Discourse and the Image of the " Other" in Safarnameh of Nasserkhosrow

Critical discourse entered the contemporary criticism after the introduction of poststrucralism revolution of the 20th century. This approach seeks to address such varied issues as power and social trends and thinking. The author of the current paper attempts to investigate the Safarnameh of Nasserkhosrow in order to find out how personal as well as social ideologies of the time impacted his view and estimation of other societies. A scientific spirit as well as an avid interest in examination and interpretation of social issues of the time along with religious enthusiasm helped Nasserkhosrow write a travelogue that in detail studies the social, economic, political and geographical conditions of the cities and villages he visited. The present paper is based on the research methodology of Furlcough. This paper has, moreover, used the idea of the “other” introduced by Derida. Critical discourse analysis has its roots in the philosophical thoughts of such modern thinkers as Michel Foucault and Norman Furlcough who played a pivotal role in the dissemination of such approach as an innovative approach in analyzing texts. The followers of critical discourse analysis are of the opinion that a literary work is an echo of social and behavioral systems and should thus be considered as historically important. Literature on travels is a type of interdisciplinary literature that is a mélange of literature, geography, and sociology; such historical and literary texts can reveal the inner thoughts and feelings of the author and can address such varied issues as politics and the era of the creator of a text. NasserkhosrowGhobadiani is a renowned Iranian poet of the 10th century AD who was born in Ghobadian of Balkh. Amongst his different works one should make mention of his Safarnameh (Travelogue or Book of Travels) which is written in lucid prose and contains precise geographical, historical and traditional characteristics of people who lived in Nasserkhosrow’s itinerary. In the current research paper, the author tries to use Furlcough’s method to investigate Safarnameh through three different description, interpretation and clarification. To do so the author will pay particular attention to how Nasserkhosrow uses language and how different words are used from a sociological perspective. The author of the current paper has also made use of Stuart Hall’s theory on “Other” in an attempt to shed more light on the issue under discussion in this work. Discussion and Language is an immensely important tool in maintaining and expressing one’s social and political viewpoints. According to critical discourse analysis a literary work is produced in special conditions and with a relation with the political power. Norman Furlcough believes in the dialectical relationship between discourse wisdom (linguistic features) and a society’s mega structures (ideology and social structures). Nasser Khosrow’s descriptions of the places he visited is more a mirror to his appreciation of the culture and behavior of the people than their life conditions. What one can see, especially on the surface structure, are his description of different monuments particularly religious places which shows his deep interest in issues that are religious in nature. He nearly always uses numbers and figures to provide his readers with very concise architectural details. Julia Kristeva is the first thinker who brought to general notice, through her tripartite theories of text, intertextuality and discourse, the importance of the concept of “other”. In Safarnameh, readers confronts statements in which its author made distinct the differences.The social as well political upheavals of Iran at the time also had some influence upon the writings of Nasserkhosrow. There are signs that the rationalism of the period and also such movements as Sho’oubieh which emerged in Khorasan considered as noteworthy in his works. In his works one comes to notice values and beliefs that were taken as important; in fact, Nasserkhosrow himself helped to propagate such values, beliefs and ideas.Nasserkhosrow’s fundamental religious belief that the relationship between men and women should be limited can be seen in places when he describes the security of the cities and the authorities of people who rule them. Nasserkhosrow’s descriptions of the places that he visited and wrote about are more reflections of his own personal cultural views; additionally one can safely say that they are the outpourings of his personal perspectives of the world, norms, ideals and even his attitudes. His very precise descriptions of the architecture of holy places and his use of numbers and figures all demonstrate his scientific as well as his religious sides. It can also be concluded that his special interest in description can have its roots in his belief in Esmalite sect of Islam. His constant mentions of what he witnessed and described as lack of roads security, economic hardship of the people of the regions he travelled to and injustice of the rulers besides his descriptions of ethnic Arabs are all mirrors into social, economic and political affairs of the Khorasan of that period.