Ibsen in Iranian Cinema: A Comparative Analysis of A Doll’s House and Mehrjuei’s Sara

Abstract

One of the research topics in the field of comparative literature is the study of l cinematic adaptation. The scope of this article is to examine Mehrjui’s special interpretation of A Doll’s House in the form of its re-creation in his film Sara. Adaptation is derivation, but it is not derivative; it is rather a new and exquisite cultural art that has its own artistic style. Consequently, Mehrjuj makes Ibsen’s A Doll’s House his own, and presents a new design that is fresh and exquisite. Therefore, using interdisciplinary research in the field of comparative literature and comparative studies, the crossover between cinema and literature is broken between written texts and visual texts, and among popular works. Sara, produced in 1991, released in 1992, was directed by Mehrjui based on the textbook of A Doll’s House (1897, by Henrik Ibsen). Sara is not an alternative to Ibsen’s work, but a new cultural work with its own artistic dignity. This article deals with the analysis of Dariush Mehrjui's adaptation and reworking of A Doll’s House, which in the early 1970's appeared in Iran in the form of a film. In order for Ibsen’s A Doll's House to become believable for the Iranian viewer, and to be in accord with the context of Iran, it is inevitably involved in the process of Iranization and the adapter must insert the ideological mechanisms of society and social-cultural discourses in the spirit of the work. The research method of this article is based on the French school of comparative literature, which is based on influence and comparative studies. The focus in this article is on the reworking of Sara directed by Mehrjui based on Ibsen’s A Doll’s House.

Keywords

• Ibsen
• Iranian Cinema
• Mehrjuei
• Sara
• Film Adaptation