abolfazl hurri

This article, employing a qualitative-explanatory approach and utilizing library research and document analysis, explores why Qur’ānic storytelling has not been recognized as a distinct branch of Islamic literary studies. The primary question of the study is: why, despite the growth of Islamic rhetoric, did the art of storytelling fail to gain prominence among Muslim scholars? Through an examination of available sources, the article identifies six key factors contributing to this oversight: the misinterpretation of the term "qasas"; confusion between stories, myths, history, folktales, and legends; the historical context of storytelling in pre-Islamic times; the overlap of sources for certain stories with those of other prophetic narratives; negative attitudes towards storytelling among the Imams and companions; and the influence of Israelite traditions in exegetical literature. These factors, the article argues, have hindered the development of storytelling as a prominent technique within the Qur’ān.

This article examines the narrative models of qur’ānic characters and characterization from the perspective of narratological approaches. First, the weaknesses and strengths of character-oriented narrative theories in the West (Propp, Greimas, Bremond, and Todorov) are pointed out in the light of the characteristics of the qur’ānic figures. Then, Chatman and Rimmon-Kenan’s views on character traits are expressed in more detail. This article also talks about the fact that qur’ānic figures sometimes correspond to these models and sometimes not. Then the typology of people and direct and indirect ways – as two indicators of characterization in qur’ānic stories – are mentioned. The direct method is done by describing the outward characteristics, and the indirect one is done by the action, speech, environment, and description of the external specifications of the people. In general, qur’ānic figures are a part of the plot and subject of the story’s actions, as well as people with natural actions. The Qur’ān has used these methods in a good way. These two methods are explained by mentioning some examples of qur’ānic verses. It seems necessary to slightly modify or expand the narrative characterization models concerning the qur’ānic stories.

This note aims to study the divine life style in the light of the thematic and structural Qira'at (an special readings -recitations- of the holy Quran) of sūrat al_Ḥujurāt with paying attention to the theoretical subject of the semantic of kufr and iman. At the beginning, it is implied to the record of the examination of sūrat al_Ḥujurāt in different exegeses (tafasir) such as al_Mizan, Nemooneh and some monographs. Then, the structure and the subject matter of sūrat al_Ḥujurāt in the light of the divine lifestyle is studied. The expression ”یا ایها الذین آمنوا“ (O, you who believe) is regarded a kind of summons or address which establishes Islamic ideology. It is used sex times in this chapter. These summonses have been examined in the light of the semantic of the two contradictory concepts “kufr and iman”. Subsequently, it is stated the divine lifestyle is of salbi (privative or negative) type and it is vital to be avoided in the divine lifestyle according to the semantic of the two concepts “iman and kufr” and their semantic field, it is investigated sex disagreeable features: cursing, blaming, defaming, evil thoughts, not spying, backbite. Then piety (taqwaa) is the highest attribute which is effective on these sex disagreeable features is defined. At the end, the paradigm based on these two poles “iman and kufr” for the divine lifestyle has been drawn and has been implied to some findings.