LITERARY THEORY AND CRITICISM
Year:2019 | Volume:4 | Issue:1 (7)|Papers Count:7

Adopting an ontological approach towards myths, Mircea Eliade (1907-1986) argues that the primitive man’ s conception of myths as true repetitive stories is related to his ontological structure. Accordingly, Eliade, criticizing Freud’ s understanding of the creation of the myth as an unconscious process, suggests that myth is basically a theoretical explanation of rituals which consciously deal with the symbolic repetition of Creation. In this way, Eliade, following Durkheim’ s dichotomy regarding the sacred and the profane, asserts that the primitive man thinks of being and its objects as the result of hierophany: a process through which the sacred is embodied as an objective entity. The present article aims to survey the theoretical foundations of Eliade’ s thought as well as his arguments in this respect. Emphasizing Eliade’ s theoretical assumptions and phenomenological methodology, the article argues that Eliade’ s theory is somewhat questionable and it is, instead, suggested that what he puts forth as the ontological structure of the human being is better understood as a cultural constitute. Extended Abstract 1. Introduction Eliade studies mythology from the viewpoint of a historian of religion. Attempting to yield a phenomenological analysis of myth, he eventually turns to hermeneutic interpretation or creative hermeneutics to uncover the latent meanings of myths. He argues that what renders the world of myths meaningful is the interpretation that is based on their phenomenological description. The definition provided by Eliade is based on a kind of ontological distinction established between two different levels of being: one based on an anti-historical approach and the on a history-oriented approach to being and time. However, although what he puts forth as his logical argument seems to be of high validity and, thus, deserving reflection and admiration, it appears that his preliminary assumptions in the distinction drawn between the sacred and the profane as well as his emphasis on the inherency of this distinction is in contrast with the phenomenological approach in its philosophical dimension. 2. Theoretical Framework The purpose of this study is to investigate the theoretical foundations of the myth, and possibly religion, so as to examine the originality of Eliade’ s theory. It goes without saying that such a study can expose the weaknesses of Elide’ s theory and question the validity of some of his assumptions and, thus, it can become more applicable in analyzing the structure of the myth. 3. Methodology Eliade’ s mythological views are mainly based on the distinction between the sacred and the profane. This dichotomy constitutes the basics of his methodology. Such a perspective toward the components of mythology allows him to present the so-called ontological dichotomy that he proposes to exist between two different levels of being: an anti-historical and a history-oriented approach to being and time. As a result, we will investigate the theoretical foundations of Eliade’ s assumptions, and the authenticity of his reasoning through a close reading of what phenomenology offers as a method of analysis. 4. Findings When Eliade emphasizes that the sacred is spatially or temporally embodied through the process of revelation, he takes for granted some assumptions that are not as clear-cut as he supposes them to be. What Eliade considers to be the sacred is essentially the same as what is known, in the history of philosophy, as Platonic ideas. The revelation of the sacred in the objective forms of being is considered to be of a lesser value in comparison with what he assumes to be the absolute truth and, therefore, any objective phenomenon is considered, on the one hand, to have the potential to represent as well as embody the sacred, and thus be of the same dignity as the sacred, while, on the other hand, to be restricted to its existential limits and constraints. The sacred discloses itself in various dimensions and effects and is, consequently, manifested in different levels of being, and such manifestations will exhibit huge differences in terms of degree and frequency. 5. Conclusion The present study shows that phenomenology, as a methodological tool, has been used by Eliade in a special sense. He has not only restricted his studies to the phenomenological description and interpretation of the myth; but, instead of addressing the structure or configuration of the mythical components, has focused on discovering the common themes or motifs of mythology, i. e., the hermeneutic analysis of myths. Of course, it seems that Eliade has deemed some of his questionable assumptions evident without a valid benchmark and regarded such assumptions as the cornerstone of his future topics and concerns. These assumptions, however, are in a way of epistemological character and are, in fact, culturally constituted, but Eliade has tried to resolve the issue by reducing such topics to some pre-fabricated forms or what philosophers consider as a priori. This can be due to the difficulty Eliade experiences in explaining them structurally.

