Showing 74 results for Narratology
Tahereh Chaldareh, Fatemeh Ahmadi,
Volume 6, Issue 1 (1-2025)
Abstract
Prophet Abraham (peace be upon him), in addition to his prophetic status, embodies the image of a mystic who successfully passes different stages of spiritual journey and the struggle against the self, which manifest in various forms such as the “denial of Azar, the sacrifice of his offspring, and the fire of Nimrod”. He ascends from the stage of annihilation in Allah to the station of subsistence by Him and becomes an Allah’s friend. This article employs a descriptive-analytical method to explore the truths and subtleties of the story of Prophet Abraham (peace be upon him) through reflections on the poetry of Ibn Farid of Egypt and Jalal al-Din Muhammad Rumi, both of whom stand at the pinnacle of theoretical and practical mysticism. In this research, the commonalities in the poetry of these two renowned poets are first examined and analyzed in three sections: "Abraham (peace be upon him) and the Birds", "Abraham (peace be upon him) and the Fire of Nimrod", and "Abraham (peace be upon him) and the Stars". Subsequently, the distinctions in each poet’s interpretation of the stages of Prophet Abraham's (peace be upon him) status, his relationship with Azar, and the sacrifice of his son are elucidated. The findings indicate that Ibn Farid, unlike Molavi, does not adopt an allegorical perspective on the birds. In discussing the fire of Nimrod, Ibn Farid attributes the extinguishing of the fire and its transformation into a rose garden as the result of Abraham’s connection to the state of unity and survival after annihilation. Conversely, Molavi views the fire of Nimrod as the fire of the self, which, when transcended, transforms into flowers and basil. Ibn Farid perceives the stars as manifestations of the Divine, while Molavi argues that the prophets did not initially attain the stage of monotheism and ascribe independent existence to beings. Ibn Farid delves into the inner secrets and allegorical meanings of the rituals of Hajj, considering the status of Abraham as a special guardianship, Mecca as the Divine Presence, and the pilgrim as the manifestation of the Hidden Presence in the four pillars. Molavi, on the other hand, regards Azar and the sacrifice of the son as liberation from the attachments of the self and nature..
Zeinab Mayahi, الدکتور رسول بلاوی, Rasoul Balavi, Dr. Hosein Mohtadi, Dr. Ali Khezri, Dr. Mohamad Javad Pourabed,
Volume 6, Issue 1 (1-2025)
Abstract
The language communication theory has recently achieved a significant foothold in critical studies. Roman Jakobson, a member of Prague school, has propounded influential linguistic “functions” and “factors” to examine poetic texts particularly. According to him, effective verbal communication should have the following factors: (1) context, (2) addresser (sender), (3) addressee (receiver), (4) contact, (5) common code, and (6) message. He has also proposed six distinct functions of language: referential, poetic, emotive, conative, phatic, and metalingual. Literary critics and scholars have paid particular attention to the narrative and dialogue nuances of modern novels. This study draws on Jakobson’s factors and functions in order to examine Rousha Dakhaz’s The Remnants by adopting an analytical-descriptive approach and referring to the American School of Comparative Literature. It identifies that cultural, political, and social references are the most utilized linguistic functions in the novel because it revolves around the events and incidents of war and political changes. With regard to the referential function, the author uses the first-person narrator to verbalize the characters’ emotions. With regard to the emotive function, the novelist has used second-person pronouns as well as imperative and interrogative pronouns in order to engage readers. The poetic and metalingual functions are the least used ones throughout the novel.
