The Thousand and One Night is a collection of classic Islamic literature. In the beginning of that collection, the king, Shahrayar, is informed that his wife cheats on him. He gets very angry and decides to kill both lovers. After this situation the king is very upset. He sees that women are dishonest and it leads him to take very brutal and unethical action: he gets married with a young girl from his kingdom, he spends night with her, and finally he kills a bride when the sun rises. He repeats this ritual every day and it is his way to be sure that his wife will always be loyal and never cheats on him, as happened before.

Shahrazad is a daughter of the vizier who serves in the kingdom. Vizier is a person who has to kill every bride who spends night with the king. When Shahrazad tells her father that she wants to get married with a king, vizier tries to influence and change her mind. However, he is unable to do so. Finally, Shahrazad and Shahrayar get married. Before the sun rises Shahrazad asks about the permission to say goodbye to her lovely sister. When Dunyazad comes to the king’s bedroom she asks about one thing; she wants Shahrazad to tell her the last story before she will die. Both, the king and Dunyazad listen to the tale very carefully with a passion and great interest. So, when the sun rises, Shahrazad stops her stories. She stops in the most interesting point, so king wants to hear the rest of the story and he doesn’t kill his wife. Shahrazad smartly continues her action: she tells a story every night and she keeps the most interesting part to the moment of sunrise. Then king wants to hear the end of the story and doesn’t kill her. Shahrazad tells thousand and one stories. During that time she gives her husband three children; she gains Shahrayar’s love and changes him from tyrant to a good king who cares about his kingdom and people leaving in there.

The New York Times article “Diana’s Ring Seals Prince William’s Marriage Plans” by Sarah Lyall is about Prince William who plans to get married soon. He proposes to his girlfriend, Kate Middleton, and he is accepted. The couple will marriage in spring or summer 2011.

There are few similarities between Shahrazad and Kate Middleton. First of all, both are very well educated. Shahrazad “had read the books of literature, philosophy, and medicine. She knew poetry by heart, had studied historical reports, and was acquainted with the sayings of men and the maxims of sages and kings. She was intelligent, knowledgeable, wise, and refined. She had read and learned.” (B, 414) Similarly, Kate Middleton is intelligent and well educated woman. She met Prince “at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland.” In addition, the article stays that if she becomes a queen “she would be the first queen in British history to have a college degree, or indeed, to have any college education at all.”

Also, both are willing to get married with a king. Shahrazad says to her father “I would like you to marry me to King Shahrayar.” (B, 414) She knows that her father disagrees with her wish and she black mails him in order to get his acceptance. Similarly, Kate Middleton wants to get married with a Prince. She stays in relationship with him for few years and waits for his proposal. As the article says she was called by tabloids as “Waity Katie” which reference to her waiting behavior.

In addition, both are from rich families, however; they are not princesses. Shahrazad is a daughter of vizier who serves in court. Her father has enough money to support himself and his two daughters. In addition, he pays for their education. She comes from an aristocratic family; however, she is not a princess. Similarly, Kate Middleton comes from rich family “her father is a former British Airways officer and her mother a former flight attendant; together, they run a successful mail-order business that sells paraphernalia for children’s parties,” but she is not a princess.

Finally, both have an understanding of difficulties which comes with their decisions to get married with a king.  Shahrazad knows that “[i]t become King Shahrayar’s custom to take every night the daughter of a merchant or a commoner, spend the nigh with her, then have her put to death next morning” (B, 414). Even if she has a plan how to change the king’s behavior, she is not sure if it will work. Similarly, Kate Middleton knows a story of Prince’s mother, Lady Diana “whose short life ended when she was killed after a car accident in Paris in 1997.”