In general, the attitude of the ‘majority’ toward the ‘minority’ in a community is ridicule and contempt. This attitude is directly reflected in the literature of lingua franca used by the ‘majority’. A typical example is the image of the Jews in Persian literature. In Persian literature, both classical and modern, Jews are seen as an object of ridicule and contempt.
This general rule, however, does not apply to the Turks, another “minority” in Iranian society. The attitudes and views of the Iranians toward the Turks are multiple and contradictory. In classical Persian poetry, the Turks are objects of condemnation and resentment, objects of admiration and praise, and objects of love. This is because the Turks were a “minority like majority” in Iranian society. In other words, the Turks were a “ethnic minority” but a “political majority” because they emerged as invaders and conquerors in Iran. The brutal and barbaric acts of the Turks during their invasion and conquest were expressed with condemnation and resentment, but the valiant conquest against the pagans by the Turkic monarchs who ruled Iran and their generous support for Persian poets were expressed with praise and admiration. Another Turkic image added to these is beauty. While freely contacting young Turks who entered Iranian society as slave mercenaries or servants in the early days, the unique appearance of Turks attracted the attention of Persian poets and this interest developed the young Turk into an ideal lover.
Another reason that Persian poets had a relatively friendly feeling towards the Turks compared to the Jews is religion. After both Iranians and Turks converted to Islam, ethnic boundaries were eliminated and common religious boundaries were formed. In other words, the Jews were outside the boundary, but the Turks were within it, so a coexistence between the two peoples could easily be established. The Persian poets supported by the Turkic rulers were able to freely condemn the cruelty and barbarity of the other Turks, because they regarded the Turkic rulers as “himself” who had already entered the boundary and assimilated into Persian culture, but the new Turkic invaders as “others” who were outside the boundary.