A Metaphorical Reading of Folk Culture in the Painting of “Taking the Majnoon to Leili's Tent”

Various aspects of popular culture in Persian painting is a tradition that has been used for centuries. Basically, realism and folk culture have been considered after Herat school. Painters not only use these cultural elements to create the atmosphere of their works, but give them a metaphorical role to present a semantic layer to the audience. This function is mostly seen in mystical paintings through the display of the appearances of folk culture. Humans and their material tools, in the actions and situations of people, are the subjects of folk culture that play a role in the association of meaning. So, paying attention to ordinary people, especially in the rural and non-urban areas, and using them metaphorically, help the better understanding of the main theme. In this descriptive-analytical study via the case study method, various elements of folk culture in a painting of Mirseyed Ali entitled "Taking the Majnoon to Leili's Tent" has been read metaphorically from the perspective of folk culture.