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12 - The Persian Alexander (1)

The Royal Alexander

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 January 2022

By
Haila Manteghi
Edited by
Richard Stoneman
Richard Stoneman
Affiliation:
University of Exeter
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Summary

This chapter endeavours to highlight some characteristics of the Persian tradition concerning the heroic aspect of Alexander the Great. Firstly, it states that the royal Alexander was modelled on Kay Khosrow/Cyrus the Great, fitting him within a heroic structure which emphasised an ideal kingship. As a conqueror who became a ‘legitimate Persian king’, Alexander embodies values the Iranians had already brought into their own ideologies of kingship. Therefore, other monarchs during Iranian history tried to link themselves to Alexander, legitimising the transfer of political power and the use of the past in the construction of their image. Secondly, this chapter studies some thematic elements of Alexander’s adventures which were transferred to the other heroes, especially those of the Sistāni cycle of epic. It claims that the influence of the Alexander Romance on this genre goes further than the versions dedicated to Alexander’s adventures, making him as an exemplum, a model of a hero-king.

Keywords

Cyrus the GreatFerdowsiKay KhosrowkingshiplegitimisationNiẓāmiPersianisation
Type
Chapter
Information
A History of Alexander the Great in World Culture , pp. 271 - 287
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2022

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