11 months ago

Ghazal Eros: New Perspectives on History, Poetics, and Gender

Ghazal Eros: New Perspectives on History, Poetics, and Gender
‘The Ghazal Eros’: New ways of thinking about history, poetics, and gendered content of ghazals · scroll.in

Imagine a type of poem called a ghazal.

This book argues that these poems, which were often seen as being about heterosexual love, have always also been about same-sex love.

The author, Shad Naved, shows that in many languages, like Arabic, Persian, and Urdu, these poems had a style that celebrated same-sex relationships.

Naved's book explores how this style changed over time and across different places.

It helps us understand the history of these poems and how they have been read and interpreted.

This book also looks at how these ideas connect to things like mysticism and spirituality.

Key facts

Book Title
The Ghazal Eros: Lyric Queerness in History
Author
Shad Naved
Focus
History and poetics of the ghazal
Core Argument
Ghazal's lyric queerness is historically central
Key Themes
Sexual orientation as style, transregional history

Quotes

The author refers to what Urdu teachers said

Teachers who used to read from textbooks

“Ghazal ke ma’ne hain aurton se baatein karna ya unki tareef karna.”
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Sources