Raja Abuali, Ahmad Arefi,
Volume 6, Issue 1 (1-2025)
Abstract
Baudrillard claims that politicians who secretly and openly control people distort the truth through technological tools, media, brands, consumer culture, politics, and other factors. This distortion, by creating false informational facts that cause conflict and a dialectical duality between truth and hyperreality, has become a tool for controlling human minds and stripping them of their will. In this context, victory lies with the dominant reality constructed by major stakeholders, business creators, and capitalists who promote their industrial products, as well as the energy consumers and thought controllers. The novel Shifa: The Small Century Manuscript is a science fiction work in which the author addresses the issue of technology and media that distort the truth. This study analyzes the novel using a descriptive-analytical method and employing Baudrillard’s theory along with linguistic and narrative techniques. It concludes that the author uses postmodern techniques to construct hyperreality and discusses the destructive technologies of the U.S. government that conceal scientific and security secrets. These secrets are ultimately revealed by Isaac Jamil, the novel’s protagonist, following his terrestrial and space travels with a scientific mission team by UFO. Upon his return, he is detained by the U.S. government to prevent the disclosure of secrets among the public, and his character is transformed into a passive and weak individual through torture with contemporary technological mechanisms. In the novel, hyperreality is constructed through mechanisms such as technology, media, alienation, ambiguity, simulation, hybridization, wonder, estrangement, events, characters, language, image dominance, space and time, and power. This indicates a lack of democracy and the dominance of power, transcending reality and entering an imperceptible and supernatural world.
Soraya Rahimi, Jahangir Valadbeigi,
Volume 6, Issue 1 (1-2025)
Abstract
The study of the epistemological and philosophical foundations that have accompanied critical methodologies is the key to comprehending critical theories and understanding their core theoretical concepts and practical procedures before applying them in the field of criticism. It is imperative not to regard methodologies such as narratology merely as analytical tools for interpreting literary discourses. These methodologies have drawn upon a variety of philosophical sources in constructing their critical projects, beginning with Aristotle and extending to contemporary horizons manifest in postmodern theories. Their roots can be traced to a range of philosophical traditions, including objectivist philosophies, logical positivism, Hegelian phenomenology, and Kantian principles of subjectivity. From this perspective, the objective of this is to highlight the importance of understanding the philosophical foundations of narratology and the issue of knowledge ownership in understanding literary texts, particularly the sacred Qur'anic discourse, through the use of its critical methodologies. It adopts a descriptive-analytical approach by examining the key philosophical backgrounds that have accompanied narratology throughout its historical development and analyzing its application in certain critical models. The research concludes that there are concepts from narratology that contribute to its critical framework, such as the death of the author, the negation of the human subject leading to the dismissal of characters in fiction, and the infinity of meaning—concepts that conflict with the structure of the Qur'anic text. The presence of the author within the Qur'anic discourse and the living, active characters who move within its narrative space cannot be considered as mere fictional constructs. This issue is further evident in the study of the narrator within the Qur'anic discourse, relying on the narratological model. The use of this methodology risks diminishing the sanctity of the Qur'anic text due to a mechanical application of the method, without considering the fundamental differences between the Qur'anic narrator and the human author in literary texts. Although the research does not deny the potential benefit of analytical methods introduced by narratology, particularly from structuralism and its subsequent stages, it emphasizes the necessity of understanding critical models in their philosophical foundations and epistemological dimensions to effectively engage with the Qur'anic discourse. Utilizing this approach involves a conscious choice that merges both cognitive and ideological considerations, where the outcomes are intrinsically linked to its philosophical and theoretical premises.
Samaneh Soosapoor, Yousef Hadipour, Seyed Ebrahim Arman, Farhad Divsalar,
Volume 6, Issue 1 (1-2025)
Abstract
Stream of consciousness is an innovative literary technique used frequently by modernist novelists and short story writers. It plays a significant role in reflecting the narrators’ and characters’ psychological and emotional status. Origami, the Japanese art of paper folding, is an ancient field of entertainment to make intricate designs. Nowadays, Origami has achieved new aspects and dimensions as contemporary artist draw on it in order to utilize it in conceptual and practical arts. Sanaa Shalan, a contemporary Jordanian writer, has rewritten the “Forgetfulness Realized It” story primarily based on the stream-of-consciousness technique to narrate the suffering and pain of living in contemporary societies. This story has thirty parts, each of which begins with a star origami. This study adopts a descriptive-analytical approach to examine the stream of consciousness in the origami at the beginning of each part based on William James’ ideas. It pinpoints how interior monologue, lyricism, association, psychological characteristics, soliloquy, and symbols can display the psychological problems of the characters in Shalan’s story.
