EARLY SIGNS OF POLYPHONY IN CONSTITUTIONAL LITERATURE: A CASE

STUDY OF CARNIVAL ELEMENTS IN CHARAND PARAND BY ALI AKBAR

DEHKHODA

PRIMEIROS SINAIS DE POLIFONIA NA LITERATURA CONSTITUCIONAL: UM

ESTUDO DE CASO DE ELEMENTOS DO CARNAVAL EM CHARAND PARAND POR

ALI AKBAR DEHKHODA

PRIMEROS SIGNOS DE POLIFONÍA EN LA LITERATURA CONSTITUCIONAL:

ESTUDIO DE CASO DE ELEMENTOS DEL CARNAVAL EN CHARAND PARAND

POR ALI AKBAR DEHKHODA

Leili MANAVI

Bijan ZAHIRI NAV

Shokrallhah POURALKHAS

ABSTRACT: Among the notable literary texts that emerged during the Iranian constitutional

period for criticizing tyranny and monopoly in political, social, and cultural affairs was Charand

Parand by Ali Akbar Dehkhoda. It was a significant text due to the realistic depiction of both

formal and informal political discourses. The importance of this article, which is based on

discourse theory, lies in how it challenges the dominant discourse of power in Dehkhoda's work.

The purpose of this research is to apply the theory of dialogism and the role of Bakhtin's carnival

elements in Charand Parand, in order to study the polyphonic category and the role of carnival

elements in creating a polyphonic atmosphere and confronting authoritarian discourse. The

article attempts to answers the question: how the Cognitive stylistics methods provide the

liberal writer of constitutional era with opportunities to speak and be heard and for spoken and

marginalized discourses and voices.

KEYWORDS: Carnival. Polyphony. Bakhtin. Dehkhoda. Charand Parand.

RESUMO: Entre os textos literários notáveis que surgiram durante o período constitucional

iraniano por criticar a tirania e o monopólio nos assuntos políticos, sociais e culturais estava

Charand Parand, de Ali Akbar Dehkhoda. Foi um texto significativo devido à representação

realista dos discursos políticos formais e informais. A importância deste artigo, que se baseia

na teoria do discurso, está em como desafia o discurso dominante do poder na obra de

Dehkhoda. O objetivo desta pesquisa é aplicar a teoria do dialogismo e o papel dos elementos

do carnaval bakhtinianos em Charand Paraná, a fim de estudar a categoria polifônica e o

papel dos elementos de carnaval na criação de uma atmosfera polifônica e no enfrentamento

do discurso autoritário. O artigo tenta responder ao questionamento: como os métodos

University of Mohaghegh Ardabili, Ardabil – Iran. PhD Candidate. Department of Persian Literature. ORCID:

https://orcid.org/ 0000-0002-3779-8170. E-mail: leilimanavi@gmail.com.

University of Mohaghegh Ardabili, Ardabil – Iran. Associate Professor. Department of Persian Literature.

ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1946-1814. E-mail: g zahirinav@yahoo.com.

University of Mohaghegh Ardabili, Ardabil – Iran. Assistant Professor. Department of Persian Literature.

ORCID: https://orcid.org/ 0000-0002-7910-7075. E-mail: Sh_pouralkhas@uma.ac.ir.

estilísticos cognitivos proporcionam ao escritor liberal da era constitucional oportunidades de

falar e ser ouvido em discursos e vozes marginalizados.

PALAVRAS-CHAVE: Carnaval. Polifonia. Bakhtin. Dehkhoda. Charand Parand.

RESUMEN: Entre los textos literarios notables que surgieron durante el período

constitucional iraní para criticar la tiranía y el monopolio en los asuntos políticos, sociales y

culturales se encontraba Charand Parand de Ali Akbar Dehkhoda. Fue un texto significativo

por la representación realista de los discursos políticos formales e informales. La importancia

de este artículo, que se basa en la teoría del discurso, radica en cómo cuestiona el discurso de

poder dominante en la obra de Dehkhoda. El objetivo de esta investigación es aplicar la teoría

del dialogismo y el papel de los elementos carnavalescos bajtinianos en Charand Paraná, con

el fin de estudiar la categoría polifónica y el papel de los elementos carnavalescos en la

creación de una atmósfera polifónica y en la confrontación del discurso autoritario. . El

artículo intenta responder a la pregunta: cómo los métodos estilísticos cognitivos brindan al

escritor liberal de la era constitucional oportunidades para hablar y ser escuchado y para

discursos y voces habladas y marginadas.

PALABRAS CLAVE: Carnaval. Polifonía. Bakhtin. Dehkhoda. Charand Parand.

Introduction

Among the political and social periods of Iran, the constitutional period, due to its liberal

and democratic nature, provided a suitable platform for growth and flourish of dialogue between

various social elements and discourses. This period provided the grounds for the emergence of

the Persian novel and those suppressed marginal discourses thus become able to express their

views and ideas in the polyphonic atmosphere of the novel. Writers such as Zein al-Abidin

Maraghei, Talibof, and Dehkhoda wrote articles during these years and put forward their liberal

and authoritarian views. The works of this literature provide a literary text of the historical,

social and political events in order to establish constitutionalism.

Among the writers of the constitutional era, Ali Akbar Dehkhoda, with his story type

articles in Charand Parand, is considered as one of the initiators of the carnival tradition in

Persian literature. Charand Parand, based on dialogue between personalities from different

levels of society, is an important source to understand Iranian society in the early years of the

twentieth century; because it is a testimony to examine the social and political goals of the

Iranian Constitutional Revolution (YAZDANI, 2007, p. 79). Although Charand Parand is not

in the form of a story in the modern sense, but it is significant due to the simple and fluent

language of the common people and its influence on the style and context of many later

humorists and satirists, (SEPANLOO, 1992, p. 41). One of the most important issues of

Charand Parand is the daily political issues, which describe the attitude of the social forces

involved in the constitutional revolution. Second, cultural and social issues such as superstitions

and religious misconceptions that according to Dehkhoda are common among the people, are

the roots of Iran's backwardness. Dehkhoda consistently recounted these issues rooted in

Charand Parand and, even when talking about current events, he tried to turn the reader's eye

to the social and cultural roots of the events. Sometimes these two categories of issues are

intertwined, so that they cannot be separated easily (YAZDANI, 2007, p. 43).