Historians and readers of the history of literature always look for original material and documents in history. That is why the works of the authors who write about their contemporaries and their age have always been more important and valid. Considering the significance of contemporaneous writing in the history of literature, this article examines the method of contemporaneous writing in Majales al-Nafayes as the earliest period tadhkirah in Iran. Thus, the account which Amir Alishir Nawai has provided about his contemporary poets has been analyzed. In our analysis, we have drawn on some components in the ‘ prosopography’ method. The study shows that the component that gives this work an important dimension is the authorial element. The significance of this element is to such extent that if it is removed from the work, the whole structure would be impaired. The conclusion made by the present study is that Amir Alishir Nawai’ s contemporaneous writing is ‘ author-centered’ . In addition to writing of contemporary poems and the registration of contemporary poets, Nawai had other motivations in this work, for example, the stabilization of himself as a pioneering cultural figure in Herat, and the stabilization of the cultural-literary currents of that era. Extended Abstract 1. Introduction Historians and audiences of history have always looked for the original sources of historical accounts. Therefore, works by writers who have been contemporary with the events or people they have written about are of greater significance and have, thus, attracted much attention. Aware of the importance of works by contemporary writers, the present article studies the contemporary writing methods utilized in Majales al-Nafayis, as the first contemporary tadhkirah (contemporary biography) in Iranian history. This work, written in the 15th century by Amir Alishir Navayi, is one of the greatest works influencing the tradition of writing tadhkirah. 2. Theoretical Framework Prosopography, or collective biography, deals with external features of a group of people who have some characteristics in common – such as a profession or social status. Depending on the purpose of the researcher, these people are studied as a group with common characteristics and features. The present study uses the principles of prosopography to identify the reasons as to why certain individuals have been included in Majales al-Nafayis. 3. Methodology The present article draws on prosopography to explain the components that Navayi has employed to describe his contemporary figures and events. The most important of these components are temporality, spatiality and relationship networks. 4. Findings The present study reveals that temporality, spatiality, and relationship networks play an important role in this work and are closely related to the author of the book. The author plays a great role here and if the work is separated from its creator, the whole structure of the work will disintegrate. In other words, the author forms the whole structure of the book and relates its different parts closely to one another. Moreover, by creating this work, he forms a literary circle, with himself as its main figure. 5. Conclusion It can be concluded from this study that Navayi’ s work is author-centered. While writing about important events of the time and his contemporary poets, Navayi has other motivations in writing this tadhkirah. For example, it can be inferred from the book that the author primarily aims to stabilize his position as the most prominent cultural figure of Herat and also continue the literary and cultural trends of the time.

Molavi’ s Masnavi is based on one of the most practical and entrenched traditions of Persian literature, namely, the use of parables for the purpose of teaching. Masnavi’ s parables are rooted in written or oral folklore, and religious and historical stories. Yet, Molavi has created an amazing world of meaning beyond the world and structure of folk traditions and beliefs for his readers. The emphasis of this transference of meaning is due to his special style of allegorization and his creative mental processes while projecting the familiar spaces onto the unfamiliar target meaning and presenting the final meaning from inside of this blend. Following Mark Turner’ s theory of the literary mind, this article intends to analyze the mechanism of allegorization in Masnavi from the source-space of folk, religious and historical stories to the target-space of the mystical meaning as well as Molavi’ s mental processes as exemplified by the parable “ Blaming the Man who was Accused of Killing his Mother” . The findings show that the projection route for the two stories of the source and the target is not one-way and straightforward at all. Rather, it is a complex procedure of projection, blending and multiple combinations including a set of creative techniques. The power and worth of this creation of meaning results from Molavi’ s creativity in choosing the unusual source and target spaces in such a way that their projection and blending, while corresponding structurally, possess a powerful and meaningful conflict in terms of concepts and ideas. It is a conflict and blending out of which aesthetic techniques such as paradox, irony and defamiliarization are generated. These techniques have a deconstructional and convincing effect on the minds of the readers, which is the direct factor for the didactic power and literary splendor of Masnavi’ s fables and parables. Extended Abstract 1. Introduction Rumi’ s Masnavi is based on one of the most practical and entrenched traditions of Persian literature, i. e., the use of parables for the purpose of teaching. Masnavi’ s parables derive from written or oral folklore and religious and historical stories. Yet, Rumi has created an unusual world of meaning beyond the world and structure of folk traditions. It seems that the relationship between the superstructure and allegorical meaning in some of Masnavi’ s parables is improbable. The allegorical meaning in a noticeable number of parables in Masnavi results from a kind of conflict