The Mysteries of Meaning Production in the Story of Sindbad Bahri Based on Fairclough’s Critical Discourse Analysis

• Published in: Funūn-i adabī Vol. 14; no. 4; pp. 39 - 58
• Main Authors: Zeinab Karami Poor, Elyas Nooraei, Khalil Beygzade
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: Persian
• Published: University of Isfahan 01-12-2022
• Subjects: critical discourse analysis; norman fairclough; public literature; stories of one thousand and one‌ nights; the story of a sindbad bahri
• ISSN: 2008-8027; 2322-3448
• DOI: 10.22108/liar.2023.135409.2193

Based on Fairclough's approach, narrative texts can play an important role in recreating cultural, political, social, and meaning-producing structures. One Thousand and One Nights stories have a context based on the production of meaning in the structure of the text and hypertext. The story of the Sindbad Bahri is an example­ of what has hidden the changeable relation of the act of discourse. In this regard, this study examines the story of Sindbad Bahri based on Fairclough’s theory of critical discourse analysis in three levels of description, interpretation, and explanation using a descriptive-analytical method. It has explored the hidden and obvious layers of meaning of the text of the story. The results of this study show that most of the verbs have a predicative aspect and negative verbs are rarely seen because the existence of positive and predicative verbs shows the omniscience and the narrator's movement in the heart of the story. At the level of interpretation of this story, it expresses the spirit of economic individualism in authoritarian societies where the foundations of Ash'arism and tyranny prevent the government from feeling the duty to maintain a minimum of economic prosperity. The explanation also shows­ the ideological function of determinism in order to process and produce meaning in the story. The story uses the element of fear, which is a tool of power inequality in the society governing the story and also a sign of acquittal of the ruling class in traditional societies in establishing social justice. IntroductionFictional literature is one of the manifestations of the activity of language and ideology, which hides the changeable relations of discourse actions. Investigating the changeable relationships of discourse acts in fiction literature with the approach of critical discourse analysis shows how fiction texts can contribute to the production and reproduction of cultural, political, and social structures. The story of One Thousand and One Nights, as one of the most prominent fiction texts of folk literature, is a text that is the result of this connection and contains special discourse acts that, due to the conditions of the time of its authoring, is coordinated in the Abbasid period. Materials and MethodsBy choosing the text of One Thousand and One Nights and the story of Sindbad Bahri, we intend to analyze the obvious and hidden angles of the text. The foundation of this process is based on this question: What role does the ruling ideology play in the context of this story and how does it affect the discourse actions of this story?The purpose of this research is to show the ideological effect of determinism and fear in the story of Sindbad Bahri, which caused the disruption of justice occasions and power inequality in the society of that time, and provided the ground for acquitting the ruling class of traditional societies from failing to establish social justice. Research FindingsThe precision at beginning of the story of Sindbad Bahri shows that the entry of this story into the One Thousand and One Nights collection during the Abbasid period goes beyond the category of mere storytelling and entertaining the audience. Sindbad Bahri is a non-psychological and open story, the depth of which is impersonal. Therefore, although most of the verbs in the story are of action type, their in-depth structure is an event. It means that only the narration of events is important. These events strengthen the ideological foundations of the story, namely determinism and fear.The narrator in the story of Sindbad Bahri is an active narrator who, rather than trying to direct the attention of the audience to the action, tells a description of the events with long words and precise sentences. Another type of naming occurs in the form of "naming" which includes the hidden ideology of the narrator. The names given in this story all reveal the fear and show the extraordinary nature of the events. Most of the verbs have predicative aspects. Interrogative and imperative aspects are also of low frequency. The modal verb has also a low frequency. Fairclough considers the most important purpose of formality to be the exercise of implicit authority (Reck, Fairclough, 2000, p. 194). Sinbad Bahri also clearly shows the writer’s authority in facing events. The insignificant findings of these verbs indicate the relation of expressive aspects. Discussion of Results and ConclusionThe story of Sinbad is a description of incredible journeys and adventures that can be considered one of the most perfect examples of the magical realism style of ancient literature. Sinbad's story is based on its ‘suddenness’. A story that expresses the spirit of economic individualism in an authoritarian society and the foundations of Ash'ariism and tyranny that prevent the government from feeling the duty to establish minimum economic welfare, and the only way to protest is to complain to God.In the story of Sinbad, despite the lack of familiarity of the participants with legal issues and rational aspects, the power of the ruling class in promoting the fear of political protest, its reproduction into the fear of natural and illusory phenomena, and the preference for confrontation with them, we witness to achieve a superior social position. The process of valuing all participants is material and the verbal process has no place in the pragmatic payments of the seven journeys. This shows the closure of the place of dialogue and its functions in the society at the time of the compilation and translation of One Thousand and One Nights. The grammar governing the text of these adventures is also clear grammar, far from unknown sentences and marked words, which greatly strengthens the persuasive tone and makes the companionship of the two Sinbad’s end without any conflict until the end of the story.