Document Type : Original Article
Authors
1 Professor, Department of Persian Language and Literature, Faculty of Persian Literature and Foreign Languages, Allameh Tabataba'i University, Tehran, Iran.
2 Graduated from the Master's degree program in Persian Language and Literature, Payam Noor University, Tehran, Iran.
Abstract
There has long been a deep and enduring bond among literature and philosophy. One of the philosophical concepts most frequently reflected in narrative literature is the concept of “evil”, which has become so central to fiction that even a theorist such as Georges Bataille considered the representation of various forms of evil one of the principal devices for dispelling monotony in narrative works. In this context, Hossein Qassami, a young Iranian novelist with specialized training in philosophy, is among the few writers who have shown particular attention to philosophical concepts, especially evil. In his novel ‘Hisar-e Moush’ (The Mouse Fence), he explores this concept in a fundamental way. Using a descriptive-analytical approach and a philosophical reading of the text, the present study examines the different forms of evil in this narrative. The findings show that although moral evil appears in the individual actions of the characters, the central axis of the novel is structural evil. This evil is represented both in the humiliating behavior of Greek officers toward migrants, as well as in the migrants’ vengeful violence against those officers. In addition, chaotic and ritual evil emerge from these defective structures and are reproduced through violent rituals. Qasami also shows that the production and spread of evil are not always conscious, but may also arise from passivity, habit, and blind obedience.
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