between the opposing spaces and concepts, which maximizes their literary prominence and influence. In the present study, attempt is made to understand the process of conceptualization and meaning creation in Masnavi’ s parables, the features of these allegorical meanings and also Rumi’ s mental processes in creating meaning by analyzing the mechanism of moving from the basic story to the mystical meanings in the parable “ Censuring the Man Who Killed His Mother Based on False Accusation” using Mark Turner’ s theory of the literary mind. 2. Theoretical Framework In the present article, cognitive semantics is employed to examine the role of the author’ s mental processes and his knowledge of the world in conceptualizing and creating meaning. Mark Turner’ s theory of the literary mind, used in analyzing parables, derives from cognitive semantics. Moreover, his theory of conceptual blending is of great help in the present study. 3. Methodology In this study, we use the cognitive semantics approach and the descriptive-analytical method to analyze a parable by Rumi based on Turner’ s literary mind theory. 4. Findings The findings of the present study indicate that a complex procedure of projection, blending and multiple combinations, employed creatively, has enabled Rumi to develop his parables. The unconventional contrasts and the use of paradox and irony have all made the story more convincing for the reader. These techniques, which were in some ways influenced by mystical thoughts, were mainly the result of Rumi’ s literary mind. 5. Conclusion The final meaning of a parable, according to Turner, derives neither from the meaning of each input story nor from the sum of them. It is, rather, a meaning generated through the contrast between the elements and contexts of the input stories. The formation of such a meaning is not just the outcome of Rumi’ s subtle observation of the opposing spaces and stories, but is the result of his talent for shaping these conflicts in order to create a paradoxical/ironic and, at the same time, powerful meaning. The findings of this study show that cognitive theories can play a great part in identifying the mechanism used in the creation of literary meanings and analyzing the prominent aspects of these meanings and the conceptualization system employed by literary authors. Comparative studies on Persian allegorical works based on cognitive methods can help the researchers uncover the reasons for the differences in how Persian literary writers have used parables in their works and identify the distinctions between the writers’ mental processes in developing meanings.

Some cognitive psychologists, drawing on the Law of Pragnanz, argue that human conceptual understanding develops as he puts into practice his cognitive faculties of simplification and organization of new inputs through certain preconceived schemata, scripts, and frames. They have articulated this argument within the theoretical frameworks of Gestalt psychology. As such, both simple and critical story-reading, like any other epistemological anamorphosis, should be the product of contemplation in parts of a text at the expense of leaving other parts unread. There is no reading which meticulously takes in a text in all its minutiae, naturally because there is no end to delving into textual details. Readers themselves know by experience that discerning a whole text in its full details, if not far from the normal process of understanding, is definitely not any closer to their own interests. It is in pursuit of such readerly-oriented interests that the potential interpretations of a text get drastically reduced. Of course, the scope of the readability of a piece of fiction is neither as wide as it is likely to be, nor as narrow as still preferred by most of the literary critics. Somewhere in between, the range of the authentic interpretations of a text is restricted – albeit well beyond any strict boundaries – by arbitrary narrative (story-writing/reading) conventions. Setting out from a literary hermeneutics stand, this article aims to approach a number of the socio-cultural assumptions commonly held by the readers of Persian literary fiction. Extended Abstract 1. Introduction According to some cognitive psychologists, the expression of human understanding and perception is founded on simplifying and organizing new perceptions of schemata and prefabricated frameworks. Such a mechanism is explained by psychologists in Gestalt psychology. In this school of psychology, the reading of a story, like any process of anamorphosis or epistemological transformation, is the result of examining some parts of the text at the cost of disregarding some others. Quite expectedly, no reading covers all details as the details of a text are endless. Readers know from experience that paying equal attention to all details of a text is impractical or even by no means close to the ordinary way of understanding. For the same purpose of practicality, both ordinary and critical readings of the text turn into a reductionist act. In other words, in the process of reading, some potential meanings of the text are overlooked. 2. Theoretical Framework The present article relies on the theory of reception, which focuses on defining the readers’ preconceptions of the text and principles of cognitive psychology, which considers understanding to be connected with patterns existing in the readers’ mind and how they are interpreted, to examine the readers’ understanding of Persian fiction. 3. Methodology In this article, by relying on hermeneutic studies, attempt is made to identify and examine the prior knowledge shared by readers of Persian fiction. 4. Findings The range of the readers’ perceptions is curbed by the fiction writing and reading tradition. Reading modern Persian fiction is different from both reading a text closely and skimming it. Unlike these two ways of reading a text, selective reading can be a justifiable method. In this method, not all the details of a story can be examined even in a careful reading. However, selective reading is only one of the requirements of reading a story. It should be accompanied by the ability to organize all the selective micro-readings into a structured whole. In the process of organizing information the overall meaning of a text is formed as the main concepts inferred by the reader are prioritized in their mind. Thus, different readers, depending on where they put more emphasis, organize their overall understanding. 