The Tale of Sinuhe: and Other Ancient Egyptian Poems 1940-1640 B.C.

Parkinson describes “The Tale of Sinuhe” as an adventure narrative that explores the individual’s relationship with the king, a semi-divine and all-powerful figure. The tale is presented as a funerary inscription of the type commonly found on tombs, informing passersby about the dead man’s life and accomplishments. The tale goes on to include other genres but returns to autobiography at the end.

Parkinson summarizes the action as a movement from order to disorder and then back to order, suggesting that Sinuhe’s reintegration into the Egyptian hierarchy validates the Egyptian way of life. “The Tale of Sinuhe” is thought to have been composed in the first half of the 12th Dynasty, around 1875 BCE, and is set early in the 12th Dynasty. Four papyrus copies of the tale survive from the Middle Kingdom, along with several later copies. The work is now regarded as the masterpiece of Egyptian literature.

A list of titles, including Patrician, Count, Governor of the Sovereign’s Domains in the Syrian lands, and True Acquaintance of the King, identifies Sinuhe as the narrator, who then commences in the first person to identify his position as a Follower, a servant of the Royal Chambers and to Nefru, the Patrician Lady, Queen of Senwosret and Princess of Amenemhat.