Yosra Shadman, Nemat Azizi, Kholud Khazir Abed,
Volume 6, Issue 2 (4-2025)
Abstract
Heritage constitutes a prominent part of Ahmed bin Alwan’s poetry due to his love for heritage on the one hand and his desire to communicate with his Islamic audience and the Arab intellectual on the other hand. Therefore, he used inheritance in a collection of poems. This study attempts to shed light on the evocation of inheritance and its aesthetic and semantic role in his poetry through by using a descriptive-analytical framework. It examines the numerous manifestations of intertextuality in the poetry of Ahmed bin Alwen as he draws on heritage in its various types in his collections. Intertextuality was divided into types: Qur’anic and narrative intertextuality out of which religious intertextuality evolves. There are also three types of artistic intertextuality: dialogic, absorptive, and ruminate. The poet used religious intertextuality for many purposes, the most prominent of which was the sanctification of some figures such as Idris (peace be upon him) and Ahl al - Bayt. The poet’s utilized religious intertextuality to reveal ancient Islamic glory with the aim of linking the nation’s present with its antiquity.
Zahra Asadi, Aliasghar Habibi, Abdolhamid Ahmadi,
Volume 6, Issue 2 (4-2025)
Abstract
Novels can be categorized into different types based on their content. One category is the historical novel which examines historical events/issues from a realistic perspective. In this type of novel, the writer presents historical facts intertwined with imagination, reshaping history in a new and appealing form. It can be argued that the blend of historical facts and literary imagination is one of the most important characteristics that has attracted various classes of society to such novels and has made these novels easily comprehensible to them. This study examines two novels written by Naguib Mahfouz (Egypt) and Ibrahim Modarresi (Iran) based on historical events. The two writers artistically depict historical documents as they are familiar with the ancient history of their countries. Therefore, and due to the importance of research in historical novels, this study aims to explore the characteristics of historical novels in Mahfouz’s Radobis and Ibrahim Modrresi’s Bride of Madaen, by building on comparative literature theory. The results indicate that the writer’s extensive attention to the historical dimension in Bride of Madaen brings it closer to historical writings while in Radobis, the writer focused more on the artistic and imaginative aspects, making it more artistic than historical.
Monireh Zibaei, Ibrahim Ali Naithal Al-Gharabi,
Volume 6, Issue 2 (4-2025)
Abstract
As fiction revolves around characters, events, and settings, it seems that narratology can arguably provide a critical perspective to examine its different layers. The analysis of a literary text’s narrative structure potentially yields new dimensions to literary studies. Thistles and Cloves is a particular case in point, which has attracted considerable readership in recent years. The novel bitterly narrates the suffering and oppression inflicted on Palestinians. This study has appointed this novel as its case study in that it provides a historical rendition of Palestine. Also, the novel is equipped with idiosyncratic narrative components that should be decoded. Hence, the researchers draw on a narrative approach to address the novelist’s utilization of narrative components to display the tragic reality of Palestine. This study finds that the novelist has effectively employed particular narrative elements and factors to create an entertaining aura to highlight the significance of characters as the most essential narrative item. The author portrays parts of the history of the resistance and struggle of Palestinians against oppression and their struggle to liberate their country to show his devotion to his homeland.
