- Count View : 147
- آدرس کوتاه شده مقاله: https://bahareadab.com/article_id/1920
- کد IranDOI مقاله: IranDOI :10.irandoi.2002/bahareadab.2025 .18 .7981
volume Number : 18
number In Volume : 9
issue Number : 115
Journal of the stylistic of Persian poem and prose
volume Number 18،
number In Volume 9،
،
issue Number 115
Thematic Analysis of Proverbs and Maxims and Their Stylistic Use in Ferdowsi’s Shahnameh with Reference to Their Connection to Iranian Culture and History
Mahmoud Javadian Kotnaei , Hossein Hassanpour Alashti (Author in Charge), Reza Sattari
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: This study examines, both thematically and stylistically, the proverbs and maxims employed in Ferdowsi’s Shahnameh, seeking to demonstrate how these concise forms of expression reinforce the bond between the epic text and Iran’s cultural-historical memory. In this research, proverbs (folk sayings) and maxims are considered as two facets of a single wisdom-bearing discourse: the former rooted in the oral traditions of the people, and the latter linked to the didactic heritage of Pahlavi advisory literature. Both serve as mediating devices in the Shahnameh for transmitting ethical, political, and social value.
METHODOLOGY: The study collects examples from the text and categorises them thematically into eight principal domains, including praise of wisdom and rationality, preservation of justice and generosity, the transience of the world, devotion to the Divine, commendation of harmonious coexistence, principles of governance, among others. These themes illustrate the prominent patterns of Ferdowsi’s utilisation of such maxims. The method combines textual and thematic analysis with a review of earlier sources, in order to clarify both the cultural-historical roots and the rhetorical techniques (such as sententious expressions, repetition, and allegory) employed by Ferdowsi.
FINDINGS: The analysis indicates that proverbs and maxims in the Shahnameh perform multiple functions: reinforcing collective memory, teaching the principles of governance and personal ethics, creating coherence between mythological and historical layers, and enhancing the rhetorical appeal of the work.
CONCLUSION: The research demonstrates that Ferdowsi, by integrating oral tradition with written didactic heritage, was able to condense moral and national messages into succinct and enduring forms of expression, thereby transforming the Shahnameh into a linguistic-cultural apparatus for reproducing national identity.
Keyword
Thematic analysis
, Shahnameh
, Ferdowsi’s style
, maxims
, proverbs
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