Adaptation of Saeb's critical poems according to the theory of Thomas Spragens
Subject Areas : Research in Iranian classical literature
Mohammad talebi
1
,
طاهره صادقی تحصیلی
2
*
,
mohammad Khosravishakib
3
,
saeed zohrevand
4
1 - Ph.D Student in Persian Language and Literature, Lorestan University, Iran.
2 - Associate Professor, Department of Persian Language and Literature, Lorestan University, Khorramabad, Iran.
3 - Professor, Department of Persian Language and Literature, Lorestan University, Khorramabad, Iran.
4 - Associate Professor, Department of Persian Language and Literature, Lorestan University, Khorramabad, Iran.
Keywords: Saeb Tabrizi, Thomas Spragens, socio-political criticism, Indian style and poetry.,
Abstract :
Adaptation of Saeb's critical poems according
to the theory of Thomas Spragens
Mohammad Talebi*
Tahereh Sadeghi Tahsili**
Mohammad Khosravi Shakib***
Saeid Zhorevand****
Saeb is one of the most prominent poets of the Indian style and the leader of the poets of the Safavid period. As a thinker and social reformer, he sees the damage and roots of the problems of his time and works hard to cure and correct them. In this regard, he uses poetry as a cultural tool to express his critical thoughts. In this research, which was done with the method of qualitative description and analysis, Saeb's critical and reformist poems, with the application of Spragens' theory (problemology, etiology, idealism, and solution-finding), Why, how, solution, and way out of the social problems of the poet's time will be investigated. The research data show that Saeb considers the political and social problems of his era to be brain drain, selfishness, superstition, self-decoration, hypocrisy and pretense, and poverty. He also considers the cause to be in the special conditions of governance and political and religious ideology, humiliation and marginalization of artists and free thinkers, sanctification and fatalism, tyranny, narrow-mindedness of rulers, urban development, and its consequences. Saeb finds an ideal society in India with citizens and rulers who are liberal, free-thinking, different-minded, and art-loving. Finally, he sees the solution in moralism, criticism and tolerance, rationalism, and avoiding flattery.
Keywords: Saeb Tabrizi, Thomas Spragens, socio-political criticism, Indian style and poetry.
Introduction
The Indian style is among the most distinctive styles of classical Persian poetry, prevalent for approximately 150 years, from the early 11th to the mid-12th century AH (late 16th to mid-18th century CE). This style is notably distinct from its predecessors and successors in terms of intellectual orientation, linguistic features, and modes of expression. Fotouhi regards the following as foundational principles of the intellectual ethos of this literary period: a break from traditional Persian poetic conventions, an emphasis on innovation, a focus on novel themes and unfamiliar meanings, and a pursuit of poetic freshness. These principles, he argues, compel the poet to seek creativity from within rather than relying on traditional texts and to discover their identity independently of past authorities. Sa'ebTabrizi is among the most renowned ghazal poets of this style. Yousefi asserts that those in search of poetry, unlike that of earlier generations, will find no verse more colorful and varied than Sa'eb’s ghazals. One relatively underexamined aspect of Sa'eb Tabrizi’s poetry is its critical and reformist dimension. In this discourse, he is not merely a critic but acts as a reformist thinker, one who “seeks to eradicate vice, impurity, and corruption within the realm of critique.”
Theoretical Framework
This study analyzes the critical dimension of Sa'eb Tabrizi’s poetry through the lens of the theory proposed by American political theorist Thomas Arthur Spragens. Spragens’s core argument is that all coherent systems of thought can be understood by uncovering their internal logic and identifying the structure that underpins them. He contends that the study of political science can benefit from historical, philosophical, and anthropological approaches. One of the fundamental aims of his theory is to offer a comprehensive framework for examining political and social issues critically, in order to enhance understanding, remedy shortcomings, and restore the health of society by confronting and overcoming the root causes of disorder.
According to Spragens, the ultimate purpose of political theory is akin to a form of psychological therapy for the political community. He maintains that societies face similar foundational challenges and that their attempts to resolve them tend to follow relatively consistent patterns. Spragens is among those theorists who, while emphasizing the importance of crises as part of the social context influencing the formation of ideas, also emphasize the role of thinkers in shaping those ideas. This theory examines the subject matter in four stages: 1. Problem identification, that is, recognizing the problem and observing the disorders present in society. 2. Causal analysis, meaning the identification of the causes that give rise to those problems. 3. Ideal projection, that is, outlining and describing the characteristics of an ideal society or utopia. 4. Solution formulation, meaning the presentation of remedies aimed at replacing disorder and chaos with order and stability, to achieve a desirable social condition.
Research Questions
This study seeks to answer the following questions:
1- Do Spragens’s sociopolitical ideas offer a viable theoretical and instrumental framework for understanding commitment-oriented thought and the discourses present in the poetry of Sa'eb Tabrizi?
2- What does Sa'eb consider to be the problems of his time that he criticizes?
3- What factors influence the formation of Sa'eb Tabrizi’s critical discourse and contribute to the emergence of the problems of his time?
4- Where is Sa'eb’s ideal society envisioned, what are its defining features, and what solutions does he propose for achieving it?
It should be noted that the model proposed by Spragens was originally intended for use in political science and has been widely and effectively embraced by scholars and researchers in that field. Accordingly, its application to the analysis of literary texts has remained rare. The authors of this article hope that the present study, by employing Spragens’s theory, may constitute an initial—albeit modest—step in that direction.