In Charand Parand, Dehkhoda depicts two formal and informal worlds: the formal world

is the set of intellectual systems that govern the court, the government, and the religious leaders;

That is, the political and religious body dominates the country, and the informal world, is the

beliefs and public discourse of the people, which are often based on ignorance, superstition,

fear, and obedience. He challenges both groups in the form of his verbal humor. The order in

the intellectual system of both formal and informal worlds is overthrown by Dehkhoda's

decisive word that replaced by a new order based on consciousness and freedom. This verbal

battle to overthrow the ideological system in both the formal and informal worlds is reminiscent

of the Bakhtin’s Carnival idea. In Bakhtin's words, "the loud and passionate melody of the word

strongly soliloquizes the discourse and cannot fulfill the voice of another person that is present

in the social and political discourse" (KNOWLES, 2012, p. 51). Dakho (the narrator in Charand

Parand)'s sarcastic laughter at the political, social, and religious events of the period is not his

personal laughter, but it is public laughter. Dehkhoda also questions the seriousness and

dogmatism of the common official written language. The use of punctuation, speech errors, and

broken words, all kinds of proverbs and even humorous translations of Turkish phrases are all

intentional and necessary. Dehkhoda intends to show the existence and presence of vernacular

owners and their culture, and even their superstitions, which lasted more vividly and strongly

than the official language and culture accepted by the government. Dehkhoda's sarcastic

laughter intends to humiliate. Government officials, staunch opponents of constitutionalism,

ignorant proponents and time servers of constitution, seemingly popular and of course shaky

constitutional leaders, and ignorant poor people captivated by ignorance and superstition are

challenged in Charand Parand. Thus, Charand Parand can be considered as a carnival work in

the constitutional period, because by presenting carnival images, it seeks to challenge the

dominant discourses and critique various social classes.

Much research has been done on the stylistics of Dehkhoda's Charand Parand. In

addition to a number of articles, two books of Sur-e Israfil: Letter of Freedom written by Sohrab

Yazdani and Charand Parand, through the efforts of Vali-ul-lah Droudian, have specifically

paid attention to the social, political, historical, linguistic, and literary aspects of Dehkhoda's

Charand Parand. The doctoral dissertation of Meymanat Attariani entitled "Analysis of the

Carnival concept in Bakhtin's views and tracing it in Iranian satirical literature by emphasis on

the works of Dehkhoda" that was written in 2013 for Mashhad Ferdowsi University is similar

to this article in terms of title and subject; However, the result of this research emphasizes the

superficiality of the carnival and the lack of humor and laughter originality and the dominance

of monologue over conversational in Dehkhoda's works. However, the present article, citing

Mikhail Bakhtin's theory of dialogue, proves the existence of dialogue based on carnival

elements in the text of Charand Parand. This article intends to study the polyphonic elements

of this work by studying the function of Bakhtin’s Carnival pattern in Charand Parand. The

main question of this article is how Dehkhoda in the text of Charand Parand has created a space

for dialogue and relying on components of Bakhtin’s dialogue in his prose, has sought to

criticize the social conditions and politics of Iran.

The narrative structure in Charand Parand

In the constitutional period, by abandoning the structure of tyranny, dialogue becomes

a new literary aspect in political and literary discourse, and creative writers such as Dehkhoda

go to the cultural war, which is based on the monologism of the rulers, with ridicule of language

and worldview. The structural basis of Charand Parand is based on dialogue; This dialogue is

sometimes formed between formal and informal categories and sometimes between the

government and the people as two reciprocal poles: between the authoritarian government that

maintains the existing political, social, religious and cultural order and the deconstructive and

chaotic people who want fundamental and serious reforms in the ideological dominant system

and have a different language and discourse as opposed to the dominant language and discourse.

Dehkhoda's method in this work is the application of humor. This inconsistency occurs at

different levels of speech, from the phonetic layer to the macro layers of discourse. Playing

with text and line shapes, playing with phonetic elements such as puns lead to linguistic jokes;

but the incompatibility of speech with context is the main cause of humor (FOTOUHI, 2013,

p. 394). Humor in Persian - equivalent to satire in English –

is a special method in writing that, while giving a satirical image of the ugly,

negative and awkward aspects of life, exaggerates the flaws and corruptions

of society and the bitter social truths uglier and worse than what it is. With

this description, their attributes and characteristics become clearer and more

visible, and reveal the deep contradiction of the current situation with the idea

of great and ordinary life (MURIEL, 2014, p. 12).

Dehkhoda, through his humorous articles, creates an exaggerated atmosphere and a kind

of caricature in which characters from different types of life are present at the carnival; because

they either talk on the screen or turn relationships upside down and make it look different. These

characters take part in the carnival, which took place during the short period of social freedom

in the constitutional era, in order to dispel their fear of authority and to equate high-ranking

people with low-ranking or holy affairs with the unholy or humor everything that seems serious

and goes against the powerful official culture. Carnival humor is one of the practical ways to

expose social, political and religious harms and remind the need to fundamentally change these

harms. With carnival humor, the author creates characters who can stand against the author and

fight with his authority (MIR ABEDINI, 2011, p. 54), and in this way to confront the powerful

and serious tone of the official and dominant culture, represents the discourse of power in

society. It rushes the trick of exaggerating one of the most important features of humorous

comics in a way that has a ridiculous effect on the audience. Aggressive humor is highly

dependent on exaggerated distortion and manipulation, and the presentation of caricatures of

humorous people and events.

In fact, in exaggerated humor and caricature, distorted forms and characteristics of a

person are described in an exaggerated and ridiculous way (HOR’RI, 2008, p. 65). The

reflection of this method in Dehkhoda's Charand Parand is clearly visible.