5. Conclusion The task of reading does not come to an end when the reader finishes the text because reading continues for some time after the act of reading the text is completed. Some dark sides of the text are later analyzed by the reader and probably some seemingly unimportant aspects are re-read so that the main ideas put forward by the author are organized in their mind. On the other hand, the reading of a text usually starts before the first sentences of the text are even read, which is why no text is completely unfamiliar to the reader when they embark on reading the text. Relying on their knowledge about the author, readers start reading a new work by an author and continue with it to the end, trying to fulfill what the author expects them as ideal readers. The readers’ knowledge about the background of the text and its mission influences both the process of reading and their final perception.

This article focuses on Reza Amir Khani’ s The Stateless ─ Bivatan ─ (2008) in an attempt to find out whether Amir Khani reflects mulicultural policies or criticizes them. To this end, two major themes of “ othering” and “ democracy” are examined through the perspective of cultural studies and the deployment of Ž iž ek’ s theory of the post-political world. It is argued that Amir Khani offers an anti-narrative in which the hybridity of racial, ethnic, religious, and cultural notions does not imply the collapse of liberal humanism’ s meta-narrative of ‘ self/other’ ; on the contrary, it offers a front to protect liberal capitalism. Such a world is discussed to be a version of Ž iž ek’ s post-political society where ‘ exile’ is the basic condition of post-globalization, and ‘ capital’ instead of ‘ geography’ does the map-making. In this world, Democracy is presented not only as a masque for the current hierarchical system but also as a deliberate strategy to deny ‘ recognition’ to post-global exiles. Extended Abstract 1. Introduction While multiculturalism is believed to have developed simultaneously with the advent of globalism in the second half of the 20th century, rarely has the world witnessed the collapse of geographical, cultural and racial boundaries, on the one hand, and the breakup of national and ethnic identities, on the other hand, as it does today. This has resulted in ambivalence and hybridity in the West, as inseparable elements of postmodern life. Yet, it seems that the West is still obsessed with its colonial discourse and treats minorities based on the Hegelian master-slave system. Following the September 11 events, with the onset of the so-called “ war on terror” policy in the West, conflicts were reduced from cultural-racial wars to wars between religions and led to the “ double otherness” of minorities – especially Muslims – and their visibility. Writers and critics have been concerned with multiculturalism globally and challenged the post-political world. Reza Amirkhani is among the first Iranian writers to have focused on contradictions in multiculturalism in the form of migrant literature and dealt with it in his novel Bivatan [The Stateless] (2008). 2. Theoretical Framework The present article draws on the New Left discourse – especially the ideas of Slavoj Ž iž ek and Giorgio Agamben as two prominent figures – which was developed in the late 20th century to criticize the discourse of multiculturalism. This discourse, by deconstructing democracy as a lever used by the power discourse to suppress “ the other” , tries to introduce multiculturalism as a new version of the colonial discourse, which instead of employing violence, politicizes cultural differences based on the liberal humanist discourse. The ideas of postcolonial critics, such as Homi Bhabha, are also relied on in the present study as the ideas of both group of thinkers overlap in many ways. 3. Methodology In the present study the multicultural approach and ideas of New Left critics are adopted to discuss the concept of the non-Western “ other” . By rereading the text of the novel, the author tries to deconstruct the power discourse and open up a new intellectual horizon to the West from the viewpoint of “ the other” . 4. Findings and Discussion Reza Amirkhani’ s Bivatan can be regarded as an account of the life of a man who, impressed by propaganda and scientific progress of the West, seeks “ life” in the US but is eventually sentenced to “ death” , in the figurative meaning of losing all values, freedom and humanity, because of the crime of “ otherness” . This novel is in fact a representation of the contemporary society of the post-political era in which the capitalist system has been able to replace older concepts such as “ ethnicity” , “ nationality” and “ identity” with modern myths such as “ multiculturalism” , “ democracy” and “ citizen rights” and thus develop new criteria for the evaluation of personal, cultural and social values, which are based on “ utilitarianism” , “ relativity” and hierarchical relationships. 5. Conclusion The US described by Amirkhani represents a society that, contrary to its claims regarding freedom and democracy, is police-dominated and controlling. In such a society, which is revolves around the imperialistic “ self/other” dichotomy, the “ other” is always a threat that should be controlled at any price so that the civilized Western “ self” is not endangered. Tyranny and suppression are inseparable from this society and the main prerequisite for accepting people is adapting oneself to American logic and Western values. In fact, this represents the commitment of American society to maintaining the colonial logic that is reflected in the speech made by George W. Bush, following the September 11 Attack: “ either with us or against us” .

