3. Consider the phrases, "All lies become revealed in time," and "time heals all wounds". How is this played out/proven in Abu Kir The Dyer And Abu Sir The Barber?

4. What is the relationship between the Allah and the Caliph in regards to which has the most power in Khalifah The Fisherman of Baghdad?

5. How is the ending of this story from The Ebony Horse a very direct and personally-related implication to the king from Shahrazad?

6. How is Abu Kir's life like his business in Abu Kir The Dyer And Abu Sir The Barber?

7. In what ways in Judar And His Brethren does Shahrazad personify evil throughout her story?

8. Consider the saying "One cannot fully escape the past." How is this saying proven in Ma'aruf The Cobbler And His Wife Fatimah?

9. In The Ebony Horse, the brother Kamar rescues his younger sister from marriage to an ugly old Persian bearing a gift. In the process of helping his sister, Kamar also finds love, so his kindness is rewarded. What is to be learned from this part of the story?

10. In Khalifah The Fisherman of Baghdad, the reader witnesses the Caliph dispense mercy and cruelty with the whim of someone raised in a position of such absolute power that it distances him from the suffering of the common people, much like the fisherman Khalifah. How could this part of the story relate to Shahrazad's goal of changing the king's ways?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Appreciating that the Tale of The Three Apples is one of the earliest known suspense thriller murder/mystery with detective fiction elements and multiple plot twists, write an essay detailing what you believe to be the most effective and powerful crime fiction element in the tale, and why. You may choose from:

1. Plot twists.

2. Suspense.

3. Mystery.

Make a strong base for whichever element you choose by backing up your argument with all places in the story where your element has been used.

Essay Topic 2

In The Tale of Kamar Al-Zaman, Kamar and Budur not only played great human/mortal part to make their life together possible, but a string of seemingly unforeseen events also play a part in their stories/lives, which gives the listener the feel that both human intention and fate play a part in people's lives. How do other characters in other tales continue to bring this concept home to the king of the interconnectedness between fate, human decisions, and devotion to Allah?

Please choose from these stories:

1. Hatim and The Tribe of Tayy

2. The Hermit

3. Sindbad the Seaman and Sindbad the Landsman

4. The Tale of the Birds and the Beasts and the Carpenter