Anatomy of a Rose Praise for the Female Body
The Song’s four waṣfs or “descriptive songs,” three dedicated to the woman (4:1–7; 6:4–7; 7:2–7) and one to the man (5:10–16), also contain body imagery, but these poems are different in form and content than the metaphors in preceding chapters. First, the waṣf, a feature of Arabic poetry “charact...
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| Published in | Body as Landscape, Love as Intoxication p. 137 |
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| Main Author | |
| Format | Book Chapter |
| Language | English |
| Published |
SBL Press
13.09.2019
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| Online Access | Get full text |
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| Summary: | The Song’s four waṣfs or “descriptive songs,” three dedicated to the woman (4:1–7; 6:4–7; 7:2–7) and one to the man (5:10–16), also contain body imagery, but these poems are different in form and content than the metaphors in preceding chapters. First, the waṣf, a feature of Arabic poetry “characterized by the minute, thorough description of certain objects,” is used to refer to poems recited in praise of the lovers’ bodies.¹ The waṣf is a distinct literary form known from the ancient Near East, with examples in Mesopotamian sacred marriage rites, the love lyrics of New Kingdom |
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| ISBN: | 9780884143826 0884143821 |