The Interactive Role of Linguistic and Narrative Elements in the Textual Configuration of “Arash the Archer”

The interaction and correspondence of a set of linguistic, literary, narrative, and discourse elements form a network of relationships with varying degrees of influence in connection with the text. The combination and integration of the views of theorists in linguistic, discourse, and narrative fields prevent the researcher from giving a one-sided account and pave the way for achieving more desirable results. In this study, using an integrative approach, we have attempted to present some of the most important linguistic, discourse, and narrative elements as effective factors in meaning formation, and to describe the position and the role of each of these elements in the text to understand the intra- and extra-textual aspects. To this end, the present research based its analysis on Halliday and Hasan's three-tiered theory of linguistics (context, agents, and mode of discourse). It also referred to Riffaterre's views for the description of the discourse context in poetics. Regarding the narratology, reference has been made to some statements of structuralist narratologists, and finally, for the description of discourse agents, Van Leeuwen's (2008) views on discourse and actors have been utilized. The results of the research show that firstly, the foundational theme and discourse context in Arash the Archer's poetry is the reproduction of the anticipation and hope for liberation through the emergence of a hero and savior. Secondly, the agents (actors) of discourse are divided into two main categories: the agent of action and the recipient of action. Arash, in the role of the sacrificed hero, is the agent of action in the narrative, and the people of the city, who are passive and waiting, are represented as the recipients of action. Thirdly, due to the specific discursive and ideological field to which Kasrai belonged, he omitted the ‘king’ character in the narrative.