A Structural Analysis of Common Persian Proverbs based on Ideational Metafunction with an Emphasis on Primary Processes (Material, Relational, Mental)

Document Type : Research Paper

Authors

1 دانشجوی دکتری زبان و ادبیات فارسی - پژوهشگاه علوم انسانی - تهران - ایران

2 استادیار گروه زبان و ادبیات فارسی- پژوهشگاه علوم انسانی و مطالعات فرهنگی - تهران - ایران

3 استادگروه فرهنگ و زبان های باستانی - پژوهشگاه علوم انسانی و مطالعات فرهنگی

4 دانشیار زبان و ادبیات فارسی، پژوهشگاه علوم انسانی و مطالعات فرهنگی، تهران، ایران

10.22103/jis.2024.23762.2627

Abstract

Purpose: Proverbs, wise sayings, and aphorisms, emanating from the minds of great scholars, writers, and the general public, are a manifestation of the civilization, culture, and literature of every nation. They have been passed down from generation to generation, acquainting future generations with the culture, literature, customs, traditions, lifestyles, emotions, and thought processes of their ancestors. According to Halliday, the patterns of experience and mental concepts of the creators of works are manifested in the form of current processes of ideational function. Therefore, by examining the types of processes, the factors, and the situations that shape them, one can gain insight into the thoughts and experiences of the creators of literary works. This research seeks to answer the following main question: Given the instructive-persuasive structure of common Persian proverbs, what role does each type of linguistic process play in conveying the intended ideas in these expressions?
Method and Research: This study is descriptive-analytical, and the execution method is descriptive (involving an examination of the arrangement of ideational metafunction processes) and analytical (involving an analysis of the reasons for the specific formation of these processes). The statistical population includes common Persian proverbs that adhere to the standard language structure.
Findings and Conclusions:
The findings show that in the textual structure of the studied proverbs, relational processes (39%), material processes (24%), and mental processes (21%) have the highest frequency. The frequency of these processes indicates that most of these expressions have a descriptive structure that indirectly conveys the intended idea to the audience. The use of verbs in these proverbs is often passive, and the generality and universality of the statements are strengthened by referring to indefinite persons. The focus in these proverbs is primarily on the behavior, temperament, and character of individuals, avoiding the use of complex and abstract metaphors. The main participants in these proverbs include people, animals, natural elements, and objects, which often assume the semantic roles of actor and carrier in the structure of these processes.

Keywords


Bahmanyar, Ahmed. (1328). "What is proverb?", Yaghma, Vol. 2 and 3, pp. 52-49.
Dehkhoda, Ali Akbar. (1386). Proverbs and decrees. Ch 14, Tehran: Amirkabir.
Zulfikari Hasan (1388). The great culture of Persian proverbs. Tehran: Moin.
Zulfiqari, Hassan (1389). "Aesthetics of Persian proverbs". Bostan Adab magazine. Number 2. pp. 51-82.
Fazali, Seideh Maryam and Shima Ebrahimi (2013), "Stylist analysis of Rostam Shahnameh's Haft-Khuwan story in the framework of Nizamand Halidi's role-oriented order", Journal of Western Iranian Language and Dialects Studies, Year 1: Number 4: pp. 119-142.
Sadat-al-Hosseini, Razieh et al. (2015), "Examination and Analysis of Abdul Qahir Jarjani's Theory of Order in the Light of Halidi's Role-Oriented Theory", Two Monthly Journal of Linguistic Studies, D 7, Vol. 2, (30 consecutive), June and July 2015, pp. 123-142.
Qamarzadeh, Mitra and Marzieh Sanaati (2016), "Investigation of the object-noun group in Persian from the perspective of Halidi role-oriented grammar", Comparative Linguistics Research, 7th year, number 13: pp. 127-147.
Majidi, Setareh (2018), "Making information in Persian language within the framework of systematic role-oriented grammar and role-oriented grammar and reference grammar", Farhangistan special issue, 7th issue: pp. 183-208.
Famous, Parvindekht. and Mohammad Faqiri (2014), "Investigation of various processes of trans-intellectual roles in Saadi's sonnets with a cognitive approach", Research Journal of Ghanaian Literature, Volume 13, Number 25: pp. 153-168.
Mostafavi, Pune and Marzieh Sanaati (2015), "Stylistic examination of a contemporary short story from the perspective of Halidi's Naqsh-oriented grammar", Language and Linguistics Magazine, No. 23: pp. 131-156.
Manshizadeh, Mojtabi and Leila Elahian (2014). "A stylistic study of the verb in Golestan influenced by its educational domain with a systematic role-oriented approach". Bimonthly Journal of Linguistic Essays, Volume 6, Number 6: pp. 259-279.
Mirafazli, Ali. (1384). "Proverbs and Sentences", Encyclopaedia of Persian Language and Literature. Under the supervision of Ismail Saadat. Tehran: Persian Language and Literature Academy.
Nakhai, Maryam (2016), "Golestan stylistics based on the verb based on systematic role-oriented grammar", Literary Criticism and Stylistics Research Journal, Volume 8, Number 30: pp. 195-215.
Halliday, M.K. and Hasan, Ruqieh (2013), language, texture and text "Dimensions of language from the perspective of social semiotics", translated by: Mohsen Nobakht, Tehran: Siahroud.