CXLIII NUIT
by Unknown · from Les mille et une nuits - Tome premier
Adapted Version
In a big city, was a young man. He had a big problem: a chatty barber!
The Young Man heard the Barber talk. The Barber talked to a man. The Young Man wanted to hide. He found a big box. He got inside the box. He closed the lid.
The Barber looked for him. He found the big box. He saw the Young Man. The Barber picked up the box. He carried it outside. He went to the street.
The box opened by chance. He did not want to be seen. He jumped out fast. He fell down. He hurt his leg a little bit. Now he walked slowly. He had a limp.
The Young Man threw some coins. People stopped. They picked up the coins. He ran away fast. He went into small streets.
But the Barber followed him. The Barber talked very loudly. He shouted, "I help you! I help you!" He was very annoyed. He was very, very angry.
The Young Man went into an inn. He saw the inn man. He said, "Please, help me. Stop the Barber."
The inn man kept the Barber out. The Barber stood outside. He talked to all. He talked and talked. He said, "I helped him. I am a good man."
The Young Man told his story. He told the inn man all. He said, "I must leave this city. The Barber is too bad. I cannot stay here."
He gave money to his folks. He packed his things. He went to a new city. It was very far away. He hoped to never see the Barber.
The Young Man finished his story. He looked at the room. He saw the Barber! He was very sad. He left the room fast.
The teller asked the Barber. The Barber spoke up. He said, "I helped him. I am a good helper. I saved his life."
The Barber said, "The Young Man is wrong. I am not chatty. I do not talk much. He is wrong about me."
The Barber started a new story. He loved to talk. He talked and talked. He had many stories to tell. He began his story.
The young man was far away. He was happy. But the barber? He was still talking, telling new stories. He loved to talk!
Original Story
CXLIII NUIT.
Le tailleur continua de raconter au sultan de Casgar l'histoire qu'il avait commencée: «Sire, dit-il, le jeune boiteux poursuivit ainsi: Comme j'avais entendu tout ce que le barbier avait dit au cadi, je cherchai un endroit pour me cacher. Je n'en trouvai point d'autre qu'un grand coffre vide, où je me jetai, et que je fermai sur moi. Le barbier, après avoir fureté partout, ne manqua pas de venir dans la chambre où j'étais. Il s'approcha du coffre, l'ouvrit, et dès qu'il m'eut aperçu, le prit, le chargea sur sa tête et l'emporta. Il descendit d'un escalier assez haut dans une cour qu'il traversa promptement, et enfin il gagna la porte de la rue. Pendant qu'il me portait, le coffre vint à s'ouvrir par malheur, et alors ne pouvant souffrir la honte d'être exposé aux regards et aux huées de la populace qui nous suivait, je me lançai dans la rue avec tant de précipitation, que je me blessai à la jambe de manière que je suis demeuré boiteux depuis ce temps-là. Je ne sentis pas d'abord tout mon mal, et ne laissai pas de me relever pour me dérober à la risée du peuple par une prompte fuite. Je lui jetai même des poignées d'or et d'argent dont ma bourse était pleine; et tandis qu'il s'occupait à les ramasser, je m'échappai en enfilant des rues détournées. Mais le maudit barbier, profitant de la ruse dont je m'étais servi pour me débarrasser de la foule, me suivit sans me perdre de vue, en me criant de toute sa force: «Arrêtez! Seigneur; pourquoi courez-vous si vite? Si vous saviez combien j'ai été affligé du mauvais traitement que le cadi vous a fait, à vous qui êtes si généreux, et à qui nous avons tant d'obligation, mes amis et moi! Ne vous l'avais-je pas bien dit, que vous exposiez votre vie par votre obstination à ne vouloir pas que je vous accompagnasse? Voilà ce qui vous est arrivé par votre faute: et si de mon côté je ne m'étais pas obstiné à vous suivre pour voir où vous alliez, que seriez-vous devenu? Où allez-vous donc, seigneur? Attendez-moi.»