Georges Dumé zil is one of the most influential mythologists who established a new school in this field by exploring the social constructions and common foundations of the Indo-European peoples. He proposed the theory of the tripartite deities in Indo-European mythology and founded a social system in which three deities, i. e., Mitra-Varuna, Indra and Ashvinha (Nasatyaha), according to their three basic actions, namely, spiritual rule, war and production, were responsible for the material and spiritual affairs of the people. Vis-o-Ramin, as the oldest lyric verse-tale in Persian literature, has retained its connection to these myths; therefore, it has the potential to be studied according to Dumé zil’ s theory. In this paper, through a descriptive-analytical method, three main characters of the poem, namely, Shah-Mobad, Ramin and Vis have been analyzed based on this theory. The results show that, considering their characteristics and actions, these three characters are completely matched with the three gods of the Indo-European peoples, and proportional to the content of a lyric verse-tale, they can be regarded as the replaced samples of the tripartite deities. Extended Abstract 1. Introduction Myths reflect ancient human beings’ ideas about God, nature and themselves. Over time, myths have kept their importance and repeated themselves by adapting to needs, beliefs and narratives dominating each era. This feature can be studied based on the concept of displacement, first used by Northrop Frye in studying mythological texts. Their different functions, diversity of subject and displacement have enabled myths to be studied from different points of view by mythologists. Georges Dumé zil opened up new horizons for the study of the complex world of myths by presenting the theory of tripartite ideology. The origin of Iranian myths can be traced back to the Indo-Iranian myths, which attracted the attention of mythologists in the early 19th century. The Rigveda, the oldest Indo-European written work, which can be traced back to a period between 1500 BC and 1200 BC, is the best source for studying the old Indo-Iranian myths. In Iran, the Avesta, as the sacred book of the Zoroastrians, contains many old mythological stories and beliefs. 2. Theoretical Framework Using Dumé zil’ s three functional categories, the present article examines Vis-o-Ramin’ sthemes and the similarities it bears to mythological narratives. Moreover, the characters of this story are studied based on Dumé zil’ s theory. 3. Methodology In the present study, the descriptive-analytical methodology is employed to show that the ideology dominating Iranian beliefs and stories have continued to exist in Persian love poetry. For this purpose, the unique characteristics of three Aryan deities, based on the Rigveda, are identified and compared with those of the main characters of Vis-o-Ramin using Dumé zil’ s model. 4. Findings The deity of the first function, according to the Rigveda, is wise, rules over the world, punishes or forgives sinners and accompanies Mitra. In Vis-o-Ramin, these characteristics can be found in the character of Shah-Mobad. Among the characteristics of the deity of the second function are power, giving away wealth and blessing, ruling creators and gods and annihilating enemies and demons. Similar characteristics can be found in Ramin. The deity of the third function, based on the Rigveda, provides blessing and is shiny and beautiful. Vis, in addition to possessing the most important characteristics of the deity of the third function, establishes deep relations with the deities once worshipped in Iran. 5. Conclusion The three characters of the love story Vis-o-Ramin – Shah-Mobad, Vis and Ramin – were studied here based on Dumé zil’ s theory about the Aryan deities so that a comparison could be made between them. It should be noted that some of the prominent characteristics of the Aryan triple deities do not closely correspond to their displaced counterparts in Vis-o-Ramin, which can be due to the fact that this love poem is detached from the era of mythologies, has the characteristics of lyrical poetry and revolves around love. It can also be because the poet, Gorgani, has made some changes in the older, oral version of this love story. Yet, the three characters of the story, in some ways, such as their characteristics and acts, correspond to the three ancient Indo-European deities and can be considered as their displaced counterparts.

