Literary Arts (Jun 2021)
A Comparative Study of Epic Elements in Aliname and Khavaranname
Abstract
Aliname and Khavaranname are prominent examples of religious epics of the fifth and ninth centuries in Persian literature related todescription of the wars under the command of Imam Ali (as). Epic elements are formed according to the content and theme of the stories, and the structure is drawn according to the theme procession. Comparative analysis of modern epic elements in ancient epics is the main topic of this article. In these two poetrypoetries, the main elements of the epic include the story format, heroism, time, place, elements and extraordinary forces.Aliname and Khavaranname are among the Iranian epic works after Shahnameh in terms of literary status. These two epics have common foundations and structural-epic features. The events of both epics are temporally proportional. The epic of Aliname is more about describing Imam Ali (AS) in the battles of Jamal, Seffin and Nahrawanwhile Khavaranname is mainly concerned with the description of Imam Ali's travels and expressions of bravery in land of Khavaran, accompanied by Malik Ashtar, Abolmohjan And Amr Umayyah and other elders of his army and the war with Ghobad, the king of the East and other pagan rulers such asTahmas king, Salsal King and the war with the demon, the dragon and the like.The research method is descriptive-analytical. The results of this study indicate that although the two epics are very similar in appearance and epic elements, the theme and form of the epic elements in the stories are different. Although these two books are strong in the field of habit and fiction, the popularity and absence of the heroes of these two poems from high moral qualities have caused the general public to consider the main hero of the story as an example and manifestation of their ideal and epic man.Irrespective of the religious dimensions of Aliname and Khavaranname, in terms of epic aspects, the heroism feature is reflected with the presence of Imam Ali (AS) and other religious figures and heroes of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. In these two religious epics, there are many wars between Muslims and infidels for religious reasons, and in the end, the Muslims win. In describing Karzar Square, these two religious epics are very similar to Ferdowsi's Shahnameh which share exaggeration and forms of imagination with an active manifestation. “Rabi' and Ibn Hussam” imitation of Ferdowsi's expression is quite obvious.In the study of Aliname and Khavaranname, from the narrative point of view, we came to the conclusion that Ibn Hassam and Rabi' used more direct methods in characterization. In other wordsm, bydescribing the characters of the story and by showing Imam Ali as a hero, they made him a "brigade" that seems to be far-fetched and extraordinary in the audience's opinion. Many of the stories in these two epics are strong in terms of plot. The plot of Khavaranname is about the events that are related to the elements of supernatural things or acts that make the story weak and unbelievable.In the field of extraordinariness, with the presence of bold elements such as demons, dragons, magic, as well as the high frequency of objects and strange places in this epic, it can be called the most imaginative epic poetry in Iran. This is despite the fact that extraordinary elements such as dragons and demons are not seen in the poetry of Aliname. In terms of heroism, the goodwill and intimacy of the heroes of these two epics and the absence of high moral qualities have led people to consider the main protagonist as an example and manifestation of their ideal and epic man. In general, Khavaranname is less cohesive in structure than Aliname.
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