LITERARY CRITICISM
Year:2012 | Volume:5 | Issue:17|Papers Count:8

Paul Simpson is one of the researchers who have worked in the field of stylistics and critical linguistics. One of the topics which he has studied systematically is the “point of view.” In his opinion, point of view is related to the degree of narrator’s interference in the act of narration. It has three dimensions: (1) spatial; (2) temporal; and (3) psychological. The writer or narrator unites these items through modality. Furthermore, focusing on modality, Simpson introduces his narrative model which includes nine different points of view. In this model, he incorporates Genet’s discussion on four points of view and also the model of Uspensky and Fowler. Simpson believes that by studying the three spatial, temporal, and psychological dimensions of the point of view, we can reach at its ideological dimension.

Because of the stagnancy in contemporary Persian stylistics, there is an urgent need for new steps in this realm. This study introduces new branches of stylistics as well as new methodologies for related studies in Persian Literature. As an initial step, this article introduces the critical stylistics and addresses the two following questions: (1) on what basis does critical stylistics study the text and (2) what implements does this methodology use for the analysis of the text? Accordingly, the concepts of “style”, “critique”, “ideology”, and “power” are explicated as four fundamental dimensions of critical stylistics. Furthermore, the tools and implements discussed by Simpson and Fowler are delved into. Last, the implication of critical stylistics for Persian literary studies and the studies of power relations within the text are mentioned.

In our times, the relationship between philosophy and literary theory has been addressed in a variety of different ways. This paper aims to demonstrate in an a posteriori manner how philosophy contributes to literary theory. In doing so, it stands in direct opposition to Rorty’s pragmatic conception of the relationship between these two fields of human knowledge. Philosophy, it is argued, can make at least four contributions to literary theory and the paper is accordingly divided into four parts: (1) it clarifies the ontological status of the literary work; (2) it helps us see the problem of discovering the author’s intention in a new light by questioning our Cartesian presuppositions concerning the relationship between mind and body, (3) it clarifies the philosophical roots of modern literary theory by putting these theories in their proper philosophical context; and finally (4) it paves the way for a critique of the modern relativism and constructivism inherent in modern literary theory. The paper thus ends by showing that if one accepts the possible ways in which philosophy contributes to literary theory and especially finds the critique launched against constructivism in part four plausible, then one has every reason to remain doubtful about Rorty’s view of the subject.

This article continues the unfinished discussion of Tzvetan Todorov on the classification of ‘unreal literature’ in the West by expanding his idea about surrealist story as a genre. After defining the term surrealist story and its theory, the authors, drawing on the hypothesis that surrealism is an ancient phenomenon, analyze the components and atmosphere of a selection of mystical anecdotes. The results indicate that the surreal works in the East and the West, from the ancient times, have been grounded on similar theories and comparable elements.

The interpretation and comprehension of a literary work based on sociological theories usually requires an eclectic approach. Such an approach unveils different aspects of a literary work and at the same time examines the validity of the theories. This article is a structural, semiological, and hermeneutical approach towards “Giyahi dar gharantineh” from the collection of short stories, Yozpalangani ke ba man davideh-and, by Bijan Najdi based on the theory of ideology and power discourse. First, we determined the metatextual and textual signs and then all the signs were interpreted in the web of textual signification. Finally, the meaning-making codes were recognized according to the theory of ideology–in Marx, Althusser, and Zizek–and power discourse in Foucault. The overall aim of the article, apart from recognizing the intertextual aspects and narrative structures, decoding the textual signs, and understanding the hidden textual structure of the story, is to determine the macro-metaphor which can function as a common nucleus for all the stories. The tenors of this metaphor are the dominance of ideology and the illusion of identity.

Painters are often inclined to illustrate different themes derived from literary texts. But when a painter illustrates a story with the theme of a painter’s artistry and artifice, this illustration certainly becomes more intriguing. Considering the common interests between the subject and the object, the major question for the painter is what particular techniques should be undertaken for illustration of this theme. This article examines the techniques in illustrations of a story with the theme of a painter’s artistry. The objects of this study are two illustrations by Mirak from the story of “Shapur-e naghash” in Nezami’s Khosrow va Shirin. The aim of this paper is to present the functions of specific illustration techniques and also to highlight the relation between these techniques and the theme of the story.

This paper tends to investigate discourse, power, and language in Behrangi’s “Olduz va kalagh-ha” and “Olduz va aroosak-e sokhangoo” under the light of Foucauldian new historicism to demonstrate that multiple discourses of the selected texts are inseparable from the political, social, literary, and cultural discourses of Behrangi’s era. The study also illustrates how Behrangi has portrayed the mutual relations between language and power by the use of objects and animal characters in his stories. As soon as language threatens power (stepmother), it is doomed to silence.