Aristotelian Tragedy Components in Ferdowsi's Shahnameh
Subject Areas : Research in Iranian classical literature
shirin ghaderi
1
,
Mirjalaluddin Kazazi
2
*
,
خلیل بیگزاده
3
1 - PhD Student of Persian language and literature, Razi University, Kermanshah, Iran.
2 - Professor of the Department of Persian Language and Literature, Allameh Tabatabai University, Tehran, Iran.
3 - Associate Professor of Persian Language and Literature, Razi University, Kermanshah, Iran.
Keywords: Ferdowsi's Shahnameh, Tragedy, Aristotelian Poetics, Hamartia, Catharsis.,
Abstract :
Tragedy, a type of dramatic literature, is a significant part of Aristotle's thoughts on the philosophy of art, as presented in his Poetics. As the first person to elaborate on the components of tragedy, Aristotle identifies multiple elements that enhance the understanding of tragedy and elevate it above epic literature by creating a balanced emotional effect on the audience. Ferdowsi's Shahnameh includes stories that exhibit Aristotelian tragedy traits, reflecting ancient Greek tragedies and suggesting an influence of Persian literature from Greek literature. This research aims to analyze the Aristotelian tragedy components in Shahnameh, demonstrating the alignment or influence of Persian literature with ancient Greek literature through a descriptive-analytical approach.
Keywords: Ferdowsi's Shahnameh, Tragedy, Aristotelian Poetics, Hamartia, Catharsis.
Introduction and Research Objectives
Tragedy, a type of dramatic literature, is a significant part of Aristotle's thoughts on the philosophy of art, as presented in his Poetics. As the first person to elaborate on the components of tragedy, Aristotle identifies multiple elements that enhance the understanding of tragedy and elevate it above epic literature by creating a balanced emotional effect on the audience. Ferdowsi's Shahnameh includes stories that exhibit Aristotelian tragedy traits, reflecting ancient Greek tragedies and suggesting an influence of Persian literature from Greek literature. This research aims to analyze the Aristotelian tragedy components in Shahnameh, demonstrating the alignment or influence of Persian literature with ancient Greek literature through a descriptive-analytical approach. Many elements found in Shahnameh align with Aristotle's views in Poetics, affirming this alignment despite some differences stemming from literary genre and cultural, climatic, and religious variations.
Analyzing tragic elements in Shahnameh is significant and numerous studies have examined these elements:
-Beigzadeh et al. in the article "Analysis of Tragedies in Ferdowsi's Shahnameh Based on Aristotelian Plot" show the alignment of Shahnameh's plot with Aristotle's.
- In the article "Tragic Elements in the Stories of Siavash and Froud Shahnameh", Nehzat Akhlaq Azad et al. argue that these two stories are not perfect examples of Greek tragedy.
-In the article "Analysis of the structure of the stories of Sohrab, Siavash, and Froud based on the theory of Strauss", Peykani et al. considered the cause of tragedy in these three stories to be confrontations.
-Mehraki et al. in the article "Destiny-oriented structure of the tragic stories of the Shahnameh," found that the heroes of the Shahnameh stories are subject to fate.
-Seyed Sadeghi et al. in the article "Reflection of Aristotle's view in the Shahnameh" believe that the coherent and precise structure of the tragedies of the Shahnameh is close to the definition intended by Aristotle.
The present study examines Aristotelian tragedy components in four stories from Shahnameh (Rostam and Sohrab, Siavash, Forud, and Esfandiar), which possess tragic features according to the authors. The elements that will be examined in these stories are some main and some secondary, which play a significant role in their quality and tragic development. No such research has been done so far.
Research Methodology
The study analyzes a collection of major and minor elements that
shape tragedy according to Aristotle's views in Poetics (character, plot, hamartia, tragic flaw, fate, and catharsis) in the stories (Rostam and Sohrab, Siavash, Farud, and Esfandiar). According to Aristotle, a tragic hero possesses qualities such as nobility, free will, emotional ties to others, and a flaw (hamartia) that leads to downfall.