«C'est ainsi que le malheureux barbier parlait tout haut dans la rue. Il ne se contentait pas d'avoir causé un si grand scandale dans le quartier du cadi, il voulait encore que toute la ville en eût connaissance. Dans la rage où j'étais, j'avais envie de l'attendre pour l'étrangler; mais je n'aurais fait par là que rendre ma confusion plus éclatante. Je pris un autre parti: comme je m'aperçus que sa voix me livrait en spectacle à une infinité de gens qui paraissaient aux portes ou aux fenêtres, ou qui s'arrêtaient dans les rues pour me regarder, j'entrai dans un khan[51] dont le concierge m'était connu. Je le trouvai à la porte, où le bruit l'avait attiré: «Au nom de Dieu, lui dis-je, faites- moi la grâce d'empêcher que ce furieux n'entre ici après moi.» Il me le promit et me tint parole; mais ce ne fut pas sans peine, car l'obstiné barbier voulait entrer malgré lui, et ne se retira qu'après lui avoir dit mille injures; et jusqu'à ce qu'il fût rentré dans sa maison, il ne cessa d'exagérer à tous ceux qu'il rencontra le grand service qu'il prétendait m'avoir rendu.
«Voilà comme je me délivrai d'un homme si fatigant. Après cela, le concierge me pria de lui apprendre mon aventure: je la lui racontai, ensuite je le priai à mon tour de me prêter un appartement jusqu'à ce que je fusse guéri. «Seigneur, me dit-il, ne seriez-vous pas plus commodément chez vous? - Je ne veux point y retourner, lui répondis-je; ce détestable barbier ne manquerait pas de m'y venir trouver: j'en serais tous les jours obsédé, et je mourrais, à la fin, de chagrin de l'avoir incessamment devant les yeux. D'ailleurs, après ce qui m'est arrivé aujourd'hui, je ne puis me résoudre à demeurer davantage en cette ville. Je prétends aller où ma mauvaise fortune me voudra conduire.» Effectivement, dès que je fus guéri je pris tout l'argent dont je crus avoir besoin pour voyager, et du reste de mon bien, je fis une donation à mes parents.
«Je partis donc de Bagdad, mes seigneurs, et je suis venu jusqu'ici. J'avais lieu d'espérer que je ne rencontrerais point ce pernicieux barbier dans un pays si éloigné du mien; et cependant je le trouve parmi vous. Ne soyez donc pas surpris de l'empressement que j'ai à me retirer. Vous jugez bien de la peine que me doit faire la vue d'un homme qui est cause que je suis boiteux, et réduit à la triste nécessité de vivre éloigné de mes parents, de mes amis et de ma patrie.» En achevant ces paroles, le jeune boiteux se leva et sortit. Le maître de la maison le conduisit jusqu'à la porte, en lui témoignant le déplaisir qu'il avait de lui avoir donné, quoique innocemment, un si grand sujet de mortification.
«Quand le jeune homme fut parti, continua le tailleur, nous demeurâmes tous fort étonnés de son histoire. Nous jetâmes les yeux sur le barbier, et lui dîmes qu'il avait tort, si ce que nous venions d'entendre était véritable. «Messieurs, nous répondit-il en levant la tête, qu'il avait toujours tenue baissée jusqu'alors; le silence que j'ai gardé pendant que ce jeune homme vous a entretenu vous doit être un témoignage qu'il ne vous a rien avancé dont je ne demeure d'accord. Mais quoi qu'il vous ait pu dire, je soutiens que j'ai dû faire ce que j'ai fait. Je vous en rends juges vous-mêmes: Ne s'était-il pas jeté dans le péril, et sans mon secours en serait-il sorti si heureusement? Il est trop heureux d'en être quitte pour une jambe incommodée. Ne me suis-je pas exposé à un plus grand danger pour le tirer d'une maison où je m'imaginais qu'on le maltraitait? A-t-il raison de se plaindre de moi, et de me dire des injures si atroces? Voilà ce que l'on gagne à servir des gens ingrats! Il m'accuse d'être un babillard: c'est une pure calomnie. De sept frères que nous étions, je suis celui qui parle le moins et qui ai le plus d'esprit en partage. Pour vous en faire convenir, mes seigneurs, je n'ai qu'à vous conter mon histoire et la leur. Honorez-moi, je vous prie, de votre attention.»
HISTOIRE DU BARBIER. «Sous le règne du calife Mostanser Billah[52], poursuivit-il, prince si fameux par ses immenses libéralités envers les pauvres, dix voleurs obsédaient les chemins des environs de Bagdad, et faisaient depuis longtemps des vols et des cruautés inouïes. Le calife, averti d'un si grand désordre, fit venir le juge de police quelques jours avant la fête du Baïram, et lui ordonna, sous peine de la vie, de les lui amener tous dix.»
