The Distribution of Symbols in the Range of Myths (a Search in the Symbolic Images of the Myth of Malek Jamshid and the Apple Thief Demon)

In a general sense, a symbol is a sign or an image to create a relationship and convey a message in various ways. In a particular sense, as an image, often like an explicit metaphor, it is based on the literary element of simile. The symbol plays a role in all types of literature, including popular literature and, accordingly, in myths. Myths like other manifestations of popular literature, form a major part of human literary and cultural norms. In other words, they are the epitome of cultural norms, moral teachings, psychological tendencies, events, and meta-history of peoples. They have been part of the life of peoples’ memories and nations for a long time. One of the examples of myths in Persian literature is the myth of ‘Malek Jamshid and the Apple Thief Demon’ from the collection of Mashdi Galin Khanum. The purpose of this study is to further introduce this myth, with an approach to understanding the symbolism, the dependence and intertwining of myths, symbols and archetypes, the types of symbols in it, and most importantly, to show the functions and capacities of the literary element of the symbol in the myth. This research is done in a documentary-descriptive way using content analysis. The study concludes that the myth of ‘Malek Jamshid and the Apple Thief Demon’ in addition to all the beauties, has wide capacities from the point of view of criticism and analysis of symbolism and all kinds of symbolic images. Studying and deciphering the symbols of this myth helps in understanding the concept and its message. It also increases the pleasure of reading it and finally adapts the reading to the important topic of intellectual-psychological development and personality of the audience.