Charand Parand articles have been written and published in Iran as a literary work with

critical themes for 13 years. After the forced closure of publications during the coup d’état of

Mohammad Ali Shah (23 Jamadi Awal 1326 AH / 2 July 1287 AH), the most important

publication of the time, Sur-e Israfil, was republished after a seven-month hiatus in Yverdon,

Switzerland, and only lasted one and half month and was closed forever. There were significant

differences between the Sur-e Israfil printed in Tehran and the Sur-e Israfil published in

Yverdon. Dehkhoda in Tehran had to observe many do's and don'ts. Prominent opponents of

constitutionalism wielded political and social power and were protected by law, or enjoyed

spiritual influence and social sanctity. Charand Parand elaborated on political and social issues

and tried to find a way out of legal and social difficulties, especially the censorship system, to

publish critical opinions by emphasizing humor. But there were no such obstacles in Yverdon

either, the writer could speak freely and did not need to be veiled, so Dehkhoda's writing tended

to be humorous, and in this way, he began to ridicule the anti-constitutionalists. Therefore,

Tehran Charand Parand was more important both politically and literarily than Swiss Charand

Parand (YAZDANI, 2007, p. 44). Due to rapid changes and rapid political developments and

the fusion of everyday issues with issues of cultural and social roots, it is not always possible

to find a single trajectory of thought in Charand Parand. The author was influenced by various

social phenomena and the fervor of current issues, or he modified his previous statements”

(Ibid).

Carnival (carnivalism) in literature

Carnival in literature is one of the most prominent ideas of Mikhail Bakhtin, which is

studied in the topics of popular culture and humor (KNOWLES, 2012, p. 1). Carnival does not

mean the sum of all festivals, rituals and a literary phenomenon. In fact, carnival is a

magnificent ritual show and has a ritual language. Decipherment is one of its special categories

and this category gives the opportunity to be revealed to the hidden aspects of human nature

(BAKHTIN, 2016, p. 272). One of the basic features of the carnival that Bakhtin emphasizes

and pays attention to it is the insistent and purposeful language of the carnival and the

multiplicity of styles in it (KNOWLES, 2012, p. 6). Bakhtin believes that in Carnival, develops

a new style of human-to-human communication. One of the main aspects of this relationship is

the revelation of the naked and unadulterated truth that lies behind the mask of false claims and

contractual classifications. He believes that in the language system as well as in the structure of

the novel, dialogue plays exactly the role of carnival. According to him, Socratic discourse is

the primary model of the discourse mechanism for revealing the truth. Such a dialogue is at

odds with authoritarian rhetoric, just as Carnival is at odds with official culture. Authoritarian

discourse does not allow other types of speech to be intimate and intrusive, does not enter the

realm of participation, and rejects dialogue. Formal culture, which considers itself the only

acceptable and valid model, intends to exclude other cultural categories from the scene of social

life with invalid and harmful labels. According to Bakhtin, folk humor manifests itself in two

linguistic forms: a) Verbal funny combinations that are ridiculous oral and written imitations in

local languages and slang tones; B) Different types of abrogation, including curses, insults,

oaths, and etc. (KNOWLES, 2012, p. 7). Carnival, in contrast to official celebrations, is a form

of temporary elimination of terminal relations, privileges, rules, and taboos. With these

measures, Bakhtin tries to show that the basis of popular culture has been "the logic of

conversation" (AHMADI, 2007, p.107). It can be added that

the reality of language is not in the abstract norms of theoretical linguistics,

but it is in the outside world, in the endless variety and richness of real speech,

individual dialects, insults and oaths, guilds and occupations, streets and

dining rooms, courts and villages, past and present and in literature and life,

all of which, from the reliance on the daily words to the terms of a historical

period, are influenced by the ever-changing contexts of society and history”

(KNOWLES, 2012, p. 44).

Bakhtin considers the ancient carnival traditions to be a centrifugal force that seeks to

elevate the informal dimension of society and therefore uses low-level language. Carnival

protects the informal culture of the people and stands against the prevailing governmental and

religious discourse (ALLEN, 2013, p. 40). In other words, during the process of carnival, every

powerful, rigid and serious matter is overturned, weakened and ridiculed (SELDEN;

WIDOWSON, 2005, p. 60). And this phenomenon is fundamentally liberal and popular.

The central element in the carnival is laughter. This is something that "is always an

informal part of the discourse, a part that is not used in the main text circle but in the margin...

and does not exist in official situations and is rejected" (MASOUDI, 2016, p. 13-14). In

Carnival, ridiculous imitations do not mean the satirical emphasis on the negative aspects of

concepts. According to Bakhtin, the popular satire of Carnival "revives and reconstructs the

conventional categories while denying and rejecting them" (KNOWLES, 2012, p. 13). Because

"carnival laughter is public laughter, not an individual reaction to a funny event" (Ibid.). Thus,

the sacred concept that is being ridiculed has not only occurred for the author of the text but

also has occurred in the beliefs of all readers. In carnival celebrations and activities, are

highlighted the humorous, informal and unconventional aspects of society. Carnival Laughter

confronts all serious aspects of individual and social life and mocks all religious, political and

social dogmas. A similar thing happens in a humorous text; the author fights with the authority

of official and written language by spoken and sometimes socially base tones. This multiplicity

of melodies expresses different attitudes and worldviews towards the world and society. So,

what marginalizes laughter may be the belief in the power of those who cause laughter, those

who have long been marginalized, and one of the reasons for this marginalization is his

dependence on popular culture, which always has been marginalized in confrontation with the

powerful official culture and for this reason has led to the formation of cultural and artistic

approaches and movements (MASOUDI, 2016, p. 14).

Among the literary genres, the novel genre is more associated with the polyphonic

component and Bakhtin has spent the main part of her studies on this genre (TODORV, 2014,

p. 9). Bakhtin believed that the conversational and phonetic aspects of language were essentially

threatening to any single, authoritarian, and finite conception of society. Because it gives

repressed discourses and voices and the margins of society the opportunity to speak and be

heard, discourses that may by being heard undermine the monolithic and authoritarian basis of

the ruling system. Carnival narratives are in all the serious-comedy genres in which the carnival

is embodied, and what is noteworthy is their new way of relating to reality, because their subject

is the present and often even the events of the day; carnival narratives don’t rely on myth and

do not sanctify themselves with it; Rather, they consciously rely on experience and innovation

freely; These narrations are mainly multi-stylistic and heterogeneous in nature. Serious-comedy

genres do not accept the stylistic unity of epic, tragedy, sublime eloquence, and lyricism. The

distinctive feature of these genres is multi-playing narrative, high and low, and serious and

comedy mix (BAKHTIN, 2016, p. 245-246). Serious literary genres, according to Bakhtin, are

monologue; that is, they contain (or impose) only one integrated and stable aspect of speech. In

contrast, serious-comedy genres are dialogue; these genres deny the possibility, or more

precisely, the experience of this kind of unity. These types of literature openly or covertly

challenge the intellectual and literary class, a challenge that is reflected not only in the

philosophical content of these forms but also in their structure and language (Ibid, 2016, p.

