A Psychological Criticism of the Personality of Goshtasp in Rostam and Esfandiar by Using Yung's Analytical Psychology

The archetypal criticism of literary works is one of the branches of psychological criticism and just like other interdisciplinary studies, it has become widespread in recent decades. The Shahnameh, with its special mythological infrastructure, is a narration of stories and characters with profound mythical and historical origins. The Shahnameh is among those works in which the use of Yung’s archetypes is clearly manifested. The archetype is an innate tendency which molds and transforms the individual's consciousness. The abundance of archetypes in the Shanameh is due to the fact that such archetypes are very ancient and their application in mythological and epic stories is indicative of the existence of collective unconsciousness in nations and peoples from the past to the present. In the current study, an attempt is made to analyze Goshtasp’s character, using the principles of analytical psychology and archetypes. Special attention is paid to such archetypical considerations as complex, shadow, persona, etc.