An investigation and analysis of the political and social structure and content of "Iham" in Hafez's Ghazals

Subject Areas : journal of literary criticism and stylistics research

mohammad pooryavar choobar ¹ , ahmadreza nazari ² , masoomeh nazari ³

1 - Ph.D. student, Department of Persian Language and Literature, Astara Branch, Islamic Azad University, Astara, Iran.
2 - Assistant Professor, Department of Persian Language and Literature, Astara Branch, Islamic Azad University, Astara, Iran, Corresponding Author
3 - Assistant Professor, Department of Persian Language and Literature, Astara Branch, Islamic Azad University, Astara, Iran,

Received: 2023-10-03 Accepted : 2023-10-03 Published : 2022-02-20

Keywords: hypocrisy, Oppression, Īhām, rhetorical embellishment, Hafiz’s Ghazals,

Abstract :

Īhām is among the most pleasant literary devices and the best way to express social woes and a medium through which to express discontent, albeit conservatively, in societies under authoritarian rule. Hafiz extensively employed this rhetorical embellishment to criticize the tumultuous situation, not least in his Ghazals. Relying on the descriptive-analytical method, this inquiry delves into the īhām-loaded poetry of Hafiz aimed at social and political issues. It will shed light on the influence of Mongol invasion of Persia and the dominance of Genghis Khan’s successors in the Hafiz’s poetry. It also identifies the most prominent instances of īhām with socio-political function in his poetry. The results suggest that the best part of social and political īhāms is aimed at the corrupt establishment, principal among them the hypocrite Mongol rulers. As well, two types of īhām were used more frequently than the other ones: tanāsub and mujarrad.