Fables of the Ancients?: Folklore in the Qur'an

by Alan Dundes

Given the widespread consensus that the Qur'an was in oral tradition before being committed to written form, it should come as no surprise to learn that the Qur'an still bears the traces of its original oral form. The field of knowledge most concerned with oral tradition is folkloristics, the study of folklore. Folklorist Alan Dundes has carefully and respectfully documented some of these unmistakable traces. These traces include numerous oral formulas repeated throughout the Qur'an as well as several traditional folktales. Just as Jesus effectively used parables to get His message across, so similar means are to be found in the Qur'an.

The scholarly identification of formulas and folktales in the Qur'an represents an entirely new approach to this world-famous religious text. Not only does it provide insight into the basic composition of this sacred document, but for readers not previously familiar with the Qur'an, it pinpoints and makes accessible many of the principal themes contained therein.

Genres: Islam, Folklore, History

104 pages, Paperback

First published May 28, 2003

About the author

Alan Dundes was a folklorist at the University of California, Berkeley. His work was said to have been central to establishing the study of folklore as an academic discipline. He wrote 12 books, both academic and popular, and edited or co-wrote two dozen more. One of his most notable articles was called "Seeing is Believing" in which he indicated that Americans value the sense of sight more than the other senses.

Reviews

[Muhamed · Rating 3 out of 5]

In my opinion, the first half of the book is quite unnecessary. It is only there to serve as an introduction and perhaps increase the length of the book which would have otherwise been only an essay. But the content is very shallow and the author seems to be out of his depth.

However, the main point of the book which is the study of whether or not there are fables in the Qur'an is an interesting research and makes it worth the read.

[Toros Yesja]

Not rating it because really difficult to do so. The thesis of this book basically is that Muhammad recited the Quran in the oral-formulaic form, which is the form used by folkloric singers and poets. Also indirectly got some info about some interesting verses and hadiths which help elucidate Islam more.

[Lumturi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing and short book that has changed the way I think about the Qur'an. The first time I read the Qur'an I was bored by the constant repetition, but this book shows the formulas used in the Qur'an are the mark of oral-formulaic writing, or if you're a Muslim, divine invocations and highlights of the Qur'an's essential themes.

I was also disturbed by what seemed like the use of folklore in the Qur'an which is something Muslims have gone to lengths to refute. This book shows that the Qur'an's use of common, cross-cultural folklore is something to be embraced by Muslim and the historicity and originality of these stories is not necessarily important in the face of their commonality and moral messages. God isn't above speaking to humans in ways we use already and understand.

This book goes a long way to understanding the Qur'an as a piece of literature.

[Thomas · Rating 2 out of 5]

Somewhat obsequiously Dundes shares interesting insights regarding oral transliteration and the existence of fables within the Qur'an. You can tell that he is very uncomfortable and makes no attempts to draw together the threads of discussion into any firm conclusion lest one of those threads be attached to the tale end of some vicious animal. Given that this was published in 2003 and Dundes shares with us a myriad of examples of professionals more closely afield in Islamic studies than him meeting their scholastic demise at the hands of reactionaries for broaching the topic, it's easy to understand why he adopts such a passive tone. He delicately places the threads within your own hand and leaves it to you to pull them if you wish.

[Jody Mena]

Somewhat dry, but then, we were forewarned - a thing I do not recommend to any author, for who will read your book if you tell the reader right off the bat that they probably won't like it? Still, the essay had some good points, and especially, I think in the conclusion. The presence of preexisting folkloric patterns does not have to undermine the authenticity of the document itself. If Allah Himself admits to using proverbs and folklore in the Qur'an, who are we to question it? This is a fast read, and while it may not be the most rivetting thing you'll ever find, it's still pretty interesting.