Journal of Literary Criticism and Rhetoric

scientific-research

Potentialities and Limitations of the Bakhtinian Approach in Literary Criticism

Hossein Payandeh

Volume 12, Issue 3 , December 2023, Pages 1-19

https://doi.org/10.22059/jlcr.2023.361223.1944

Abstract

Mikhail Bakhtin is one of the most influential theorists of literary criticism in the twentieth century whose ideas, particularly in the field of novel criticism, have been widely embraced ... Read More Mikhail Bakhtin is one of the most influential theorists of literary criticism in the twentieth century whose ideas, particularly in the field of novel criticism, have been widely embraced by scholars in literary studies worldwide. In Iran, however, the Bakhtinian approach is less known compared with other critical approaches such as mythological-archetypal criticism or psychoanalytical criticism. Bakhtin initially started his literary scholarship in association with the Russian Formalists, but gradually distanced himself from their viewpoints and established his own independent approach in criticism. The Russian Formalists believed the function of language in literary texts to be “defamiliarisation”. As such, they argued that figures of speech are tools that poets and writers use in order to make the literary use of language different from its non-literary usage. Bakhtin disagreed with the Formalists and argued that language also has social and discursive aspects that need to be taken into account so that the critic would be in a position to offer insights into the deeper, hidden layers of social behaviour. Therefore, unlike the Formalists who focused their attention on the rhetorical and formal aspects of literary works, Bakhtin tried to analyse literature as discourse. Highlighting the social aspects of the novel, he emphasizes that the critic’s central concern should be to investigate how language is used in the novel. In his view, language in the novel, in distinction to poetry, is marked by concreteness. Therefore, novelistic prose is always orientated towards concrete details, as it also is in journalistic as well as legal and political texts. This concrete orientation necessitates that linguistic usage in the novel be consistent with actual language use by social groups. Concentrating on the novel as an essentially polyphonic genre marked by heteroglossia, he put forward a theory about the carnivalesque in the novel.This essay aims to expound the Bakhtinian approach in literary criticism by focusing on the tripartite concepts of “polyphony”, “heteroglossia” and “carnival”. To do so, we first discuss Bakhtin’s ideas on the essential contrast between the language of poetry and the language of the novel and then move on to consider his viewpoints on the multiplicity of voices in the novel, linguistic reflection of social stratification in this genre, and its carnivalesque qualities. In order to clarify the theoretical aspects of the Bakhtinian approach, we complement our exposition of Bakhtin’s theory with critical readings of three sample texts of Persian literature, which include selected extracts from Ferowsi’s Shahnameh, a poem by Mehdi Akhvan Salles entitled “Sonnet No. 3”, and the novel Shazdeh Ehtejab by Hooshang Golshiri. In the conclusion to this essay, we offer our assessment of the potentialities as well as the limitations of Bakhtin’s theory in literary criticism in addition to drawing a perspective of the expansion and updating of this critical approach

scientific-research

Contemplation of the Structure and Themes’ Variety in the Molamma’at of Nour al-Din Abdul Rahman Ibn Ahmad Jami

Hojjat Rasouli; Sheler Ahmadi

Volume 12, Issue 3 , December 2023, Pages 21-36

https://doi.org/10.22059/jlcr.2023.256097.979

Abstract

Mastered both Persian and Arabic languages, Nour al-Din Abdul Rahman ibn Ahmad Jami, nicknamed as Khatam al-Shoara, is a powerful Iranian poet of the 9th century AH. It is enough about ... Read More

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The Myth of Gods and Active Inhabitants in Contemporary Persian Poetry

Saghar Salmaninejad Mehrabadi

Volume 12, Issue 3 , December 2023, Pages 37-63

https://doi.org/10.22059/jlcr.2023.354006.1905

Abstract

Myth is a very effective and complex concept in people's lives, which always shows itself in a different way. In the distant past, they were a real and inseparable part of human life, ... Read More

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Sociological Critique of the Story Siyasonbo Based on Lucien Goldman's Genetic Structuralism Theory

