⟶ Komugi as Scheherezade: one of the most amazing cultural allusions in Hunter x Hunter

Tw // multiple murder mention, phallocracy, violence and control against women

The one thousand and one nights, one of the most important pieces of the ancient literature, is told as the known romantic and magic tale into the CAA starring Meruem and Komugi.

First of all, I have to say that I don’t think it’s a coincidence that someway it’s easy to relate Meruem’s appearance to a Middle-Eastern king, and many things about East Gorteau (the place where his palace was), to a Middle-Eastern kingdom.

And here’s a little antecedent to set the context: a Sultan of the Great Tartary, Schazenan, someday before departing to visit his brother Schariar, he found out that his wife cheated on him with a royal officer, so in the rage of jealousy, he kills both of them.

When he arrives to his brother palace, he finds out that his wife has done the same thing to him, and talks to him to finally convince him to kill her too.

In their depression, they go out and walk around the world looking for someone as unhappy as them.
They find a genius who has his wife caged in a crystal box, but even like this, she cheats on him.

They kill the genius’s wife as well, concluding that there’s no faithful woman on earth, and it means that there’s no worthy woman in earth.

Getting to the main topic, let me set this straight: the Sultan Schariar is represented by Meruem, and this symbolism of the worthless women is in the lack of power he sees on people.

Well, a disappointed Schariar decrees that, if there’s no worthy woman on earth, he’s going to get a wife everyday to sleep with him and he’s going to kill her in the morning.

Right the way Meruem asks everyday for a person to challenge and then kill them.

One of the daughters of Schariar’s vizier, Scheherezade, hears the new and immediately makes a plan to end with the atrocity and save the thousands of maidens who could die in the hands of the Sultan.

The vizier told Sheherezade that it was a bad idea and tried to convince her to not execute the plan by telling her tales.

But she did it anyways.

The Sultan took her and she started with it.

* I think it’s incredibly presented in the way Komugi mentions more than once that she’s offering her life in case she loses.

Sheherezade told the Sultan a tale that was so interesting, not just because of the content but also because of her beautiful voice.

And after finishing it, she said she knew another amazing tale and she could tell it to him the next night.

He was enchanted by the first one, so he couldn’t refuse and he let her live one more day just to hear it the next night.

And as you should be guessing, the vizier’s daughter said exactly the same thing the next night.

And the next night.

And the next one thousand and one nights.

As you can see, Togashi represented the tales with the vicious circle of the gungi matches that the king Meruem never could win!

And by the way I suggest you to read this too! It’s so interesting. https://twitter.com/killuasnacks/status/1322790337237020673

After understanding the power Sheherezade had in her voice and mind, the Sultan Schariar changed completely his point of view about people, just the way Meruem mentioned more than once: there are individuals who worth their lives, and not precisely because of a visible power.

And it’s known that he became a kinder king, compassionate and comprehensive.

Snip, snap, snout, this tale’s told out!