COMMON NARRATIVE OF HUMANKIND: THE STORY OF JOSEPH A COMPARASION OF HAMDULLAH HAMDI’S ‘MATHNAWI OF JOSEPH AND ZULAIKHA’ AND THOMMAS MANN’S ‘JOSEPH AND HIS BROTHERS’

The story of Joseph described in Torah, the Bible and the Qur'an is one of the most important, dramatic, influential and exemplary story in the history of humankind. Therefore, it has been a source of inspiration for many literary works since the ancient times. This story described in the holy books mentioned above actually contains religious advices. However, it is not merely a religious advice, it also sheds light on the lifestyles, family relationships, beliefs and social lives of people living in Canaan and Egypt. Moreover, it provides some other important information regarding the form of the regime or state, famines occurred and slave trade during that time. The article examines and compares the two different stories of Joseph written approximately 500 years apart in terms of their "spelling", "construction", "sources of inspiration", "characters", "their understanding of God and Prophecy" and "motives in the story" through the lens of East (Islam) and West (Christian) civilizations. The main sources of these two works are broadly searched. Then the article focuses on how both Hamdullah Hamdi and Thomas Mann benefited from and fed by the sources most important of which are Torah, the Bible and the Qur'an. Also, to what extent the authors remained loyal to them while writing their books and the way the story perceived in their respevtive communities are discussed. The article put forthes important differences and similarities between these works at the final section.