Recognizing the Meaning of Nativism in Contemporary Iranian Fiction: From 1285 To 1400

Document Type : Original Research

Authors
mehdi ebrahimi lame 1
Saber emami 2
seyed mohsen hashemi 3
1 Faculty of Theories & Art Studies, Tehran University of Art
2 Associate Professor, Faculty of Applied Arts, Tehran University of Art
3 Associate Professor, Faculty of Cinema and Theater, Tehran University of Art
Abstract
Nativism is a modern term that emerged in parallel with the process of the independence and liberation of the eastern colonized countries from the domination of the western colonialist countries and at the same time, it emerged in various fields, including fiction. By examining the various definitions of this term and the way they are used in all kinds of literary research, it can be seen that choosing any of these definitions can easily change or deviate the research process and its results. In other words, the lack of a precise and practical definition of nativism can be considered the most important challenge and shortcoming of studies related to this field. In order to achieve such a definition, this article has analyzed and found the roots of the meaning of nativism in Iranian fiction from 1285 to 1400 in a descriptive and analytical way. In this way, at the beginning of the research, all presuppositions about nativism were ignored; then this term was analyzed from social, intellectual and literary aspects. The research results showed that nativism is different from Native writing and other similar concepts in terms of meaning and function. Also, in the redefining of this term, as the most important finding of the research, it was found that nativism in fiction is a two-faceted reaction that deals with both native and colonial components at the same time.

Extended Abstract

Introduction

Nativism is a modern term that is linked with concepts such as identity, culture, colonialism, modernity and other. The connection of nativism with these concepts, while revealing the extent of its dimensions and practical aspects, has provided various and different definitions of this concept to researchers, which depending on the way these definitions are applied in studies, may lead to different and possibly conflicting results. Therefore, providing a correct and accurate definition of nativism should be considered as the most important part of research related to this category. Among the various sources that have dealt with nativism and its various dimensions, nativist stories have always been of special importance. The importance of these works from various aspects such as xenophobia, showing the aspects of colonialism and its consequences, revealing the perspective of Iranian story writers against foreign domination, and finally recognizing the components and manifestations of nativism in stories have always been worthy of attention. This importance doubles when we know that in addition to the connection with the mentioned concepts, nativism has an inseparable connection with other social components such as culture, language, religion, history, politics and geography of Iran. In any case, in order to start research in the field of nativism, it is necessary to provide a precise definition of it at the beginning, and then based on that, works should be selected and various aspects of nativism would be examined. In this regard, this paper examines the roots of the meaning of nativism in Iranian fiction through the description and analysis of social, literary and intellectual aspects in the constitutional time period until 1400 AD. There is a need to remind that until now, there has been no significant and specific research on the meaning of nativism in Iranian fiction literature, and its vacancy as a foundational research for other literary researches is quite noticeable.

Methodology

This research seeks to provide a detailed and practical redefinition of the concept of nativism in Iranian fiction based on previous studies and existing stories. The research method in this paper is based on data description and analysis; It means collecting data from various sources (documentary study) and deducing from data through description, comparison and logical reasoning.

Results and Findings

Analyzing the meaning of nativism in contemporary Iranian fiction and finding a precise and practical definition for it was the most important goal of this research, and to answer it, the concept of nativism was examined from social, literary and intellectual aspects. The results of this research show that nativism has two origins and two main approaches. the anti-colonial approach with eastern origin, which is mainly related to Asian, African, Latin American countries and Iran; and the anti-immigration approach with Western origins, which is mainly related to the United States and European countries. One of the other findings of this research is the revelation of the semantic difference between the term nativism and other similar concepts, which was examined and analyzed in a separate section. But the most important results of this research are related to the characteristics of nativist stories and its components. We can generally see that nativism is a conscious reaction against the domination and colonization of a foreign country, which usually arises when feeling the danger and critical conditions of the period of domination and colonization. These kinds of stories always have two main and basic aspects that a considerable amount of text is dedicated to them. The first aspect is related to xenophobia and showing various aspects and consequences of domination and colonialism. But the second aspect is related to the representation of Iranian culture and identity and showing the capacities and abilities of the land of Iran, which have occurred in the stories at both national and local levels.

Conclusion

By comparing the results and summarizing the analysis, it is possible to introduce nativism in contemporary Iranian fiction as follows: nativism is a two-faceted and conscious reaction to the domination and colonization of foreign countries, which, on the one hand, introduces the foreign element and describes the aspects and consequences of colonization and the method of confronting it; And on the other hand, it represents the native culture and identity and shows the capacities and abilities of the land of Iran.

Keywords

Subjects

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Literary Criticism
Volume 15, Issue 59
Summer 2022
Pages 1-39