(“The Calligrapher Monkey” from Galland to Kilito)

in La rivista di Arablit, a. VII, n. 13, giugno 2017, pp. 7-17.

Abdelfattah Kilito, known above all for his important contributions to research on Arabic literature, has complemented his work as a scholar with an equally significant output as a writer. His production in this field shows many and interesting relations with the One Thousand and One Nights. The intention behind my paper here is to propose a reflection on the relationship between critical and narrative activity in Kilito’s work, tracing some themes and motifs of the One Thousand and One Nights in the story Le Singe calligraphe included in the collection Le Cheval de Nietzsche. The reflection refers specifically to the metanarrative dimension of his writing, considered also in relation to “History” and the autobiographical element.