Haidar Mahallati,
Volume 6, Issue 2 (4-2025)
Abstract
Zahran Al-Qasimi, an Omani novelist, won the Booker International Prize for Arabic Fiction in 2023 for her novel The Alienation of the Water Diviner. Al-Qasimi’s narrative records the struggles of an Omani rural community against the dual forces of nature and human ambition. This paper examines the social realities depicted in the novel through employing a sociological framework in order to explain the structure of social relations as determined by interpersonal interactions within the community. A distinctive feature of the novel, this paper suggests, is its emphasis on a selection of sounds and voices that permeate its narrative line. Al-Qasimi skillfully employs these auditory elements, focusing on both human sounds and the natural environment, to uncover their significance and impact on human existence. This research adopts a descriptive-analytical approach to examine the author’s unique employment of sound as a narrative device. It aims to decode the significance of these sounds, their impact on human life, and their relationship to the villagers’ culture and thought. Furthermore, the study investigates how Al-Qasimi skillfully employs sound as a tool to point to the villagers’ unspoken hardships.
Askar Babazadeh Aghdam, Ebrahim Namdari, Hossein Taktabar Firoozjaii, Mees Al Zeydavi,
Volume 6, Issue 2 (4-2025)
Abstract
The study deals with the cultural patterns narrated in Sebaya Dawlat Al-Khorafah. Cultural patterns are linked to cultural criticism as one of the important trends postmodern lterature, as it seeks to open up new horizons of interpretation. Cultural criticism treats literary texts as a cultural phenomenon, just as it deals with other cultural phenomena to examine the mechanisms of centralization and hegemony. What highlights the significance of this topic is that it addresses social in general and in this study Iraqi society in particular. The novel critiques fraudulent terrorism by bypassing the image of Islam and targeting various religious sectors and beliefs as a crime that threatens society. The study aims to conduct a comprehensive cultural reading of narrative discourses, focusing on the realistic aspects taken from the Iraqi reality during the period of ISIS terrorism by drawing on a descriptive-analytical approach. This study analyzes what happened during the period of ISIS terrorism and the injustice and persecution that Iraqi society, especially Christians, was subjected to. It finds that the presence of religion and politics in the writer's novel is an embodiment of social reality and an attempt to convey a message to its readers. It is a message that an ordinary reader cannot easily understand, but a researcher can understand it by studying and analyzing the words and phrases that it carries.
Hassan Sarbaz, Hiva Babasafari,
Volume 6, Issue 3 (6-1983)
Abstract
Sufism is one of the valuable foundations of Islamic legacy that have been reflected in various ways in Islamic poetry and literature. Many poets and scholars have been influenced by sufi ideas and they have incorporated the legacy of Sufism into their works. In addition to poetry, the legacy of Sufism in contemporary Arabic literature has been widely reflected in fiction and especially in novel. One of the novelists who has paid special attention to the legacy of Sufism and the rereading of Sufi characters is Mohammad Hassan Alwan, who has reread the character and thoughts of Ibn Arabi, the prominent mystic and Sufi of the Muslim world, in his novel A Small Death. The significance of the novel A Small Death is that in addition to rereading the Sufi Thoughts of Ibn Arabi as one of the prominent figures in Islamic history and one of the greatest theoreticians of Mysticism and Sufism, it presents a picture of the state of the Islamic world and the Arab world at a critical juncture in history. The novel also provides the reader with many historical, philosophical, political, social, and mystical perspectives using a literary language. This study attempts to study the Sufi thoughts of Ibn Arabi in Mohammad Hassan Alwan's novel A Small Death through the descriptive method and content analysis method. The results show that the author rereads the different stages of Ibn Arabi's life and his thoughts using authentic historical sources and Ibn Arabi's own works, however, he narrates the accounts of birth and death in his own language in an utterly fictional and supernatural setting.