242). In general, the basis of dialogue from Bakhtin's point of view is "acceptance of another".

In Bakhtinian dialogue, different views and ideas are expressed and multiple voices are heard

from the text. Polyphony of social reality is due to the opposite effects of two central and

centrifugal forces; The first wants to express the differences and the second expresses the unity

force and from the contradiction between these two forces created a polyphony which does not

only mean tolerance but also using different voices to create new ideas and beliefs

(NEYESTANI, 2015, p. 67). In order to reach the truth, two perspectives are required: my

thought and another thought. And the carnival text provides a good opportunity for the presence

and understanding of other ideas beyond the dominant ideology and discourse in society.

The elements of carnival in a text can also be divided into two main categories: a) types

of desecration of legal relations and the accepted social, political and religious system b)

breaking the authority of the official written language. Some argue that the theory of carnival

ignores the fact that carnivals are used as a safety valve to serve the powerful discourse for its

benefit, and have not always been liberal, forgiving, and utopian. Religious and non-religious

governments, by carrying out a planned event called Carnival, calmed internal conflicts by

temporarily suspending social laws and norms, and by internally evacuating the dissatisfied

community, they guaranteed the survival of their government (KNOWLES, 2012, p. 36).

However, there is no denying that the carnival atmosphere enables marginalized and repressed

discourses to speak by challenging the discourse of power. In general, the characteristics of a

carnival effect can be summarized as follows: a) the right to use words full of profanity (insults)

and obscenities such as insults, curses and swearing; B) special intimacy and unassumingness,

such as being outspoken or intimate, and ridiculous sarcasm; C) desecration of religion,

politics, and society institutions; D) freak (a combination of praise, blasphemy, and seriousness

and comedy in one word; E) ignorance (Socratic type) which is the carnival laughter; and F)

Naturalistic themes, such as describing the details of life with all kinds of people superstitions

(BAKHTIN, 2016, p. 288).

Critical structure of Charand Parand

Writers such as Dehkhoda in the revolutionary context of the constitutional era found it

possible to ridicule the authority formed on the basis of monologue and to deny the

authoritarianism of the official language by introducing slang into the field of literature that

claiming to present a unique truth. Dehkhoda's simple, popular and critical language in the

nonsensical articles had a great effect on attracting people's attention and growing their

awareness in the context of constitutionalism. Types of desecration are one of the most

important components of the carnival effect that can be seen in abundance in these articles.

In the first article of Charand Parand, the main criticism is directed to the government

institution. The government is confronted with an ignorant group and therefore easily spreads

its oppressive, unreasonable and unjust demands among the people and quietly and

imperceptibly and cleverly achieves its goals; goals that conflict with the wishes of the people.

For example, in order to save the amount of consumed wheat by the people, they subtly reduce

the amount of wheat that is daily being baked and instead, they mix wheat with barley, sawdust,

alfalfa, sand, and etc. in such a way that no one notices because this work is done gradually and

people get used to the new taste and shape of bread, and in the end the habit of eating a lot of

bread disappears gradually. Or they reduce the number of admitted patients in the endowment

hospital so that eventually people forget that such hospital was a public endowment […]

(DEHKHODA, 2012, p. 120). Mentioning this case also criticizes the institution of religion and

the unreliable practice of students in religious school who interfere in public endowments and

charitable affairs.

The second article of Charand Parand, criticizes the government and government

officials who are traitors to the homeland and, in pursuit of material interests and increasing

their power, relinquish every national privilege to foreigners for free. To nurture the story, the

author refers to a humorous fantasy story in ancient times: During the Iran-Greece war, a Greek

general named Epilates betrayed his country and showed a safe passage to the Iranian corps in

order to increase their chances of victory. Dehkhoda writes: "May God curse the devil. I do not

know why every time I hear this name [Epilates], I remember some Iranian ambassadors [...]"

(Ibid, p. 125). The narrator of this text is the first person and at the end he introduces himself

as "horsefly" and during the text he is addressing "Kablai Dakho". The fictional writer

(horsefly) asks Dakho for guidance and help and sympathizes with him and complains about

the turbulent political situation in the country.

The third article refers to the assorted, slyness, and the internal and external spying of

the country's elders. He criticizes institution of religion and scholars, religion that only want to

pocket the money. There is also a humorous social critique of the poor state about baking bread,

which is mixed with pebbles and clods in flour and fed to the nation. The author advises his

imaginary audience "horsefly" that: Have you not heard the poet say: "lords consider the good

of their country?" (DEHKHODA, 2012, p.129). That is, ordinary people do not have the right

to interfere in the great affairs of a country. The existence and promotion of lofty and

meaningless titles for incompetent people is also a kind of political and social criticism: "The

great ambassador of the Peace Prince, Dr. Amir Noyan Mirza Reza Khan Arfa'a al-Dawlah

Danesh" (Ibid, p. 130).

The fourth article is the text of a concert by the captured Quchani girls in Tbilisi and is

a critique of the oppression and lawlessness of the authoritarian regime. Asif al-Dawla, the ruler

of Khorasan, had sold the young girls of Quchani to the Turkmens, and these helpless girls were

serving for their masters in Russia. While composing, the political institution is criticized as

follows: All the elders are drunk with pride / God, no one thinks of us; they are far from fairness

and hardship; who will take my message to the parliament / who’s ignorant / why did my name

disappear from your memory? The social institution also will be criticized as follow, "Have our

men fallen asleep?" Has the zealots bathed? That foreigner took water from his friends”

(DEHKHODA. 2012, p. 133-131).

