Analyzing the speed of narration in the story of Zahhak

Hasanpour, Hiva; Tajbakhsh, Esmaeel; Nasiri Panbechoole, Najmeh

doi:10.30465/lir.2025.49704.1902

Analyzing the speed of narration in the story of Zahhak

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

hiva hasanpour ¹

esmaeel tajbakhsh ²

najmeh nasiri panbechoole ³

¹ Faculty member of Persian Language and Literature Department, University of Kurdistan

² Professor of Persian language and literature department of Allameh Tabatabai University

³ PhD student of Persian language and literature at Allameh Tabatabai University

https://doi.org/10.30465/lir.2025.49704.1902

Abstract

Narratology refers to the knowledge of analyzing stories and narrative texts, based on which one can reach an understanding and analysis of stories. One of the desired subjects of narratologists is the speed of narration, which is defined by distinguishing between the time of the text and the time of its narration. This research analyzed the speed of narration in the story of Zahhak as the first story with a full plot in the mythological part of the Shahnameh, The model under investigation is not Genette's model, but the model designed in the article "Models to check the speed of narration" based on core and related events. The results of the research indicate that 12 core events can be considered for this story, which the consistency of the story depends on them. In the second half of the story of Zahak, Ferdowsi has narrated the story in length and detail, and the speed of the narration is slow in this part. The reason is the stabilization of concepts arising from the confrontations between the forces of good and evil at the beginning of the narrative. In the first half of the story the speed of the narration is positive and Ferdowsi has tried to familiarize the reader with the atmosphere of the story by briefly introducing the main characters, the story's character dimensions, their basic and required actions. Only in one event, which is in the middle of the story, the speed of the narrative is tolerably constant.

Keywords

narratology

speed

shahnameh

ferdowsi

zahhak

Subjects