Bruno Bettelheim is a post-Freudian psychologist who has made significant contributions to psychological literary criticism, and has always been considered highly by psychoanalysts and critics of children’ s literature. The functions he attributes to fairy tales have created a wide variety of research subjects in literary criticism. In this article, the authors, by studying Bettelheim’ s major works, critically examine the functional distinctions of fairy tales and myths in his psychoanalytic approach, and, ultimately, classify his views in two general categories: in one category, his ideas include similarities and differences between fairy tales and myths, including the manifestation of the experience of the society of fairy tales and mythical stories, the hope for a happy ending, the polarity of the characters, and the pleasure principle vs. the reality principle in fairy tales. The other category shows that Bettelheim was affected by certain contradictions in explaining the functional distinctions between fairy tales and mythical stories, for instance, the meaning of life and the special function of fairy tales in giving meaning to life, the emphasis on the therapeutic function of fairy tales in ancient times and among Hindus, the explanation of the functions of fairy tales based on the Freudian pattern of personality levels, and the hero’ s place in fairy tales and myths. The critical reappraisal of these at-times contradicting functional distinctions, can promote the accuracy of the literary critics among his followers in their application of his ideas, and can also prevent post-Freudian psychoanalysts who follow Bettelheim’ s approach from making probable errors. Extended Abstract 1. Introduction Bruno Bettelheim, who used Freud’ s ideas to explain issues such as the functions of fairy tales, is one of the post-Freudian psychologists who has had a profound impact on child psychology and the analysis and criticism of children’ s literature. Bettelheim puts great emphasis on learning from patients throughout psychoanalytic and clinical treatment. The bond between psychoanalysis and art in the ideas of Bettelheim makes his works ideal for psychological literary criticism and consequently many articles have been written based on his ideas about fairy tales and myths in the past two decades. In the present study, Bettelheim's views on the functional distinctions between fairy tales and myths and the ideas of mythologists such as Mircea Eliade and Claude Lé vi-Strauss have been employed to study the distinctions between fairy tales and myths. 2. Theoretical Framework In Bruno Bettelheim's psychoanalytic approach, understanding the distinction between fairy tales and myths is of great importance for two reasons: First, without understanding this distinction, employing either of them instead of the other one can disrupt the fairy tales’ functions that Bettelheim has proposed for the treatment and prevention of psychological problems. Second, relying on his views in literary criticism without fully understanding these functional distinctions can undermine literary criticism. 3. Methodology The present study relies on library resources and qualitative data analysis to answer the main question of the article: what are the distinctions between fairy tales and myths based on Bettelheim's psychoanalytic approach? 4. Findings Determining the exact boundary between fairy tales and myths seems to be difficult or even, as some scholars have pointed out, impossible. Probably for the same reason, Bettelheim believes that no distinct boundary can be drawn between fairy tales and myths and their common function, according to him, is providing a venue for the realization of society’ s experience. Although he provides a precise definition for the fairy tale and myth, he does not provide us with a comprehensive, well-organized understanding of them. Instances of contradiction can be found in his work and in some cases his views disagree with the findings of mythologists. 5. Conclusion According to Bettelheim, in most cultures no clear boundary can be found between fairy tales and myth, and they both reflect the collective experience of society and people’ s desire to reclaim the wisdom of the ancestors and pass it on to future generations. An important aspect of fairy tales, stressed by Bettelheim as being useful for children and as a feature distinguishing them from myths, is the hope for a happy ending, which is transferred to the audience from the very beginning. Another difference underlined by him is the polarity that can be found in fairy tales, which agrees with the mental system of children. Bettelheim believes that in dilemmas between perusing pleasure and abstaining from it in fairy tales, the reader is not directly recommended to choose either path, and it is only through imagination and interesting events that children are directed toward one way or the other. However, in myths, the audience is directly spoken to and involved in the situation.