Scheherazade cessa de parler en cet endroit, pour avertir le sultan des Indes que le jour commençait à paraître. Ce prince se leva, et la nuit suivante la sultane reprit son discours de cette manière:
Story DNA
Moral
null
Plot Summary
The tailor continues the story of the young lame man, who recounts his ordeal with the persistent barber. After hiding in a chest, the lame man is discovered and carried into the street by the barber, leading to a leg injury when he tries to escape. The barber relentlessly pursues him, creating a public spectacle with his loud, self-serving 'concern.' The lame man eventually finds refuge in a khan, but the barber's harassment drives him to leave Baghdad and his family. To his dismay, he finds the barber again in a distant land. The barber, in turn, defends his actions, claiming he saved the lame man, and begins to tell his own story to justify his character.
Themes
Emotional Arc
frustration to resignation
Writing Style
Narrative Elements
Cultural Context
This story is part of 'The Arabian Nights' or 'One Thousand and One Nights,' a collection of Middle Eastern folk tales compiled during the Islamic Golden Age. The framing device of Scheherazade telling stories to the Sultan is central.
Plot Beats (13)
- The young lame man, having overheard the barber's conversation with the cadi, hides in a large empty chest.
- The barber finds the lame man in the chest, carries it out of the house, and descends a staircase into the street.
- The chest accidentally opens, and the lame man, to avoid public shame, leaps out, injuring his leg and becoming lame.
- He throws gold and silver to distract the pursuing crowd and escapes through back streets.
- The barber, however, follows him, loudly proclaiming his 'help' and causing a scene, much to the lame man's fury.
- To escape the barber's public spectacle, the lame man enters a khan, asking the concierge to prevent the barber from following.
- The concierge successfully keeps the barber out, but the barber continues to insult him and exaggerate his 'service' to passersby.
- The lame man recounts his adventure to the concierge and decides to leave Baghdad permanently to escape the barber's harassment.
- He gives his remaining wealth to his relatives and travels to a distant land, hoping to never see the barber again.
- The lame man concludes his story by expressing his dismay at finding the barber among the current company and exits.
- The tailor and others question the barber, who, after a moment, defends his actions, claiming he saved the lame man's life.
- The barber dismisses the lame man's complaints as ingratitude and calumny, asserting he is the least talkative and most intelligent of his seven brothers.
- To prove his point, the barber begins to tell his own story, starting with a tale about ten thieves and the Caliph Mostanser Billah.
Characters
Le Jeune Boiteux (The Lame Young Man)
Of average height and build for a young man from Baghdad. His most distinguishing feature is a pronounced limp in one leg, a result of his hasty escape from the barber's chest. His complexion is likely sun-kissed from his travels.
Attire: When first encountered, he is dressed in the typical attire of a well-to-do young man from Baghdad, likely a tunic (qamis) over loose trousers (sirwal), possibly with a vest (sadriya) or a light cloak (abaya) for travel. The fabrics would be of good quality, perhaps linen or fine cotton, in muted colors, reflecting his status before his misfortune.
Wants: To escape the barber and live a peaceful life away from his constant interference and the public humiliation he causes. He also desires to heal from his injury and the emotional scars.
Flaw: His intense embarrassment and pride, which lead him to make rash decisions (like leaping from the chest) and to flee rather than confront his problems directly. His anger also makes him vulnerable.
He begins as a victim of circumstance and the barber's interference, leading to physical injury and social humiliation. His arc is one of forced exile and a continuous attempt to find peace, which is constantly threatened by the barber's reappearance. He remains largely unchanged in his desire to escape the barber.
Generous, easily embarrassed, quick to anger (especially with the barber), determined (to escape his tormentor), and somewhat reclusive after his trauma.
The Barber
Likely of average height and build, perhaps slightly portly from a life of talking more than physical labor. His most notable physical trait is his persistent presence and the way he seems to appear everywhere. His hands might be nimble from his trade.
Attire: Dressed in the practical but respectable attire of a tradesman in Baghdad. This would include a simple cotton tunic (qamis) and loose trousers (sirwal), possibly with a vest (sadriya) and a turban (imama) on his head. The colors would be muted, perhaps browns, blues, or off-whites, with no excessive ornamentation.
Wants: He genuinely believes he is helping others, even when his actions cause distress. He is driven by a need to be involved, to offer advice, and to be seen as indispensable. He also seems to enjoy the sound of his own voice.
Flaw: His inability to recognize boundaries, his incessant talking, and his complete lack of self-awareness regarding the negative impact of his actions on others. His pride in his own 'wisdom' blinds him.