The fifth article is Dakho's conversation with a fictional character named "Damdami",

about political and social issues and a critique of the situation time. The sixth article is a critique

of religion institution and different and sensual interpretations of religion. The narrator

understands the principle of religion better than other knowledgeable ignorant people. But in

the method of ignorance, the mystic asks about the principle of religion. The seventh and eighth

articles criticize the institution of society and politics by focusing on simplicity, naivety,

gullibility, blindness, optimism, and the trust of villagers. The author portrays a rural man as a

symbol of blindfolded and naive Iranians who bring the calamity of religion and politics upon

him. The ninth article is a brief critique of religious superstitions. The tenth article narrates the

critique of the society institution and its common superstitions in two halves; half of the text,

entitled "Written by one of the narcotics" by a woman named "Asir al-Jawal", and is addressed

to "Kabla Dakho". This common imaginary character wants Dakho to cure his child's pain and

illness. The second half of the text is Dakho's written and humorous answer to him, which

contains a completely superstitious and unsanitary way and method of treatment. The eleventh

article criticizes the society institution and the masses by breaking the authority of the official

language and exaggerating the use of slang words. The twelfth article, in the form of a two-way

conversation between the narrator (Dakho) and Hassan Daleh's dog (an imaginary character

from whom Dehkhoda often expresses his words), refers to the deterioration of the political

situation in the country. The focus of this article is on political criticism and the oppression of

the country's political rulers, who do whatever they want and kill anyone they want and get in

their way. The text of the thirteenth article is arranged in two written parts and in the form of

questions and answers entitled "Written from Uremia" and "Answers from the Office".

Dehkhoda, in the language of the government, responds with bitter and biting humor to the

appeal of the Urmia people against the aggression of the Russians as follows: "... Well,

gentlemen ... what should I do? What should the Minister of War do? This is the calamity that

has come down from heaven, these are all your destinies. You have accepted yourself all these

in the underworld” (DEHKHODA, 2012, p. 170). The fourteenth article is a political critique,

and implicitly a religious critique, and a critique of cortical scholars and common superstitions

among the common people. The fifteenth article refers to the hypothetical discussion of the

temporary members in the officials’ association of the Sur-e Israfil office about newspaper

affairs and what should or should not be written. For example, the political debate is whether

or not to accept the bribe of the Kerman ruler (Prince Nusrat al-Dawla); the participants in this

multi-person discussion are as follows: Mr. Hassan Daleh (dog)/ Mr.Khar Maghas / Damdami/

Oyargholi/ Azad Khan Kordkrandi/ Dakho / Mr. Mullah I-nak Ali. The use of such names is

reminiscent of carnival elements that, while disrupting the order and seriousness of the official

language, also introduce marginalized individuals and groups. The argument of these people is

whether to accept or return the carpets donated by Kerman ruler to Dakho (the administration

of Sur-e Israfil). Another topic of conversation is that the owners of wealth and influence,

including the ruler of Kerman, should have donated and helped the administration of Sur-e

Israfil and journalism, or the orphans and needy children of Kerman? The result of the

discussion is the non-acceptance of bribe carpets and their return to Kerman (DEHKHODA,

2012, p. 182). The humorous and sarcastic article of the sixteenth article deals with the

ridiculous and differential language of the scholars, which is full of Arabic words and structural

errors (Ibid., p. 183). With his humorous descriptions and similes, Dehkhoda seriously criticizes

and challenges powerful political institutions. By carnival atmosphere, he replaces the formal

language and style with the language of slang, directing the silent fringe sounds to the center

which, in principle, gives the opportunity to speak in marginal discourses. The seventeenth

article deals with slang and grammatical errors, breaking the authority of the official language,

criticizing the political performance of statesmen, and abusing journalists and writers. In the

eighteenth article, Dehkhoda uses the method of satire to criticize the political structure by

comparing political leaders to livestock (DEHKHODA, 2012, p. 82).

In another example, Dehkhoda considers courtiers and some members of parliament as

sheep, that is, those who bow their heads and obey their leaders without reason, have no desire

for their homeland, and they grow no dream beyond personal life and happiness in their heads.

Because he was looking after the sheep last year, as all the courtiers and some of the

lawyers and eight ministers know, the sheep did not feel bad. Their food, cages, pastures, and

other necessities of life were fine. May God always be fine; we are not jealous (Ibid., p. 133).

The nineteenth article in satirical language expresses the author's regret for his political

and cultural activity: "... I went to the city of the blind and saw that all people are blind and I

am also blind" (Ibid., p. 202). The twentieth article is a sarcasm and attack on the government's

coercive actions in dealing with freedom-seekers, constitutionalists, and the twenty-first article

is a critique of the religion institution and religious organizations in the language of humor and

contradiction. The 22nd article with a narrative context and a high level of literature consists of

two parts: written and answers of the office. The first part begins by mentioning the quarrel

between the narrator's grandmother and father and ends with criticizing the members of

parliament. The author paradoxically defends the performance of parliamentarians and

enumerates their various forms of oppression.

Carnival elements in Charand Parand

Among the most important elements of the carnival are components such as the right to

insult, obscenity, intimacy, outspokenness, and ridiculous sarcasm in language, all kinds of

religion, politics, society desecrations and the authority of the official language which considers

mix of insults, seriousness and jokes in a text. Ignorance - the same suppressed laughter of the

carnival - and naturalistic themes also include details description of superstitious life of the

people suffering from economic and cultural poverty as the main features of a type of carnival

(BAKHTIN, 2016, p. 268).

Charand Parand can be considered a colloquial text due to its carnival components.

These components are: broad reflection of social, political, and cultural situations in the text;

use of special artistic methods such as multiple characters; fictional configuration; use of

various and varied narratives; simple slang language and humorous melody. In Charand Parand,

there are many examples of proverbs and jokes, rhetoric and scatterbrained; and can be found

the combination of seriousness and laughter, which is a clear example of the carnival

manifestation in the literary text. These elements are examined in four groups: stupid ideas,

naturalistic style, colloquial speech, and the use of humor.

