نشریه پژوهش های قرآنی
سال بیست و نهم شماره 1 (پیاپی 110، بهار 1403)

With the advent of formalism by Russian linguists, topics such as defamiliarization, highlighting, and norm evasion were raised in formalist critique, during which the form and structure of literary discourse is distinguished from other discourses, something that caused the artistic techniques of the Holy Qur'an to receive more attention. From this point of view, by avoiding repetitive, clichéd and boring words, the Qur'an has taken initiative and by moving, removing and replacing certain words, it has been able to arouse curiosity in the addressees by making the words mysterious and as a result prolonging the perception process, lead him to discover its hidden concepts. Using a descriptive-analytical method, this research is intended to examine the role of words in creating norm evasion in order to induce specific concepts. The results of the research show that unusual combinations and juxtapositions (similitude, corporealization, synesthesia and paradox) and displacement and replacement of language forms (allegory, metaphor) lead to departure from the norms of denotation and meaning, and as a result, cause delay in the process of perceiving the message and has provided the ground for contemplation on the verses. Similarly, in the Sūrat al-Zukhruf and Sūrat al-Dukhān, both types of exaggeration, i.e. descriptive exaggeration and figurative exaggeration, are seen, which are useful in expanding and enhancing the desired meaning.

The character element reflects the thoughts and emotions of the author. Examining this element in the Qur'anic flash fictions helps us to perceive the objectives of the Supreme Creator. On the other hand, single-verse flash fictions are taken into consideration because they are very brief. This research, using the descriptive method and content analysis, examines the ways of character development in single-verse flash fictions, and extracted the frequency of each one and the techniques used therein. To this end, the definitions and classifications of the presented character and the single-verse flash fictions in the two fields of character types (main, secondary, static, dynamic, antagonist and opponent, typical, etc.) and techniques of character development (direct and indirect description: dialogue, action, stage managing, naming) has been analyzed. The findings of the research show that the use of characters is often very limited, in such a way that some of them are formed with only one main character, others, in addition to that, with an antagonist character or secondary character as well. The character developments are indirect, and this method depicts the characters more realistically, which definitely has a greater impact. Among the various techniques of indirect character development, the methods of conversation, action, naming and describing emotions include the highest frequency, respectively.

The repetition of stories in the Qur'an is one of the issues that have prompted questions and doubts from some non-Muslim orientalists and Muslim neo-thinkers. They have, in their illusion, considered the repetition of the stories in the Qur'an as futile and in confliction and incompatibility with rhetoric and inimitability (i‘jāz), and have regarded the repetition as a cause of confusion and instability in the style, and as a result, they have concluded that the Qur'an is non-revealed and made up in the mind of the Prophet (S.A.W.) himself. Organized research proves that repetitions in the Qur'an, especially the repetition of stories, are not only not futile, boring, and incompatible with rhetoric and inimitability, but are considered as among the literary arts and merits of speech. The repetitions of the Qur'an are wise and are realized with specific reasons and purposes in accordance with the goals of the sūras. In examining the cases of repetition of stories from the point of view of the expressive inimitability, we achieve the following inimitability at the highest level of rhetoric, the beauties of repetition, completing the images of a story, looking at the story from different angles, diversifying the methods of conveying messages, the existence of strong order and coherence in repeated stories and explaining a subject with different words, etc. In every repetition in the stories of the Qur'an, there is at least one purpose or more that justify the repetition beautifully.

The words zīnatahunna and mā ẓahara in verse 31 of Sūrat al-Nūr are among the pivotal and role-creating words in the discussions of ḥijāb (Islamic dress code), positions to be covered, and positions of exception, which due to some conceptual and evidential ambiguities, have caused different views on the obligation and non-obligation of ḥijāb, positions of mandatory coverage and its exceptions. With the aim of explaining the concept and instances of these two words, the present article has studied them with an analytical-interpretive method and has come to the conclusion that although the word zīnat (charms) lexically means accidental (‘āriḍī) charms, but in the Qur'anic usages, it refers to both essential and accidental charms and it is applied to the female body, too. Furtheremore, what is meant by mā ẓahara minhā (what is outward) is charms or ornaments that are not normally and naturally covered, not organs that appear accidentally and involuntarily, and not especially the lower part of the legs or the clothes or organs that are visible in the original creation. Therefore, the instances of zīnatahunna (women's charms) are: women's body, jewelry, clothing, and cosmetics. And the instances of mā ẓahara minhā are: face, hands and makeup applied on them, which are exempted from the prohibition of outward expression (iẓhār).

