The Story of Khosrow and Shirin – from the Epic to the Romance Novel

• Tamta Parulava ^[1]
  1. [1] Giorgi Tsereteli Institute of Oriental Studies of Ilia State University
• Localización: Actas del X congreso de la Sociedad Española de Iranología (SEI): celebrado en Tbilisi los días 20 y 21 de octubre de 2022 / Tea Vardosanidze (ed. lit.), Gerardo Matallana Medina (ed. lit.), 2024, ISBN 978-9941-36-204-0, págs. 164-172
• Idioma: español
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• Resumen

  • The paper analyzes two classical Persian literary monuments: „The Story of Khosrow and Shirin“ from Ferdowsi’s „Shah-Nameh“ and Nizami Ganjavi’s „Khosrow and Shirin“. These books are based on the same plot (the historical events of Sassanid epoch), but have different authors. Their genre statuses also differ.Ferdowsi’s „Shah-Nameh“ is a heroic epic and represents a classical example of the genre. Naturally, it is chiefly based on the heroic aesthetics. In this case, attention should be paid to the common image of the people, nation and society. The idea of the literary work feeds on the roots of collective consciousness; hence, it is less interested in the individual, personal.Hundreds of characters usually take part in the episodes of „Shah-Nameh“ (especially in the battle scenes). They have a common function and a common goal. There are numerous warriors, but it is hard to find a person among them. The author is not interested in individuality. When drawing the inner portraits of „Shah-Nameh’s“ heroes, the author focuses on their generosity, kindness, far-sightedness, wisdom, courage and chivalry – the features that form inalienable attributes of heroic epics.Nizami has narrowed the traditional epic horizon and focused on the specific individuals, focusing interest on the person’s fate, bringing the arena of confrontation into the individual’s personal space.When moving from the heroic epos to romance epos, in the portraits of the poem characters the historical signs almost disappear. While the description of the battle scene covers only a couple of pages, the argument between Shirin and Khosrow is ten times longer. The social mask of the king, ruler of the country, in the poem is almost disregarded and the focus is made on the portrait of the „internal personality”.When shifting from the heroic epic to the romance, the image of the Sassanid King loses its stability and static nature. The brave hero continues to defeat the country’s enemies, but is less successful in fighting his own emotions and human weaknesses. On the way to romanticization, new strokes are added to his portrait – he turns into a developing hero. From a character of secondary importance in Ferdowsi’s heroic epic, the beautiful Shirin now turns into a central figure of the plot.By underlining the conflicts and psychological problems of the main characters, Nizami Ganjavi’s work overcomes „the epic distance“, creating a literary reality based on historical facts, where, instead of contemplating the past, the glance is directed towards the future.