Ziba Ghalavandi; Ali Hajipoor

Volume 12, Issue 3 , December 2023, Pages 65-84

https://doi.org/10.22059/jlcr.2023.358054.1931

Abstract

Literary sociology is an interdisciplinary field that seeks to scientifically examine the relationship between literary structure and society. Goldman, one of the theorists in this ... Read More Literary sociology is an interdisciplinary field that seeks to scientifically examine the relationship between literary structure and society. Goldman, one of the theorists in this branch, aims to create a meaningful connection between a literary work and significant aspects of social life in his method (genetic structuralism). In this approach, the relationship between a literary work and society is examined to reveal the political, historical, and social dimensions of society and their alignment with the artistic work for the reader. According to this theory, the form and content of a literary work are shaped under the influence of social structures. This study takes a sociological approach to analyze the story "Siyasonbo" to investigate the historical, social, and cultural dimensions of this work based on Goldman's genetic structuralism. This analysis is conducted in two stages: reception and interpretation. In the reception stage, the structure of the work is examined, and in the interpretation stage, the political, economic, social, and cultural structures of the work are investigated in connection with society. The basis of this research is based on reading, textual analysis, and the library research method. The findings of the study show a close relationship between the historical events of the author's time and the structure of the work. Political incidents in the south have influenced the formation of the author's mental structures and the creation of the work. The problematic character of the novel is, in fact, a small sample of the outside society belonging to the middle class. The structure of Siyasonbo, according to Goldman's model, aligns with the political and social structures of society, and poverty, injustice, and anti-colonialism are manifestations of the author's worldview. Safdari has successfully established a two-way connection between the social world of Siyasonbo and the realities of society; the story has realistic backgrounds in which the political, cultural, and social situations are reflected.

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Hafez's Humorous Adaptation of Sufi Dignity

Teymoor Malmir; Zahra Abtahi

Volume 12, Issue 3 , December 2023, Pages 85-97

https://doi.org/10.22059/jlcr.2021.319621.1637

Abstract

Hāfez does not have a favorable opinion of Sufis. Whenever he mentions a mystic, an old man, a Sufi, and their alternative meanings, such as Ahl -e- Khalvat, Khalvt Gozideh, Kootah ... Read More Hāfez does not have a favorable opinion of Sufis. Whenever he mentions a mystic, an old man, a Sufi, and their alternative meanings, such as Ahl -e- Khalvat, Khalvt Gozideh, Kootah Astinan, Pashmineh Poosh, Ahl-e-Khaneghah, and monastery, it is accompanied by humor and elaboration. Understanding and explaining the meaning of these satires and elaborations requires attention to the form and structure of Hāfez's sonnet. The inaccuracy in Hāfez's method has led scholars to evaluate this satire and elaboration in a positive light and to think that Hāfez has a different view of Sufis and mystics because they have neglected the humorous use of mystical expressions. From the beginning of the ninth century, Hāfez has been called the exaggerated title Lesan –Ol- Ghaib (Unseen language), and this title has been used for Hāfez as a kind of dignity. Despite the prevalence of this title, the issue of adaptation in Hāfez's lyric poems is also a point that scholars have listed in detail. The combination of Hāfez's adaptation and divination is seemingly difficult and unacceptable, which is why some scholars have sought to present an acceptable concept of the title of Hāfez's Lesan – Ol-Ghaib. Mentioning words related to sufism or quoting sufi miracles in Hāfez's Divan has led some scholars to consider Hāfez's view of sufi personality, work, and deeds positive; Hāfez should be considered a mystic and a sufi. For this reason, in this article, in order to explain the position of mystics and Hāfez's view of them, we have chosen an important and common dignity in mystical texts that has been used in Hāfez's divan: to bring fish out of the sea in order to remove the slander of a sufi. The result of the research shows that if Hāfez has been called Lesan – Ol-Ghaib, it is not because of his divination and prophecy, but this title indicates his deep and extensive study in such a way that he has been able to combine speech in a new way. Based on the words of the sufis, Hāfez has been able to reject and deny their inaccuracies or to offer a special reading of the miracles of the sufis in accordance with his thought. Saying such things, of course, causes the sufis and ascetic to be hostile to him but Hāfez in front of them refers to their own interpretations and he uses the miracles that the sufis claim to dispel slander to better show the sin of the hypocritical Sufis.

scientific-research

Examining the Semantic Problem of the Verse “Ey Gol To Doush...” by Hafez Based on the Theory of Lexical Coherence of Halliday and Hasan

Ayoob Moradi

Volume 12, Issue 3 , December 2023, Pages 99-120

https://doi.org/10.22059/jlcr.2023.362327.1948

Abstract

The verse "Ey Gol To doush Daghe Sabouhi Keshidei/Ma An Shaghayeghim Ke Ba Dagh Zadeim" is one of Hafez's controversial verses, which has many ambiguities about its meaning. Such as ... Read More

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Volume & Issue: Volume 12, Issue 3 - Serial Number 31, December 2023, Pages 1-120

Potentialities and Limitations of the Bakhtinian Approach in Literary Criticism

Abstract

Contemplation of the Structure and Themes’ Variety in the Molamma’at of Nour al-Din Abdul Rahman Ibn Ahmad Jami

Abstract

The Myth of Gods and Active Inhabitants in Contemporary Persian Poetry

Abstract

Sociological Critique of the Story Siyasonbo Based on Lucien Goldman's Genetic Structuralism Theory

Abstract

Hafez's Humorous Adaptation of Sufi Dignity

Abstract

Examining the Semantic Problem of the Verse “Ey Gol To Doush...” by Hafez Based on the Theory of Lexical Coherence of Halliday and Hasan

Abstract