The plot (Legend of the theme) consists of three elements: recognition, reversal, and tragic events, which is evident in Shahnameh. Recognition, as defined by Aristotle, is the transition from ignorance to knowledge, with significant reliance on signs. In the stories of the Shahnameh, various types of recognition can be seen; For example: in the story of Rostam and Sohrab, the external signs of recognition are bead and banner, in the story of Siavash, the external signs of recognition are "perfume and smell, fire and banner", in the story of Froud, "banner and mole" and Ferdowsi with innovation in this field has benefited from Iranian ethnic, mythological, national and cultural beliefs and mixed them with the Greek samples; For example, he used the fire test (var) which is a God test to prove innocence in the belief of Iranian mythology and the "mole" which was the symbol of the royal family of Qobad as outward signs of recognition.
The types of transformation that "change the situation to its opposite" (Aristotle, 1990: 66) and occur when "it turns out that someone's actions and behavior have consequences that are exactly the opposite of what he was looking for or expected it" (ibid: 67). According to Aristotle, its best form is the "simultaneity of transformation and recognition". Tragic events leading to the hero's suffering or death are present in Shahnameh, demonstrating its plot's alignment with Aristotle's. A tragic flaw is a mistake the hero makes unknowingly, leading to misfortune, evident in both the heroes and their companions in Shahnameh.
Fate is crucial in shaping tragedy, playing a pivotal role in the hero's downfall. Ferdowsi integrates this concept in various forms and at appropriate times, sometimes in the middle of tragedy and response to it, and sometimes with the help of astrologers' predictions, etc.
According to Aristotle, tragedy must evoke pity and fear to achieve catharsis, purifying the emotions to cultivate (catharsis) (Aristotle, 1990: 67), and considers catharsis to be the most important effect of tragedy on the audience.
Influence through catharsis is such that the audience feels fear and compassion through identification with the hero, and at the end of the tragedy because he/she is not caught by such a punishment, he/she reaches inner peace, which is the catharsis intended by Aristotle. (Pishgo, 2018: 15). Ferdowsi has handled this task well in the stories in question and has added to the charm and impact of the stories in various ways such as describing impressive scenes, advice and warnings, and effective dialogues.
Findings
The findings indicate:
- The heroes are noble, superior, and determined, with kinship and friendship ties, and a flaw (hamartia) causing their downfall.
- The stories feature a solid plot incorporating Aristotelian elements: recognition, reversal, and catastrophe. Among the types of recognition, recognition with the help of external signs has a higher frequency, simultaneous transformation with recognition, which is the highest level of transformation and happens against the hero's goal and the reader's expectation, is especially prominent in Rostam and Sohrab, and the end of the story leads to disaster and the death of the hero.
- Catharsis (Refinement of the soul), the ultimate goal of tragedy, is present, differing in method through impactful descriptions, effective dialogues, and advice. Dialogue is frequent in Esfandiar's story, advice in Sohrab and Farud, and descriptions in Siavash.
- The role of fate is expressed with various methods such as prophecy at the beginning of the story, with the help of astrologers and dreams.
The results show that the stories (Rostam and Sohrab, Siavash, Farud, and Esfandiar) exhibit Aristotelian tragedy features, despite some differences due to genre (narrative vs. dramatic) and cultural differences. Ferdowsi appears to follow Greek tragedy and Aristotle's views, skillfully combining them with Persian cultural elements, enhancing the stories' appeal.
Conclusion
The results obtained from the present research show that Iran and ancient Greece, as two great civilizations, had many commonalities and connections from the past until now, and were influenced by each other in various literary, cultural, and other fields. Studying the great civilizations and finding their commonalities and differences in different fields can lead to the knowledge of the nations as much as possible from each other, as well as comparing the great works of Persian literature with the outstanding works of the world and matching them with opinions. Great scientists like Aristotle can be very helpful in introducing the literature and culture of our country to the world. Such research shows the ability of the greats of Persian literature and the rich culture of Iranian civilization. It will open the hidden corners of the high research capacities of these works to everyone.
In the current research, we found that Ferdowsi, with innovation and initiative, combined the mythological, national, and Iranian cultural beliefs with the Greek example of tragedy and took advantage of it.
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