Functions of Nature in the Thoughts of Fereydoon Moshiri and Paul Éluard

Human life is closely bound to nature, from which he satisfies his physical as well as spiritual needs. This association with nature and the drive to discover potential natural forces facilitate human access to great expectations. Literary works significantly deal with nature and natural issues in its crude form, and sometimes, symbolically represent its beauty in an attempt to intuitively uncover truth behind natural phenomena. In other words, nature as an important element in human life is praised and elevated in literary works. Thus, the present study examines how nature and related elements are represented in the works of Paul Éluard and Fereydoon Moshiri. A brief review of their poetic tradition may prove helpful here. Fereydoon Moshiri was born in September 1926 in Tehran to a family with rich literary and cultural background. He started poetry at age 15. His poems are replete with lyricism, melancholy, romance, and human emotions while retaining an intimate tone in both modern and classic style in Persian poetry. Moreover, simplicity is a key feature of Moshiri’s oeuvre. Paul Éluard was born in September 14, 1895 in Paris. He came to know Louis Aragon, Andre Burton, Philip Soupo and Tristan Tzara between 1920-1922 and was drawn to Dada movement. He became the editor of Dadaist journal of Proverbs. Later, along with Aragon and some other poets, he devoted his writings to surrealism and produced the first surreal work, the Exquisite Corpse. Despite the fact that Éluard and Moshiri belong to two different literary movements, the former was a surrealist while the latter was inspired by romanticism, it is claimed in this paper that they share a common attitude towards nature, though they differ in some aspects.

First, poems associated with nature were extracted from these great poems and those with close affinity with the function of nature were selected for descriptive analysis. 

Nature and the related elements play a significant role in the works of Éluard and Moshiri, constituting a significant aspect of their imagery and impersonation. The present study provides a comparative analysis of nature-inspired poetry. It aims at figuring out how nature functions in the poetry of these two great poets. Nature has always been rendered as a social phenomenon, not merely a lifeless entity, in Persian literature. Cosmic sensibility is a backbone of mystic and mythic writings in Persian literature. On the other hand, nature is reflected in myths and molds human beliefs. This is a feature of not only classic bust also of modern poetry which portraits dynamic natural elements by taking advantage of linguistic tools and rhetoric. Romanticism is characterized by an emphasis on nature. However, nature in romantic poetry is an essential part of the poet’s existence that gives meaning to his life. Surrealism also has an eye on nature. This doesn’t mean in any way that all poems by Éluard and Moshiri are interpreted in the light of elements of nature because their description of nature is driven, to some extent, by their own personal perceptions and artisitc aesthetics. The present study examines these two poets from two aspects: 1- objective description including nature and its beauty; 2- subjective description including nature and melancholy, nature and  a return to originality, nature and depression, nature and love, nature and empathy, nature and insight and sensibility.

This study examined imagery of nature in the works of a romantic and a surrealist poet. Both poets are inspired by nature and depict it fully in their works, as if nature is an indispensable part of their life. This close affinity with nature is interpreted from two aspects: 1- reflecting spiritual states to realize the ideal “I” through nature 2- expressing an awe-inspiring supernatural fact to induce a relationship between human mind and the world beyond. As we discussed above, nature is an essential aspect of poetry of Éluard and Moshiri. A significant part of their works focuses on objective description of natural scenes, though there are cases that are driven by their subjective perceptions. Éluard’s imagery combines two seemingly contradictory concepts to guide the reader to an unknown world where causal relations are intentionally blurred.