There are many traditions in Shi'a and Sunni books, which are known as the hadiths of the revelation of mithl (the like) and mithlayn (the likes) of the Qur'an; including: Innī 'uwtītu al-Qur'ān wa mithlahū ma‘ahū (Indeed, I have been given the Qur’an and the like of it along with it) and 'Uwtītu al-Qur'ān wa mithlayhi. The content of these hadiths is the revelation of the equivalent, or twice as much, of the Qur'an along with the revelation of the Qur'an itself from God to the Holy Prophet (S.A.W.). Considering the pivotal position of the Qur'an among Muslims and its importance in Islamic studies, the traditions concerning the revelation of mithl and mithlayn with the Qur'an have occupied the minds of both Shi'a and Sunni thinkers for discovering its quiddity and the way it is related to the Qur'an. The result of their scholarly endeavor has been the interpretation of mithl to sunna. There are some objections raised against this view. The clues and evidence in these traditions and in other hadiths indicate that the interpretation of mithl and mithlayn specifically as "expressive and interpretive revelation" is closer to the truth and is indeed determinate, rather than sunna in the general and technical sense, which includes the contents unrelated to the interpretation of the Qur'an.

A contemporary neo-thinker, named Muhammad Mujtahid Shabestari, has considered the wording (lafẓ) and the meaning of the Qur'an to be from the Prophet himself and has stated that "The Prophet who brought the Qur'an has introduced it as his own word, and by referring to the collection of verses and historical evidence, we notice that the Qur'an introduces itself as the word of the Prophet." Shabestari justifies the verses that attribute the Qur'an to God by saying that God and the Prophet are along the same line; the Prophet is the natural cause of the Qur'an and God is the main cause of all phenomena, so if we view the wording and meaning of the Qur'an as being from the Prophet, it would not contradict these verses. He has proven this theory by bringing up some verses. The result of this view is the negation of the inimitability of the Qur'an and its invalidity. The present article is intended to elucidate Shabestari's viewpoint and to state its problems in relation to the Prophet's claim about the creator and natural cause of the creation of the Qur'an. Rhis article concludes that Shabestari's arguments are unable to prove his claims and not only the Prophet is not introduced in the Qur'an as the natural cause of the Qur'an, but there are many verses, narrations and historical evidences contrary to Shabestari's claim, some of which are referred to in this study.

The way wine was prohibited from the viewpoint of the Qur'an and the central role of the verse of sukārā in this regard, led to the confrontation of two views on the gradual and instant prohibition of wine. The findings of the research, with a library study and analytical-descriptive method, indicate that sukr-i nawm (sleep intoxication) in the meaning of sukārā in the theory of the instant prohibition of wine, is provable with Qur'anic reasons and narrative and rational evidence. In contrast, the view of wine intoxication in the verse, which is also the basis of the theory of gradual prohibition, its incompatibility with the verses of the Qur'an was proved in terms of content contradiction. By criticizing the wine intoxication in the meaning of sukārā, all the revelation occasions in the theory of gradual prohibition in Sunni interpretations, with the aim of defending wine drinking of some and the unjust accusation of others, are thematically beyond the scope of this verse with the incorrect justification of non-prohibition of drinking wine until the revelation of the verse. Among the impacts derived from the theory of instant prohibition, in addition to the inexcusability of drinking wine by some companions in Medina, is the separation of the announcement of wine prohibition in Mecca and the delay in the implementation of the legal punishment of drinking wine in Medina, which besides creating a strong motivation to quit, was also a kind of Islamic method of educational tolerance.