Analyzing Islamic Philosophy in Elif Shafak’s Forty Rules of Love

Abstract

The objective of this analysis is to explore the Islamic Philosophy of Sufism within Elif Shafak's The Forty Rules of Love. The research on the selected novel covers the Islamic philosophy of Sufism in the story and the characterization of the story and the philosophies of Sufism through the philosophy of Love in the story. The textual and content analysis is done by utilizing qualitative approach. By dissecting the novelist’s argument, from the textual level, small as speech, to the larger level of thematic argument and the arguments built about the core subject matters. The research concludes that Elif Shafak was able to incorporate and present the Islamic philosophy of Sufism through the characters and their progression through these philosophies. Thus, the novelist had managed to address the ways in which love is represented by the religion Islam and how it was presented through the teaching of Sufism. The authors had also discussed the way through which Sufism has been able to conquer and influence Elif's writing. The research covers historical account of 13th century Sufi, Rumi and Shams of Tabriz and provides a feminist perspective of the ways in which concepts of mystical and mundane get interlinked.