Stupid Ideas

One of the key elements in carnival is the idea of "stupid". Stupidity, just like the theme

of madness that causes a different view of man to the world, creates a carnival atmosphere due

to its opposition to conventional social, political, religious, and cultural norms (KNOWLES,

2012, p. 32). To be stupid means naivety and the inability to understand irrational norms, to

oppose customary norms, and to protest the inadequacy of all existing aspects of life for real

human being and to build a more perfect world. Behind the mask of stupidity, the author can

enjoy many rights such as ignorance and to have the right not to accept, the right to make

mistakes, to ridicule, to magnify life, to ridicule others, to have the right to be upset and to play

life as a hilarious show, and the right to trample on all vulgar and erroneously stereotyped

categories in human relations. In a carnival text, the author deliberately uses the trick of

stupidity to present vulgar customary standards and executes a character in the text by naivety

and optimism. The presented concepts include all the details of daily life from social traditions

to politics, art and religion are presented in the language of the common and low information

person who is neither the principles of social etiquette nor is able to understand them

(BAKHTIN, 2012, p. 229). The idea of a fool - a seemingly dumb person who does not have a

clear understanding of events and concepts - can be traced in Charand Parand. The function of

the idiot in the texts is associated with cases such as insults, curses, and oaths that appear in the

familiar slang speech. For example, the curse of the character "Nanna Dakho" (The mother of

Dakho) about her father: "... May God wouldn’t save the hell fire for him. May he be ashamed

against the prophet. May he wouldn’t find food forever. May does not see a happy day in his

life” (DEHKHODA, 2012, p. 110). Although these cases do not seem to have anything to do

with the laughter world, like laughter and humor, it has no place in the realm of formal speech,

because in this type of speech, are violated the norms of etiquette and social decency. Therefore,

there is no sign of it in official speech and it can be seen only in the realm of the slang language,

which in principle has a carnival nature (KNOWLES, 2012, p. 15). Many moral, critical, social,

and cultural themes develop around the idiot personality, which are discussed below. In some

parts of the articles, Dehkhoda fools himself so that he can more easily engage in political,

religious and social criticism in the form of a fool. Sometimes he draws irrational and stupid

conclusions from the article text or gives stupid instructions. For example, in Article 25, which

is full of objections to the actions of government officials and heads of nation, after introducing

the institution of politics, religion, and society as a disgrace to modern civilization, he concludes

with a seemingly silly conclusion: ...Yes, I do not say these because I know that the return of

all these is to fate and destiny, these have all been our destiny. These are all our destinies as

Iranians" (DEHKHODA, 2012, p. 130).

Naturalist style

In Charand Parand, scenes from people's ordinary lives are depicted in a very precise,

clear and detailed way. Especially in the critique of society institution and the superstitions of

the people, there is a satirical mockery of the realist or naturalistic concept of the characters.

Expressing way of Dehkhoda in social criticism can be considered naturalistic, especially when

it deals with superstitious beliefs mixed with general ignorance. Because the description of

poverty life scenes and their turning to goblins and ghosts, etc., is a precise and detailed

reminder of this style, which is also one of the features of carnival writing: according to Bakhtin,

behind almost all scenes and real-life events, often depicted in a naturalistic way, flicker the

carnival square with more or less obvious clarity (BAKHTIN, 2016, p. 290). Sometimes humor

is made from a real situation. By exaggerating the real events, the author draws the audience's

attention to the exaggerated matter and makes them suffer from humorous astonishment. Like

Dehkhoda's detailed report (number one) in the Charand Parand article about the situation of

baking bread in Tehran and mixing sand, barley and black beans in it and cheating along with

the officials’ expertise! And the gradual habit of the people to this kind of bread. Such

descriptions make the reader open his eyes to the world of Dehkhoda and make the people

around him ridiculous and pitiful, and at the same time he does not stop cursing those who have

caused poverty, misery, vulgarity, superstition, ignorance, loneliness, and deception

(BARAHENI, 2004, p. 103). The following examples are all reminiscent of this carnival

atmosphere: "I hope he no longer needs medicine. If, God forbid, he does not get better and I

will not do anything.” “Go to Hassan-abad neighborhood, tell to the exorcist ‘A Sid Farj al lah’

to cure him” (DEHKHODA, 2016, p. 47); "Tonight, before any other work, give some smoke

of female donkey dung to him and see how it goes. If he wouldn’t cure with it. The next day

will boil a little cotton, a little of a girl's milk, a little of female donkey dung, put the donkey's

pussy in scallop and then put it in his eyes, see how it will be [...]” (Ibid.); And the tenth article

is about the narrator's distrust of Dr. Jamaat, because instead of referring to the doctor for

treatment in a carnival atmosphere, he refers to the author's Kablah Dakho. In this article, are

criticized the superstitions of the popular illiterate people: "On the first day that the child's eyes

became like this, why did you not make him impure so that he would go back?" (Ibid., p. 46).

Or in another example, he refers to the superstitious belief that lice are thrown inside a guest's

shoes: For this reason, he lay down the head of one of his children on his knees, found a louse

in the size of a cotyledon, and came back to the men's room and threw it in the guest's shoes.

The guest, like a spark that is thrown on the fire, got up at once and... left there” (Ibid., p. 135).

Common elements in Spoken Language

The most important slang elements of spoken language that are widely used throughout

Charand Parand are as follows:

A) The slang usage of citizens; The second meaningless word is used only in public

discourse - for the low and ignorant class: "Unless on Sunday they saw with their own eyes that

the children of Tehran attacked the parliament..." (DEHKHODA, 2016, p. 97). "I am afraid that

my wife will say that Dakho was scared with all his bluster" (Ibid., p. 90). "Because things are

so busy" (Ibid., p. 11).

B) The use of intentional spelling mistakes: "Yes ... yes. And he... no. He is also the one

who introduces the servant” (servant) (Ibid., p. 67).

C) Simple and unassuming language; Intimacy and unpretentiousness in language make

familiar the linguistic relationship between the author and the audience. The author engages in

all sorts of customs by mixed sarcasm with humor and ridicule, and desecrates the institutions

that dominate society and the official written language. This ambivalence and intimacy in

expression sometimes includes intentional linguistic errors or literal translations from Turkish

to Persian, which are common among Persian-speaking languages. For example: "Since things

have to be right, one day when I was bitter, I picked up history book that was in front of me..."

(Ibid., p. 13). "I am afraid that at the end the poor will put everything they have and will be the

slaves of food" (Ibid., p. 116).

