Object in Iranian Short Folk Tales From the Point of View of Narrative Semi- Semantics

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Ph.D. in Persian language and literature, Razi University, Kermanshahh

2 Associate Professor of Persian Language and Literature, Razi University of Kermanshah

3 Professor of Literature and French Language, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran

10.30465/lir.2025.9615
Abstract
Introduction
Iranian folk short tales are accounted among the most important types of classical narratives in which the mechanism of producing meaning from the point of view of semi-semantics in classical narratives have formed based on the two components of "having and not having", that is why the object is the main motivation for the formation of the action process of the subjects in Iranian folk short tales or any other classical narrative, which these objects can have a different appearance in each story, which subjects experience a special kind of shortcoming in relative to them; For this reason, knowing the shortcomings that the subjects feel towards the objects and also explaining the types of objects, provides a better understanding of the meaning production mechanism in these stories; Therefore, in this research, how the objects appear and the feeling of shortage that the subjects feel towards the objects, according to the semantic class of the subjects (social position) as well as their central or secondary position, has been stated as an important issue in the form of two questions. It can be analyzed below:

In Iranian folk short tales, the subjects enter into an action process based on what feelings of shortcomings they have towards the objects?
In Iranian short folk tales, objects appear in the form of what components and what is their frequency?

Materials & Methods
In this research, with analytical- descriptive method which is influenced by the discourse semi-semantic approach in classical narratives. A try have been made that with regard to semantic class of subjects, which includes five classes of ordinary or peasant-subjects, average subjects, special or ruler subjects, legendary subjects and mythological subjects, as well as their focal or secondary position, 661 subjects in 201 short Iranian folk tales - collected from the four-volume collection Dokhtar-e Naranj and Tonraj, What did the flower do to the fir tree?, Arusak and Sang-e Sabor, and Iranian stories, collected by Seyyed Abolqasem Enjavi Shirazi, it should be analyzed to explain and investigate the possible shortcomings of the subjects in relation to the objects and their types or possible types.
Discussion & Result
The findings of this research show that the subjects in these stories have five classes: normal or peasant-subject, average, special or ruler-subject, legendary and mythological, in  compared to objects, have experienced  two types of shortcomings:  affirmative (must be), privative (must be again) and a feeling of the danger of privative shortage  (must not be lost), among which affirmative shortcoming have the most frequency, and also the objects in these stories are divided into four categories: abstract objects, inanimate objects, merely animate objects, intelligent animate objects. It has been shown that the type of abstract objects includes any mental non-tangible and non-invisible things such as: revenge, honor, title, etc. Also, inanimate objects in these stories include all inanimate touchable and visible things, among which we can mention such things as: treasure, magical pot, magical relic, etc. in these stories. But the merely animate objects in Iranian folk short tales include: animals, birds and creatures that lack any human consciousness, for this reason they can never be placed in the position of an independent subject; But the last group of objects in these stories are intelligent living objects; In means that these objects are living beings, whether human beings or mythical creatures, that can be an object for another subject while being a subject and having an independent action process.
Conclusion
The results of this research, according to its findings, show that affirmative shortcomings have the most frequency in these stories, and this frequency is mostly manifested among special sub-subjects. Also, the data of these statistics show that the privative shortcomings have had the lowest frequency in these stories and its highest frequency was among the focal ordinary subjects. Also, the findings of this research show that abstract objects have the highest frequency in these stories, and in terms of being focal or secondary, as well as the five semantic classes, they have been seen more among specific secondary subjects, while living objects have the least frequency in Iranian folk short stories. this object is mostly seen among medium focal subjects. Therefore, in these stories, the subjects have  looked for something that they have never had, and the most objects that have been searched for, in these stories are abstract and mental objects.

Keywords

Subjects


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