Paradise is the Feet of the Mothers. Some Preliminary Remarks Concerning the Figuration of Motherhood in Medieval Arab Literature

Abstract

The articles analyses in a preliminary study the configuration of motherhood (the mere biological fact of being a mother) and motherliness (the quality of having or showing the tenderness and warmth and affection of a mother, i.e. of maternal love) in Medieval Arab Literature, taking as case studies the portrayal of both topics in the adab-encyclopaedia al-ʿIqd al-Farīd by the Cordovan man of letters Ibn ʿAbdrabbih (860-940 CE). In addition, it discusses the methodical difficulties of investigating past mentalities, attitudes and social expectations in Pre-Modern Islam and pleas for a stronger consideration of literary texts.