Data Analysis and Discussion
Saeb's critical poems can be classified into four stages based on Spragens' theory.
Stage One: Sociopolitical Challenges and Problems in Sa'eb’s Time
An examination of poetry and artistic texts from this period reveals the presence of numerous sociopolitical problems. Poets of the Indian style—especially Sa'eb Tabrizi—repeatedly employ terms such as “sacrifice”, “salt and wound”, “remedy”, “lament”, “scratch”, and “cry,” along with pen names like Āshūb (turmoil), Shīvani (lamentation), and Vahshatī (terror), which reflect the poets’ melancholic disposition and portray the turbulence of the time. They speak of war, disorder, hatred, fanaticism, and tyranny. Thus, if a tone of despair and hopelessness pervades this type of poetry by Sa'eb, it arises from the harsh realities of his time.
Stage Two: Diagnosing the Causes of the Problems
The process of identifying and recognizing problems directs the critic’s mind toward the second stage: exploring the causes of disorder and harm.
Several factors that contributed to the sociopolitical problems of Sa'eb’s era and found expression in his poetry include: social causes such as urban expansion and overcrowding; politico-religious causes; and fatalism. Fatalism, in particular, often brings societies face-to-face with internal contradictions and fragmentation. It weakens their ability to confront political and social challenges and deprives individuals of will and agency. As a result, it “leads to a kind of fear, submission, and acceptance of tyranny and despotism, and a retreat into fate and the belief in a primordial and eternal order.”
Stage Three: Characteristics of the Ideal Society or Utopia
A central concept in Sa'eb’s vision of an ideal society is disposition (mashrab)—or what he refers to as breadth of disposition—which embodies a transnational and universalist mindset and defines the contours of his utopia. The nature of disposition is not confined to a single dimension of his ideal citizen; rather, it reflects a spirit of liberality, coexistence, and tolerance across all domains of individual and collective life, including sound ethics, reasoned thought, measured speech, and upright conduct. In Sa'eb’s utopian vision, religion and disposition are not in conflict but coexist side by side. He skillfully fuses the two and regards this synthesis as his rightful prerogative.
Stage Four: Remedies for Overcoming Societal Ills
In his collected poetry, Sa'eb consistently calls on people to uphold morality, modesty, piety, liberation from worldly attachments, contentment, moderation, and detachment from material concerns, while directing attention toward God and the transcendent realm. He regards the key remedies for overcoming societal ills and attaining an ideal society as: tolerance and reconciliation with diverse beliefs and traditions, receptiveness to criticism, avoidance of fault-finding, and a commitment to compassion and justice. These remedies, in essence, are normative imperatives intended to guide society from its current flawed state toward an envisioned, ideal condition.
Conclusion
The culture of any society, shaped by its unique norms and values, serves to regulate and guide the behavior of its members. During the Safavid era, poetry—particularly that of Sa'eb—was often regarded as a cultural discourse capable of influencing social norms and patterns. Through a qualitative analysis of Sa'eb’s poetry and its comparison with Thomas Spragens’s four-stage model, this study reached the following conclusions:
- In the first stage, which involves observing and describing societal ills, Sa'eb identifies the political and social problems of his time as including brain drain, social isolation, selfishness, jealousy and ambition, extravagance and vanity, hatred, oppression, hypocrisy, poverty, and a pervasive spirit of submission and spiritual fear among the people.
- In the second stage, which involves identifying the root causes of societal problems, Sa'eb attributes the social, political, and literary disorders of his time to the specific governing conditions and the dominance of political-religious ideology. He believes this dominance leads to the marginalization and humiliation of free thinkers, the sanctification of power, the rise of fatalism, authoritarianism, and the lack of breadth of disposition among those in power.
- In the third stage, which involves articulating the features of an ideal society, Sa'eb seeks to depict a utopian society. He expands the idea of breadth of disposition, presenting himself as the ideal citizen and India as a symbolic utopia, thereby offering a tangible and emblematic model for societal reform—one in which rulers and citizens with expansive breadth of disposition embody the highest human virtues across political, social, and ideological dimensions. In this ideal society, people, regardless of skin color, ethnicity, or religionlive together in peace, solidarity, and security.
- In the final stage, by offering remedies, Sa'eb introduces pathways for overcoming social ills. These include upholding morality, humility, justice, contentment, openness to criticism, and tolerance toward diverse faiths, ideas, and peoples, as well as avoiding hypocrisy, passivity, greed, resentment, violence, fault-finding, and harm to others. These remedies, in essence, are normative imperatives intended to guide society from its current flawed state toward an envisioned, ideal condition.
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* Ph.D Student in Persian Language and Literature, Lorestan University, Iran.
mohammadtalebi.35313531@gmail.com
** Corresponding Author: Associate Professor, Department of Persian Language and Literature, Lorestan University, Khorramabad, Iran.
sadeghi.tahsili@yahoo.com
*** Professor, Department of Persian Language and Literature, Lorestan University, Khorramabad, Iran.
M.Khosravishakib@gmail.com
**** Associate Professor, Department of Persian Language and Literature, Lorestan University, Khorramabad, Iran.
zohrevand.s@lu.ac.ir
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