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The history of the story of 1001 Nights is a lengthy one and unfortunately, its history is not filled with many specific details. While concrete details may be hard to come by, there are a few well known facts in regards to the popular collection of folk tales. In fact, it is just that, a collection of short stories that are placed inside what one may most accurately call a frame story. This story is a relatively simple one and has little impact on the collection of stories as a whole, but more on that below.
The history of the story of 1001 Nights is a lengthy one and unfortunately, its history is not filled with many specific details. While concrete details may be hard to come by, there are a few well known facts in regards to the popular collection of folk tales. In fact, it is just that, a collection of short stories that are placed inside what one may most accurately call a frame story. This story is a relatively simple one and has little impact on the collection of stories as a whole, but more on that below.
Richard Burton was another of several well-known translators. His English translation was published around 1885. Burton’s edition is so frequently reference because of the extensive ethnographic notes that he provides. In fact, he used his translation as a means of exploring and even explaining Middle Eastern and Islamic culture and customs. While the history can be fairly confusing, a site called the Invitation to World Literature, courtesy of the Annenberg Foundation, provides a very useful timeline in regards to the 1001 Nights.
This site also provides a very clear and brief description of the story, “A murderous sultan is brought back from the brink of insanity by the stories of his wife, Shahrazad; stories that are a lesson in human love, longing, sorrow, and humor for every reader.” I highly recommend this site to anyone that would like to learn more about 1001 Nights.
As this description mentions briefly, the collection of stories are presented to a sultan known as Shahrayar by his wife Shahrazad. What this fails to mention is that his wife tells him the stories as a means of saving the lives of many other women and well as her own life. For over three years Sharayar would marry a virgin, deflower her and then kill her (Lyons 6). Eventually Shahrazad stepped forward and offered to marry the sultan. Her plan was to tell him a story before they consummated the marriage, but the catch was that this story would last all through the night until eventually the sultan would have to wait until the next day to carry out his plan. Shahrazad protected herself by the way she told the stories, always connecting them in a way that kept the sultan wanting to hear more. This is a prime example of the plot device that we know as a cliffhanger.
Here are some other sources for the historical information you see here:
"The Thousand and One Nights." Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica Online. Encyclopædia Britannica Inc., 2011. Web. 12 Dec. 2011. http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/593514/The-Thousand-and-One-Nights.
Fournet, Pierre Auguste."Antoine Galland." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 6. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1909. 12 Dec. 2011http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/06349b.htm.