Download citation:
BibTeX | RIS | EndNote | Medlars | ProCite | Reference Manager | RefWorks
Send citation to:

---

Halliday`s Systemic Functional Grammar analyzes text in context. Based on this theory, in the study of texts, , we are faced with three metafunctions: Ideational metafunction, Interpersonal metafunction and textual metafunction, that Ideational metafunction divided into experiential and logical ones. In experiential metafunctions the six processes, participants, and circumstances are analyzed. According to some experts, Garshasbnameh is the best heroic poem after Shahnameh among heroic texts. For this reason, in this study, the Tahmidiyehs of Shahnameh and Garshasbnameh have been selected for comparison based on Ideational metafunction of the Halliday`s Systemic Functional Grammar to determine how similar the Tahmidiyehs of these two works are linguistically and if we assume that Asadi has tried to write a work like Ferdowsi’s Shahnameh, how much has he achieved his goal? After the study, it was found that in both Shahnameh and Garshasbnameh, the material process has the highest percentage. According to the genre of these two works, which is epic, this result and attention to the material process is predictable. Since the nature of Tahmidiyeh is to praise God, God is the main participant in most of these processes and the percentages are almost equal. It can be acknowledged, with a little forgiveness, Asadi has been able to follow in the footsteps of Ferdowsi in composing the Tahmidiyeh of Garshasbnameh, and the Tahmidiyeh of Garshasbnameh is equal to the Tahmidiyeh of Shahnameh from the view point of Ideational metafunction.
 

1.  Introduction

Tahmidiyeh means praise and glorification of God, and the term refers to the first lines or pages of prose or the first verses of poems. Writers and poets begin their work with the name and remembrance of God and the mention of His attributes, and thus bless their work with the name of God. In Tahmidiyehs, as a part of the preface of a work, in addition to paying attention to the name and remembrance of the great God, the genre for which the poet or writer writes the Tahmidiyeh should also be considered. For example, the Tahmidiyeh written for an epic work are different from Tahmidiyeh written for a lyrical work and from this point of view, literary works can be analyzed.
Among epic and heroic works, Shahnameh has a special place. Therefore, many writers over the centuries have tried to create a work like Shahnameh. According to some scholars, Asadi Tusi has tried to write a work similar to Shahnameh. In this regard, this research seeks to answer the question of how much Ferdowsi and Asadi in composing Tahmidiyehs of Shahnameh and Garshasbnameh have been able to create a Tahmidiyeh appropriate to the epic text and if we assume that Asadi in Garshasbnameh has tried to write a work as value as Ferdowsi's Shahnameh, how much has he achieved his goal?
 

2.  Methodology

In this research, based on the Halliday`s Systemic Functional Grammar, two works of epic literature are examined in order to achieve the extent of their use of epic language. Halliday`s Systemic Functional Grammar examines the function of language in context: context of culture and context of situation. Halliday considers language as a social phenomenon and he considers it necessary to pay attention to social function in language analysis. In Halliday`s Systemic Functional Grammar, language depends on the community in which it is used and must be analyzed from a social perspective.
In structural linguistics, the unit of language processing is sentence, while in functional linguistics clauses are important; This is because sentences alone do not convey the meaning of the text and should be considered in conjunction with other sentences. For this reason, the text is divided into clauses and analyzed. According to Halliday, each clause as a discourse chunk must be examined from three perspectives:  field, tenor and mode of discourse. Halliday defines the metafunctions with the help of these three domains. Thus, in the structural study of each text, according to the context of its position, we are faced with three metafunctions: ideational, interpersonal and textual. Each of these metafunctions is also divided into several sub-categories. From these three metafunctions, ideational metafunction has been selected for analysis in this research. Ideational metafunction itself is divided into two experiential and logical metafunctions. In experiential metafunction, the six processes (three main processes and three sub-processes), participants and circumstances are examined. But in the logical metafunction, the relations between the clauses are discussed. Processes occur in the verb and are divided into three main processes and three sub-processes. Material, mental, and relational processes are the three main processes, and behavioral, verbal, and existential processes are the three sub-processes.
 

3.  Discussion and Conclusion

After determining the absolute frequency and relative frequency of ideational metafunction processes in the initial verses of Shahnameh and Garshasbnameh and putting them together, considerable results were obtained. One of the results is that in both works, the highest percentage is related to the material process. In both Shahnameh and Garshasbnameh, about 37% of all processes are related to the material process. As mentioned, the material process implies doing a work or happening an event, which according to the genre of the two works, which is epic, this amount of attention to the material process is predictable. Another process that should be considered according to the genre of the two works is the mental process. It seems that in composing an epic work, mental processes are less than genre like lyrical. The epic expresses the efforts and struggles of the heroes and pays less attention to mental issues (than material issues). In Shahnameh, about 18% and in Garshasbnameh, about 17% of the total processes are mental processes. Material and mental processes with few difference are the most similar among the types of processes and this shows that Asadi in composing Garshasbnameh has been able to be very close to Shahnameh linguistically in these two processes. The percentage of relational process in Shahnameh is higher than Garshasbnameh and this difference in verbal and existential processes in Garshasbnameh has been compensated. The percentage of the behavioral process in both works is zero, which is justifiable considering that the Tahmidiyehs of two works have been examined and have not yet entered the narrative section.
The results obtained for the participants in these processes are also significant. In Shahnameh, participant of about 31% of processes and in Garshasbnameh, participant of about 39% of processes is God. Considering that in this study, Tamhidiyehs of the two works were analyzed, assigning the highest percentage of participants to God was reasonable and predictable, and this shows the dominance and ability of the two poets.
In the end, with a little connivance, it can be acknowledged that Asadi was able to cope well with Ferdowsi in composing the Tahmidiyeh of Garshasbnameh, and the Tamhidiyeh of Garshasbnameh is equal to the Tahmidiyeh of Shahnameh based on ideational metafunction

Keywords: Halliday, Systemic functional grammar, Ideational metafunction, Shahnameh, Garshasbnameh, Tahmidiye

Full-Text [PDF 874 kb]   (1430 Downloads)    

Add your comments about this article : Your username or Email:

---

---