and obligations. It invites a reflective journey as much as an adventure, balancing spectacle with the quiet questions that accompany any fateful wish.

Often titled The Story of Prince Ahmed and the Fairy Paribanou, the tale appears in The Blue Fairy Book, first published in 1889, part of Andrew Lang’s celebrated series of Fairy Books issued between 1889 and 1910. Lang, a Scottish writer and folklorist, compiled and retold traditional narratives for a broad English-speaking readership, drawing here on the Arabian Nights tradition. The result is a Victorian-era literary fairy tale set against an imagined Eastern court, positioned at the crossroads of romance and adventure. Its compact, self-contained form makes it accessible to young readers while preserving the richness of its source milieu.

At its outset, the story presents a sovereign with three sons whose futures become entangled in a test that sends them across the world in search of incomparable treasures. Each prince seeks a marvel worthy of a prize and of glory at home, and the journeys introduce markets of wonders, thresholds guarded by etiquette, and bargains that bind. Within this framework, Prince Ahmed encounters the fairy Paribanou, a figure of formidable grace and power whose realm rewrites the rules of mortal courts. Their meeting forms the narrative’s central axis, reshaping the prince’s aims while deepening the stakes of kinship and duty.

Lang’s prose proceeds with brisk clarity, describing sumptuous settings and enchanted objects without obscuring the momentum of the plot. Decorative detail serves function: palaces and pavilions frame decisions; talismans catalyze choices; ritual gestures carry moral weight. The retelling preserves the rhythmic cadence of an oral tale—repetition, triads, incremental tests—yet remains economical and direct. Dialogue and description alternately quicken and cool the pace, creating a measured rise of tension that suits reading aloud. Readers encounter a sequence of thresholds and recognitions rather than labyrinthine psychology, a design that foregrounds action, promise, and proof in the spirit of wonder-driven storytelling.

Several enduring themes surface with clarity. Competition among siblings exposes questions of merit and entitlement, as the worth of a treasure is weighed against the wisdom of its seeker. Gifts demand discernment, because every marvel implies a bond, a debt, or a test of restraint. Hospitality and oath-keeping organize the social world, while magic operates as a kind of impartial grammar that rewards precision and punishes presumption. The border between human and supernatural becomes a mirror for exploring consent, autonomy, and loyalty. Through these motifs, the story examines how desire is refined by responsibility, and how authority gains its shape through limits.

For contemporary readers, the tale offers two distinct appeals. First, it presents a capable supernatural heroine whose presence complicates simple hierarchies of power, inviting reflection on partnership, choice, and the terms of aid. Second, it dramatizes the ethics of acquisition in a culture of dazzling commodities, a concern that resonates in consumer societies. As a bridge text between Near Eastern narrative traditions and Victorian children’s literature, it also reveals how stories travel and change through translation and retelling. Readers can enjoy the enchantment while remaining attentive to the period’s framing of distant places and the authority of royal institutions.

Approached today, the story promises a compact experience of romance and peril, suffused with sumptuous imagery and a steady current of moral inquiry. It rewards readers who savor ingenious objects, formal courtesies, and the quiet suspense of choices whose consequences unfold with ritual finality. As part of Lang’s Blue Fairy Book, it sits comfortably alongside other canonical tales, offering a window onto the era’s taste for order, spectacle, and wonder. Without anticipating its resolutions, one may say that it asks what we owe to kin, to promise, and to those who help us, and whether treasure measures worth or reveals it.

Synopsis

Table of Contents

Andrew Lang’s retelling of Prince Ahmed and the Fairy Paribanou, drawn from the Arabian Nights cycle, opens in the court of a powerful sultan who presides over three princes—Houssain, Ali, and Ahmed—and their cousin, Princess Nouronnihar. As the princes mature, each quietly cherishes hopes of winning the princess’s hand. To prevent rivalry from turning to discord, the sultan proposes a measured contest, promising that merit, not seniority, will decide the match. The tale establishes its central concerns early: fairness in judgment, the testing of character through quests, and the balance between filial duty and personal desire within a courtly, fantastical setting.

To resolve the brothers’ competing claims, the sultan decrees that each prince must travel abroad, search diligently for a marvel unlike any other, and return within a set time. The rarest and most useful treasure will determine the victor. The princes accept without protest, conscious that the conditions aim at impartiality. They depart by different routes, facing the hazards and opportunities of distant markets and unfamiliar customs. Their journeys reflect contrasting temperaments—deliberate, ambitious, and steady—while keeping the narrative focused on the quest’s purpose: to demonstrate discernment, courage, and wisdom through choice rather than through force or accident.