Naeem Amouri, جواد سعدون زاده, Yousef Motaqiannia,
Volume 18, Issue 1 (9-1983)
Abstract
Existentialism emerged as a result of the two world wars that left darkness and doubt in our world. rather, it was linked to novels and short stories since its beginning. Mustafa Mahmoud had extensive intellectual and philosophical contributions to his literature. Based on this, the research attempts to study the novel “The Impossible” by Mustafa Mahmoud according to the existentialist doctrine, using the descriptive, analytical, and philosophical approach. The results show that Mustafa Mahmoud tried to show the most important existentialist conflicts in the novel “The Impossible”; Anxiety appeared in the adventures of the novel's characters, as "Helmy" and "Fatima" attempted to escape anxiety by forgetting, gambling, and sexual relations. The source of anxiety was in the personal decisions and multiple desires of the two heroes. As for freedom, it appeared in two contradictory forms: the image of paternal authority rooted in the novel's society, and the liberated vision standing against prevailing norms and laws. From the absence of freedom came the birth of alienation, the monotony of the hero, and his laziness. There is a close connection between self-confidence, the lack of transparent feelings, non-normativity, and deviation from society and its morals, and the separation of the individual and his alienation from himself and from society. Likewise, the relationship between the self and the other appeared in a dialectical form full of quarrels and continuous conflicts in the family within the novel's society.
Azam Shamsoddini Fard, Nayyere Askari,
Volume 18, Issue 1 (9-1983)
Abstract
Among the literary works, the short story has a special place and is among the most important arts that deal with the reform of the society and related issues. Meanwhile, the character is the basic part of the short story and the center of transferring ideas and showing events. Grimas is one of the theorists who examines the actions of the characters in the story. In this theory, the characters of the story, determine the general trajectory of the story in the interactive actors such as sender, receiver, actor, object, helper and deterrent. Jamal Ghitani is one of the leading Egyptian writers who has been among the greats of contemporary fiction by innovating in fiction. The fictional collection of "Arz- Arz " is one of the works of this contemporary creative writer, which consists of seven short stories and one of this stories is ‘Osfur Al- Sheta Al- Mohajer’ In which the author writes about the Presence of an war-torn child into a horrific environment of war. In this descriptive-analytical study, the application of the Grimas model in the characterization of this story has been investigated. The results of the research show that the author of the story has been able to implement the grimace actor model in this story by carefully using the characters and processing them. And in this regard, he has used all kinds of actors in creating the characters of his story and by creating dual contrasts, he has clearly explained the different actors. In this story, both human and non-living characters are seen, and Ghitani has used both direct and indirect character processing methods to process the characters. The characters of the story are pictures of the people of the Egyptian society in the age of the writer and this has led to the emergence of meaningful characters from them.
Hosein Marashi, Azam Sadegian,
Volume 18, Issue 1 (9-1983)
Abstract
Muhammad Mu'min Al-Jaza'iri Al-Shirazi is a notable Iranian author interested in the art of Maqama in the late 11th and early 12th centuries. His works include several Maqamas found in three books: Maqama Nasikha, Tayf al-Khayal, and Khazanat al-Khayal, though many remain unpublished. The Maqamas authored by Muhammad Mu'min Al-Jaza'iri differ from those of Badi' al-Zaman al-Hamadhani and Al-Hariri in terms of style, subject matter, and purpose. The writer deviates from the established norms of the Maqama genre, showcasing a unique approach that distinguishes his work within this literary tradition. Somewhat, this made the author an innovative figure in this literary style. Among all his Maqamas, one that particularly catches our attention is the Swadiya, the seventh Maqama in the book Tayf al-Khayal, which discusses the debate between knowledge and wealth. In this work, the author breaks away from the principles established by Badi' al-Zaman al-Hamadhani and Al-Hariri. This study focuses on the narrator's role and types within the Swadiya Maqama, highlighting its artistic and aesthetic value through modern methodological tools. The research reveals that the author employs a first-person narrative style, conveying events with personal feelings and limited knowledge while expressing internal emotions without accessing characters' thoughts. A key feature is the use of multiple narrators, providing varied perspectives. The study also emphasizes the use of epistolary art in this Maqama, suggesting it represents a new type of epistolary narrative in Arabic literature.
