Journal of the stylistic of Persian poem and prose
volume Number 19، number In Volume 3، June 2026 ، issue Number 121

Character analysis and character development in Reza Julayi’s historical narratives

Maryam Mojdeh , Kamran Pashaei Fakhri (Author in Charge), Parvaneh Adelzade

Abstract

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Character and the mechanisms of characterization are fundamental narrative components that play a decisive role in representing the relationship between the individual, history, and power. Although numerous studies have examined historicism in Reza Julaei’s works, systematic analysis of characterization as a narrative and ideological structure has been rare. This study aims to investigate how characters are formed in relation to history in three major novels—Autumn 32, Hall of Revelry, and The Rise of the Winter Sun

METHODOLOGY: Using an analytical–critical approach grounded in narratology, the study conducts both scene-oriented and character-oriented textual analyses. All major and minor characters in the selected works are examined through descriptive and conceptual coding to identify and classify dominant patterns of characterization.

FINDINGS: The results reveal that Julaei’s characters are not heroic agents of action but bearers of collective memory and subjects suspended in a historical limbo, where personal identity emerges at the intersection of historical forces, power dynamics, and trauma. This mode of characterization contributes to the formation of a critical perception of history and memory.

CONCLUSION: Characterization in Julaei’s works transcends the boundaries of narrative technique, functioning as a central mechanism for critical historiography. Through the interplay of memory, temporality, and identity, his fiction reconstructs the relationship between the individual and power from a distinctly historical perspective.

Keyword
Characterization , Narratology , Critical Historiography , Reza Julaei