Exploratory and Retroactive Reading of Dibil al-Khuza'i’s Tāʾiyyah  Based on Riffaterre’s Poetic Semiotics Model

Moein, Javad; Kharaghani, Hasan; Parvin, Nourudin

doi:10.22034/farzv.2024.459248.1999

Exploratory and Retroactive Reading of Dibil al-Khuza'i’s Tāʾiyyah Based on Riffaterre’s Poetic Semiotics Model

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

Javad Moein ¹

Hasan kharaghani ²

Nourudin Parvin ³

¹ PhD Graduate (Level 4 ), Khorasan Seminary;Faculty Member, Department of Arabic Language and Literature, Al-Mustafa International University, Mashhad, Iran Corresponding Author)

² Full Professor, Department of Quranic and Hadith Sciences, Razavi University of Islamic Sciences, Mashhad, Iran

³ Associate Professor of Arabic Language and Literature, Shahid Mahallati University of Islamic Sciences, Qom, Iran

https://doi.org/10.22034/farzv.2024.459248.1999

Abstract

In the analysis and study of literary texts, semiotic criticism has played a distinctive role in the 20th century. The French critic Michael Riffaterre, in his semiotic theory, presents a novel model for reading poetry. According to his theory, poetry is examined through two approaches: heuristic (exploratory) reading and retroactive (non-progressive) reading. The first reading, which is mimetic, focuses on the apparent meaning, while the second, which is semiotic, emphasizes linguistic connotations and implied meanings. Once non-grammatical elements in the text are identified, the relationship between these elements—through accumulations and descriptive systems—reveals a new discovery of the text’s structural network.
In this study, Da’bal al-Khuza’i’s Ta’iyyah (d. 249 AH), the most famous and longest poem (124 verses) by the devoted poet of Imam al-Rida (AS), is analyzed based on Riffaterre’s approach. Applying Riffaterre’s model and semiotic analysis, two accumulations—praise for the Ahl al-Bayt (AS) and the oppression against them—are examined within a descriptive system of the poet’s suffering from injustice against the Infallibles (AS). Through the structural network of hope for intercession and the end of tragic tyranny, a profound and subtle reading of this ode is presented for the “super-reader”

Keywords

Poetic language

semiotics

Riffaterre

Ta’iyyah of Da’bal

reading

accumulation

Subjects

Promotion and deepening of Razavi culture and education

Barthes, Roland (1991). Elements of Semiology. Translated by Majid Mohammadi. Tehran: Al-Huda International Publications. ]In Persin[

Barkat, Behzad & Eftekhari, Tayyebeh (2010). Semiotics of Poetry. Comparative Literature Research Journal, 4,pp. 109–130. ]In Persin[

Ghafouri Far, Mohammad, et al. (2022). Phonetic Stylistics of Da’bal Khuza’i’s Ta’iyyah Ode. Farhang-e Razavi Quarterly, 10,pp. 115–149. ]In Persin[

Gholizadeh, Mostafa (2009). Da’bal: The Poet Who Carries His Coffin. 2nd ed. Qom: Bustan-e Ketab. ]In Persin[

Guiraud, Pierre (2008). Semiotics. Translated by Mohammad Nabavi. Tehran: Agah Publications. ]In Persin[

- Ismailzadeh, Hassan, et al. (2021). A Semiotic Reading of Mahmoud Darwish’s “Rita, Love Me” Based on Michael Riffaterre’s Model. Journal of Arabic Language and Literature, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, 25,pp. 122–145. ]In Persin[

Jamshidi, Leila & Iravani Zadeh, Abdulghani (2014). Satirical Ridicule in Da’bal Khuza’i’s Poetry. Lisan al-Mubin Quarterly, 18,pp. 15–34. ]In Persin[

Majlisi, Mohammad Baqir (2015). Explanation and Translation of Da’bal Khuza’i’s Ta’iyyah Ode. Edited, researched, and annotated by Mohammad Lotfzadeh. Qom: Dar al-Mujtaba, 1st ed. ]In Persin[

Makaryk, Irena (2004). Encyclopedia of Contemporary Literary Theory. Translated by Mehran Mohajer & Mohammad Nabavi. 1st ed. Tehran: Agah Publications. ]In Persin[

Masoumi, Mohammad Hassan & Fotouhi, Majid (2018). A Comparative Study of Satire in Arabic and Persian Literature. Comparative Literature Studies, 48,pp. 9–33. ]In Persin[

Mohammadi, Zahra & Ismailnejad, Ayoub (2017). Application of Michael Riffaterre’s Theory in Analyzing Ahmad Shamlou’s “Winter”. Pazand Quarterly, 51–52,pp. 81–91. ]In Persin[

Moradi, Ayoub; Nemati, Farouq; Qasemi, Morteza (2023). Application of Michael Riffaterre’s Semiotic Reading Model in Interpreting Hafez’s Ghazal “If That Shirazi Turk…” with Emphasis on the Meaning of “Eternal Wine.” Poetry Research Quarterly, 15(2),pp. 51–80. ]In Persin[

Nabi Lou, Alireza (2011). Application of Michael Riffaterre’s Semiotic Theory in Analyzing Nima Yushij’s “Phoenix.” Linguistic Research in Foreign Languages. ]In Persin[

Najoomian, Amir Ali (2015). Sign on the Threshold: Essays in Semiotics. 1st ed. Tehran: Asim/Farhang-e Nashr-e No. ]In Persin[

Riffaterre, Michael (1978). Semiotics of Poetry. 1st ed. Bloomington: Indiana University Press.

Saussure, Ferdinand de (1976). Course in General Linguistics. Edited by Rudolf Engler. Paris: Payot.

Scholes, Robert (2004). Structuralism in Literature: An Introduction. Translated by Farzaneh Taheri. 2nd ed. Tehran: Agah Publications.

Scholes, Robert (1994). Jakobson and Lévi-Strauss’s Poetic Theory vs. Riffaterre. Translated by Morad Farhadpour. Tehran: Arghanoon Publications. ]In Persin[

Selden, Raman (1993). A Reader’s Guide to Contemporary Literary Theory. Translated by Abbas Mokhber. 1st ed. Tehran: Tarh-e No. ]In Persin[

Shamisa, Sirus (2009). Literary Criticism. 3rd ed. Tehran: Mitra Publications. ]In Persin[

Sojjodi, Farzan (2016). Applied Semiotics. 4th ed. Tehran: Elm Publications. ]In Persin[

Safavi, Koroush (1998). Linguistics and Literature. 1st ed. Tehran: Hermes Publications. ]In Persin[

Talebi, Jamal, et al. (2012). Political Satire in Da’bal Khuza’i’s Poetry. Journal of the Iranian Association for Arabic Language and Literature, 25,pp. 1–22. ]In Arabic[

Tanha, Fatemeh (2020). Semiotics of Iraqi Resistance Literature Based on Michael Riffaterre’s Approach. PhD Dissertation, Shahid Madani University of Azerbaijan. (Supervisor: Mahin Hajizadeh). ]In Persin[