D) Slang and colloquial expressions; which breaks the authority of the official language:

"May God have mercy on all who have died. May soil wouldn’t hear from him ... We had a

mullah “I-nak Ali” that was narrator, he was humorous. He did not have it now, he was very

moderate with me” (Ibid., p. 11) "Although it is rudeness, he said that the matter becomes more

understandable in this way" (Ibid., p. 12); "it is rudeness to say, he gets bent out of shape" (Ibid.

12); "Damdami got in his hair for more than a year now" (Ibid., p. 23); "The Iranian government

of that time had one nose to the air" (Ibid., p. 12); "Do not say anything. These walls have ears”

(Ibid., p. 25)

E) Swearing is also frequent elements in Charand Parand: I swear to Mr. Sheikh Abul-

Ghasem’s school, swear to religion of Mr. Seyyed Ali Agha, swear to Ghavam-ol-molk’s and

Amir Bahador constitutionalism, swear to governmental idea of Prince Arfah al-Dawla and

swear to veracity and impartiality of Faride-ye Nedaye Vatan’s newspaper, I swear to socialism

of Prince Nusrat al-Dawla, I swear to poverty of excellency Zal-ol-Sultan, I swear to good

intentions of the Fatwa Association... I will pass away dumb if I tell a lie, I swear to my four

children that most people of Tehran intuit late Babri Khan” (Ibid. p. 84). These kinds of swears

are paradoxical and the attributes attributed to people do not exist in them at all. That is, the

narrator, in order to create a state of humor and carnival, swears by traits that do not exist in

people at all. He also uses metaphors for this purpose: "I want to liken government officials to

honey and bosses to melons. If the Science Ministry says it is an insult, I am ready to represent

two hundred and fifty Hadiths (religious narratives) on the virtue of melon and one hundred

and forty-nine hadiths on the virtue of honey "(Ibid., p. 128) or in the following example,

expresses the necessity existence of the king and the rulers for the government in a satire and

irony language, and likens government officials to animals or fruits:

“I never say we don't need to elder. Among the dumb animals of God, the lion is the

king of predators, and explicitly in the words of Sheikh Saadi, the lynx is also the prime

minister, but also donkey is the head of the guard room. Among the fruits, pear is the king of

fruit and cabbage may be one thing, and if the constitution has been in plants, it must be an

apple... (What can I say that pleases God)... I never say donkey and cow has boss and never say

beets and turmeric has a leader, a gentleman and a representative, but we, humans, bridle by

ourselves...” (Ibid., p. 128).

Application of humor

Dehkhoda's humor in Charand Parand is not a common type of humor until then, that

is, it is not a general and conceptual humor. Instead of addressing general moral concepts and

recalling the religion of property and politics and religious sovereignty, Dehkhoda speaks

specifically of "individuals" and not of humanity in its general form. In other words, his taunts

people are "characters," not "brigades." All of these individuals, who have been (indirectly)

directly introduced and taunted by Dehkhoda, can be traced and identified in the history of the

constitutional period. Since Dehkhoda's satire is a deeply social satire and has a wide audience

among the general public and speaks of things that are obvious to everyone, it is also quite

natural in the manner of expression and the type of language, and uses common proverbs and

allusions and terms in the vernacular to spread the message of the Constitutional Revolution,

which is freedom and awareness, the independence of the country and the law around Iran. The

simple language and lively prose of Dehkhoda in Charand Parand, is a new body for restless,

tired, heavy, and gloomy body of Persian written language to the extent that he is considered

the founder of new Persian prose before Jamal Zadeh. "Dehkhoda's syllable is cruel against the

oppressors, the possessors of the powers and parasites of society. But his humor towards people

and the oppressed is full of compassion and kindness. It can be clearly seen that he not only

kills but is consciously engaged in battle and tries to arouse enlightenment and stability”

(TONEKABONI, 2012, p. 315). Dehkhoda challenges the serious contexts of political

discourse with his satire because "formal and polite contexts are better prepared to highlight

inconsistencies and to create humor and linguistic humor. In such contexts, where order and

regularity prevail, the slightest displacement and inconsistency is highlighted” (FOTOUHI,

2013, p. 393). In Bakhtin's view, laughter has been a tool in the popular culture of the middle

Ages to win over the ideas, images and symbols of official culture (AHMADI, 2007, p. 105).

Dehkhoda's humor is associated with bitter and biting language. The first number of

Sur-e Israfil and the first number of Charand Parand were published ten months after the

establishment of the constitutional system in Iran; when structural problems in government

policy-making had not yet been resolved; fundamental reforms in the political, social, and

economic structure have not yet taken place, and constitutionalists and the general public have

become increasingly disillusioned with their political leaders. Dehkhoda's bitter and aggressive

language showed his early frustration with this new political system. Dehkhoda's main criticism

was aimed at the prevailing political mechanisms. The ruling political institution of the country

remained in power. Members of the newly formed parliament were also in complete

reconciliation with the court and influential ministers, most of whom were extremist opponents

of freedom. These unrest and the ruin of the aspirations in constitutional fighters caused

Dehkhoda to write in a biting language about the complicity of the parliament and the ministers:

74 votes of parliament called a wolf from Berlin (DEHKHODA, 2012, p. 111). And he meant

"wolf", Mirza Ali Asghar Khan Amin al-Sultan (Atabak Azam) who had returned to the country

by invitation of Mohammad Ali Shah and the mediation of wealthy parliamentarians and

wealthy courtiers and appointed as a prime minister. Or in the fifteenth article, the official style

of writing in the official court letter addressed to the ruler of Kerman by the board directors of

the Sur-e Israfil newspaper, which was signed under the humorous name "Association of

rabbles", takes the form of informal and slang:

“The honorable service of Nawab Amna Asad Vala, Prince Nusrat al-Dawla, the ruler

of Kerman, in the justice days did not take His Holiness politics. That means, I don’t mean to

be rude, Mr. Mullah Inak Ali, who was in favor of you in the parliament, also became blind.

And your problems are behind you ... Hazrat Vala, now, you should study in England and

Germany schools, not in the ruins of Kerman province in Iran” (Ibid., p. 71).

Thus, it can be seen that dialogue is a key element in Charand Parand text and the type

of narrative dialogue is original and completely dialogue and it mixed with controversy. Each

article is a narrative story that is formed directly in conversation with the other, or it narrates a

memoir that is full of thoughtful people and different languages, or speaks to the audience and

hypothetical readers of the articles and answer to their possible questions and problems about

various political issues and in all these cases, anger is evident in his speech.

