Comparative Study of the Symbolic Manifestation of the Cypress Tree in Literature and Iranian painting

The Cypress tree is a symbolic element often used both in Persian literature (poetry) and Persian iranian painting. The main concern of this study is to find a relationship between the element of Cypress tree as used in the Persian literature and in iranian painting, and define that relationship. As such, the main objective of the present study is establishing a semantic and semiotic connection between the element of cypress tree as used in literature and iranian painting art so as to answer the questions regarding their relationship and implications. Thus, the element of Cypress tree in iranian painting and literature has been studied with an intertextuality semiotic method. Intertextuality is a concept based on the views of Kristeva and Genette. Genette considers hypertextuality as a kind of intertextuality which includes transformation and sameness.
In order to achieve the objectives of research, first paintings belonging to different schools and poems have been studied and among them paintings containing Cypress and its companions have been selected with purposive sampling and sampling has been continued until theoretical saturation is obtained.
The findings of the research suggest that there is an intertextual connection between the symbol of Cypress tree in poetry and in iranian painting; in addition, hypertextuality, in its transformational, ameness, augmentation, and replacement forms can be perceived.