ABSTRACT
The inducements which have led Persians throughout their long literary record to undertake the work of composition have doubtless been as complex as with other men, including the need to earn a living, the urge to write, the prospect of the esteem of one's fellows, and the chance of achieving fortune. Something may have depended on the origins and environment of the authors, some of whom were commissioned by patrons eager for repute while others exercised their craft without prospect of immediate gain. So far as the goodness or badness of the products of the two classes is concerned no judgment can be offered, literary quality being apparently unconditioned by material circumstances.