He remains largely unchanged throughout the story, steadfast in his belief that his actions are always beneficial, despite all evidence to the contrary. He is a static character, a force of nature that others must react to.
Meddlesome, verbose, self-important, persistent, oblivious to others' feelings, self-righteous, and prone to exaggeration.
Le Tailleur (The Tailor)
Likely a man of moderate build, perhaps slightly stooped from years of working over fabric. His hands would be skilled and precise, accustomed to fine needlework. His complexion would be typical of a craftsman from Casgar.
Attire: Dressed in the respectable, clean attire of a skilled tradesman in Casgar. This would include a well-made tunic (qamis) and trousers (sirwal), possibly with a simple, embroidered vest (sadriya) and a turban (imama). The fabrics would be practical but of good quality, perhaps cotton or linen, in earthy tones.
Wants: To entertain the Sultan of Casgar and to continue the narrative, as per the framing device of the Arabian Nights.
Flaw: His role as a narrator means he is often passive in the events he describes, and he struggles to resolve the conflict between the young man and the barber.
He is primarily a framing device character, so his personal arc is minimal. He continues his role as a storyteller, moving from one tale to the next.
Patient, observant, a skilled storyteller, polite, and somewhat diplomatic (trying to mediate between the young man and the barber).
Le Sultan de Casgar (The Sultan of Casgar)
A man of regal bearing, likely well-fed and comfortable, reflecting his position of power. His height and build would be commanding, though not necessarily imposing.
Attire: Dressed in luxurious, era-appropriate attire for a Sultan of Casgar. This would include flowing robes of fine silk or brocade, richly embroidered with gold thread and possibly adorned with precious stones. A jeweled turban (imama) would crown his head. Colors would be deep and rich, such as royal blue, emerald green, or crimson.
Wants: To be entertained and to pass the time, as is common for rulers in such tales.
Flaw: Not explicitly shown, but his reliance on others for entertainment could be a subtle weakness.
A static character, serving as the audience for the nested narratives.
Patient (listening to long stories), appreciative of entertainment, and a figure of authority.
Scheherazade
A woman of captivating beauty and intelligence, likely slender and graceful. Her features would be delicate and expressive, reflecting her quick wit and storytelling prowess. Her skin would be fair, as befits a royal consort.
Attire: Dressed in the finest, most exquisite attire of a Persian queen. This would include flowing robes of sheer silk or brocade, intricately embroidered with gold or silver thread, possibly adorned with pearls or other jewels. Her garments would be modest yet elegant, in rich, vibrant colors like sapphire blue, emerald green, or deep purple. A delicate veil or headpiece might complete her ensemble.
Wants: To save her own life and the lives of other women by continuously telling captivating stories to the Sultan, thereby delaying her execution.
Flaw: Her life is constantly at risk, dependent on her ability to maintain the Sultan's interest.
Her arc is ongoing throughout the entire collection of stories, as she continually strives to survive and eventually soften the Sultan's heart.
Intelligent, resourceful, courageous, eloquent, and highly imaginative.
Locations
Cadi's House
A private residence with at least one room containing a large, empty chest, and a high staircase leading down to a courtyard. The architecture would be typical of Abbasid-era Baghdadi homes, likely featuring mud-brick or stone walls, possibly with a central courtyard (sahn) and rooms opening onto it. Windows might be latticed (mashrabiya) for privacy and ventilation.
Mood: Tense, secretive, then chaotic
The young man hides in a chest, is discovered by the barber, and carried out.
Streets of Baghdad
Narrow, winding streets, likely unpaved or cobblestone, bustling with populace. Houses line the streets, with people appearing at doors and windows. The atmosphere is public and exposed, leading to humiliation. The architecture features close-set mud-brick or stone buildings with flat roofs, some with projecting upper stories or balconies, typical of a busy medieval Arabian city.
Mood: Humiliating, chaotic, public spectacle
The young man falls from the chest, injures his leg, and attempts to escape the barber and the jeering crowd by throwing money.
Khan (Caravanserai)
A large inn or lodging house for travelers, with a known concierge at the gate. It provides a refuge from the public streets. A typical Abbasid khan would feature a large central courtyard surrounded by multiple stories of rooms, stables, and storage, all built from sturdy stone or mud-brick, with a grand, defensible entrance gate.
Mood: Safe haven, refuge, temporary peace
The young man seeks refuge from the barber and stays here to recover from his injury before leaving Baghdad.