Conclusion

The constitutional period in Iran provided a good opportunity to hear the neglected and

repressed voices of society. Of particular importance among the leading writers of this period

who went to war with monotheism, Dehkhoda is especially important with his critical essays

(Charand Parand considers a kind of rhetorical historical report). In these articles, Dehkhoda

tries to create a polyphonic atmosphere based on dialogue and avoid the certainty of

authoritarian discourse, especially by creating carnival atmosphere. The main structure and

form of Charand Parand is historical reports with traces of literature that reconstruct the ruling

political, religious and social ideology in the context of constitutional liberation struggles.

Dehkhoda has indirectly narrated the issues of his time with a louder voice than the present sub-

voices of the text. The main focus of the Charand Parand articles is conversation, and the

narrative proceeds through the relationship between the narrator's words and the characters.

Although the author's voice is more eloquent than the other voices, the characters in the articles

text have their own independence opinion and do not necessarily move in the direction of the

author's will, so that in most cases Dakho (the writer) does not agree with Damdami and

Oyargholi, thus the story is decided in humorous ways to provide an opportunity for the reader

to make personal judgments.

Although at first glance, Charand Parand seems to be a monolithic text by the defeated

and oppressed class of the society in the constitutional period, in essence, it is a kind of dialogue

that dominates the text; in other words, in the constitutional period, by breaking down the

strong walls of tyranny and creating shocks in the ideological beliefs of religion, politics, and

society institution which had the opportunity to strengthen their definitive and authoritarian

principles and laws for a long time, there is now an opportunity, at least indirectly for a kind of

historical dialogue between the two dominant and defeated attitudes of society. This

conversation is carnival in the text of articles and in elements such as: turning social relations

upside down, a naturalistic description of a normal life mixed with superstitions of low-level

people, the use of the stupidity idea that mixed with insults and curses and oaths language,

which are sometimes grammatically incorrect. Unusual characters, who usually do not have

virtues, are considered a satirical mockery of naivety and superstition in ordinary vulgar life

and the use of ironic jokes against social and political ideology can be traced to overthrow ruling

power and coordinate high and low level, the holy and the unholy.

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How to reference this article

MANAVI, L.; ZAHIRI NAV, B.; POURALKHAS, S. Early signs of polyphony in

constitutional literature: a case study of carnival elements in Charand Parand by Ali Akbar

Dehkhoda. Rev. EntreLínguas, Araraquara, v. 7, n. esp. 4, e021105, Nov. 2021. e-ISSN: 2447-

3529. DOI: https://doi.org/10.29051/el.v7iesp.4.15663

Submitted: 09/02/2021

Required revisions: 20/05/2021

Approved: 05/09/2021

Published: 10/11/2021

PRIMEIROS SINAIS DE POLIFONIA NA LITERATURA CONSTITUCIONAL: UM

ESTUDO DE CASO DE ELEMENTOS DO CARNAVAL EM CHARAND PARAND

POR ALI AKBAR DEHKHODA

EARLY SIGNS OF POLYPHONY IN CONSTITUTIONAL LITERATURE: A CASE

STUDY OF CARNIVAL ELEMENTS IN CHARAND PARAND BY ALI AKBAR

DEHKHODA

PRIMEROS SIGNOS DE POLIFONÍA EN LA LITERATURA CONSTITUCIONAL:

ESTUDIO DE CASO DE ELEMENTOS DEL CARNAVAL EN CHARAND PARAND

POR ALI AKBAR DEHKHODA

Leili MANAVI

Bijan ZAHIRI NAV

Shokrallhah POURALKHAS

RESUMO: Entre os textos literários notáveis que surgiram durante o período constitucional

iraniano por criticar a tirania e o monopólio nos assuntos políticos, sociais e culturais estava

Charand Parand, de Ali Akbar Dehkhoda. Foi um texto significativo devido à representação

realista dos discursos políticos formais e informais. A importância deste artigo, que se baseia

na teoria do discurso, está em como desafia o discurso dominante do poder na obra de

Dehkhoda. O objetivo desta pesquisa é aplicar a teoria do dialogismo e o papel dos elementos

do carnaval bakhtinianos em Charand Parand, a fim de estudar a categoria polifônica e o papel

dos elementos de carnaval na criação de uma atmosfera polifônica e no enfrentamento do

discurso autoritário. O artigo tenta responder ao questionamento: como os métodos estilísticos

cognitivos proporcionam ao escritor liberal da era constitucional oportunidades de falar e ser

ouvido em discursos e vozes marginalizados.

PALAVRAS-CHAVE: Carnaval. Polifonia. Bakhtin. Dehkhoda. Charand Parand.

ABSTRACT: Among the notable literary texts that emerged during the Iranian constitutional

period for criticizing tyranny and monopoly in political, social, and cultural affairs was

Charand Parand by Ali Akbar Dehkhoda. It was a significant text due to the realistic depiction

of both formal and informal political discourses. The importance of this article, which is based

on discourse theory, lies in how it challenges the dominant discourse of power in Dehkhoda's

work. The purpose of this research is to apply the theory of dialogism and the role of Bakhtin's

carnival elements in Charand Parand, in order to study the polyphonic category and the role

of carnival elements in creating a polyphonic atmosphere and confronting authoritarian

discourse. The article attempts to answers the question: how the Cognitive stylistics methods

Universidade de Mohaghegh Ardabili, Ardabil – Irã. Candidato (a) ao PhD. Departamento de Literatura Persa.

ORCID: https://orcid.org/ 0000-0002-3779-8170. E-mail: leilimanavi@gmail.com.

Universidade de Mohaghegh Ardabili, Ardabil – Irã. Professor Associado. Departamento de Literatura Persa.

ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1946-1814. E-mail: g zahirinav@yahoo.com.

Universidade de Mohaghegh Ardabili, Ardabil – Irã. Professor Assistente. Departamento de Literatura Persa.

ORCID: https://orcid.org/ 0000-0002-7910-7075. E-mail: Sh_pouralkhas@uma.ac.ir.

provide the liberal writer of constitutional era with opportunities to speak and be heard and

for spoken and marginalized discourses and voices.