Slavs and Tatars: Mirrors for Princes

Downey, Anthony (2015) Slavs and Tatars: Mirrors for Princes. JRP Ringier, Zurich. ISBN 978-3-03764-407-2

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Abstract

The contribution to medieval advice literature for future rulers, from the Turkic, Slavic and Uighur region, is seldom written about in terms of cultural practices in contemporary art. In its exploration of the modern day notions of self-help, wisdom, advice and good counsel, Slavs and Tatars: Mirrors for Princes re-animates the ideals medieval advice literature and proposes an expanded field of research within which to understand the ‘mirrors of princes’ genre alongside the present-day relevance of Yusuf Khass Hajib’s 11th century text Kutadgu Bilig (which is to Turkic languages what Ferdowsi’s Shahnameh is to Persian, Beowulf to English, or Nibelungen to German).

A central component in this lineage of advice literature — of which Machiavelli’s The Prince is the most widely known example — is the promotion of both self-grooming and the ideal of statecraft for the purpose of governance.The expansive context of the original genre of ‘mirrors for princes’, its universalist and yet esoteric import, is distilled in this volume into a number of objects produced by Slavs and Tatars which suggest both self-grooming and the elevation of statecraft throughout the Middle Ages. The texts in this volume, likewise, speak to both the unique approach of the artists to this subject matter and to the importance of Kutadgu Bilig in understanding the historical relationship between statecraft (dawla) and faith/religion (din). In doing so, both artists and writers produce further original research on what precisely this means in present day ideals of governance and statist forms of managerialism.

For an audience encountering the artist’s works, the relatively obscure objectives of tomes such as Kutadgu Bilig are given over to a permissive linguistic and conceptual practice that promotes the latter’s relevance for today and brings its importance as a scholarly text to the fore. How, this volume asks, were forms of political writing, often called advice literature (or fürstenspiegel), shared by Christian and Muslim lands during the Middle Ages? And how are we to understand how the genre of medieval advice literature acted as a starting point to discuss fate and fortune, versus governance, and the translation of statecraft into its modern-day equivalent, namely, public relations and so-called spin doctoring, all being key themes in the artists’ work.

Item Type: Book
Additional Information: From the publisher's website: This publication brings together the writing of preeminent scholars and commentators using the genre of medieval advice literature as a starting point to discuss fate and fortune versus governance, advice for female nobility, and an Indian television drama as a form of translation of statecraft. The illustrated essays are accompanied by an interview with Slavs and Tatars.
Dates:
DateEvent
28 February 2015Published
Subjects: CAH02 - subjects allied to medicine > CAH02-06 - allied health > CAH02-06-01 - health sciences (non-specific)
CAH15 - social sciences > CAH15-03 - politics > CAH15-03-01 - politics
CAH15 - social sciences > CAH15-01 - sociology, social policy and anthropology > CAH15-01-02 - sociology
CAH15 - social sciences > CAH15-01 - sociology, social policy and anthropology > CAH15-01-04 - anthropology
CAH15 - social sciences > CAH15-01 - sociology, social policy and anthropology > CAH15-01-01 - social sciences (non-specific)
CAH19 - language and area studies > CAH19-01 - English studies > CAH19-01-07 - linguistics
CAH19 - language and area studies > CAH19-01 - English studies > CAH19-01-06 - others in English studies
CAH19 - language and area studies > CAH19-04 - languages and area studies > CAH19-04-06 - Asian studies
CAH19 - language and area studies > CAH19-04 - languages and area studies > CAH19-04-07 - African and modern Middle Eastern studies
CAH19 - language and area studies > CAH19-04 - languages and area studies > CAH19-04-09 - others in language and area studies
CAH20 - historical, philosophical and religious studies > CAH20-01 - history and archaeology > CAH20-01-01 - history
CAH20 - historical, philosophical and religious studies > CAH20-02 - philosophy and religious studies > CAH20-02-01 - philosophy
CAH20 - historical, philosophical and religious studies > CAH20-02 - philosophy and religious studies > CAH20-02-02 - theology and religious studies
CAH25 - design, and creative and performing arts > CAH25-01 - creative arts and design > CAH25-01-02 - art
CAH25 - design, and creative and performing arts > CAH25-01 - creative arts and design > CAH25-01-05 - others in creative arts and design
Divisions: Faculty of Arts, Design and Media > Birmingham Institute of Creative Arts > Birmingham School of Art
Depositing User: Anthony Downey
Date Deposited: 30 Nov 2017 16:10
Last Modified: 12 Jan 2022 17:20
URI: https://www.open-access.bcu.ac.uk/id/eprint/5364

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