"Tales Arab Women Tell is a cross-cultural examination of kinship and affinal relations as expressed in traditional folktales and other genres of lore. This study is based on field data compiled by the author. The gender factor and its impact on the form, structure, and contents of each item are explored in conjunction with the concepts of multiple role playing, role transition, and role strain."--BOOK JACKET.

"The tales are arranged according to an analytical system focusing on the various family and social situations depicted in the texts. Four large groups of social interaction are portrayed, labeled "Parents and Paternal Figures," "Courtship and Marital Relations," "Siblings," and "Boy and Mother's Brother," respectively.

Each tale is introduced by a short note providing information about the narrator (family situation, age, regional origin, education, etc.) and the specific or general situational background of narrative performance of the tale. Each introductory note is followed by a commentary on the social aspects of the family situation treated in the tale, giving special emphasis to the circumstances of their Arab Islamic social background. After these two introductory passages, the tales are presented in a clear, fluent, and very readable English style, with an obvious effort to reproduce as closely as possible their original language in dialogic structure, verbal rendering, and wording.

The presentation of the tales is followed by general notes explaining linguistic details, giving original Arab words and terms, and commenting on various minor aspects of the content. An appendix supplies a detailed analysis of tale types, motifs, and occurrences."--BOOK JACKET.