Religious allegory
These stories were most certainly not written during a time of modern or post modern critical analysis. The author here is unabashed about his bias and his point of view about Islam. The pro-Islamic political slant is obvious from the beginning, which means that when the reader seeks to analyze these stories for their humanistic value, they should be remembered as allegories of the principles of Islam. The stories are told in ways that identify religious principles and virtues from Islam so that through the stories, the new Turkish converts could see basic fundaments of the religion in context.
The glory motif
The understanding which is obviously shared among the Turkish believers and the Arab believers is a fierce commitment to glory as a virtue. This means accruing honor in one's community by acts of good and sacrifice, or in times of war, brave combat skills and real heroism on the battlefield. These are both part of a currency which is seen only through motif, but which would have been generally assumed by the morality of the original audience. As a virtue, the hallmark of glory is navigating life's trials in the "right" way, meaning that the ideas of glory can be seen as an attempt at ethical power.
Family duty and priority
Whether in the scandalous tales of family life or in the fateful battlegrounds of honor, these stories obviously have family duty as a high priority. The moralism of honor and duty is part of the culture of Islam as presented by the writer. In "How Salur Kazan's House was Pillaged," an invasion of chaotic evil disturbs the family life of an honorable person, but the courage of the men was enough to undo the evil and restore the family. The wife and children who were captured are also praised as heroes for their conduct while under duress. The several sections take that basic portrait and show it in iterations which highlight the specific importances of family duty.
Dumrul's conundrum
Because Dumrul's wife is willing to die on his behalf, he has an experience of love which awakens him to new kinds of motivation. He finds a deep source of compassion and begs Allah to reverse their original deal wherein Allah, while playing the role of a petty capricious deity, tricks Dumrul into doing the right thing through extraordinary passion and love. The suffering he feels for his wife, for the offense against heaven, and for his willingness to let someone die in his place instead of him dying for others, all culminate into a symbolic conundrum. He realizes that he must love others and be willing to die for them if Allah should ever call upon him.
Prison and capture, a motif
The motif of capture comes up in "How Salur Kazan was Taken Prisoner," "Segrek, Son of Ushun Koja," "How Prince Uruz, Son of Prince Kazan was Taken Prisoner," "How Salur Kazan's House was Pillaged," and many more of these stories. The motif obviously stems from the rowdy politics of that area during this season of history, as petty kings continually war to gain the edge against potential enemies. The motif points to two important ideas from Islam: doom and salvation. The writer clearly suggests that Allah is willing that these heroes participate in stories which glorify the ethical principles of Islam.
