Theoretical Discussions on Literary History According to the Views of René Wellek (5): A Critique of the Section “On the Threshold of Modern Poetry” in Az Ṣaba ta Nima by Yahya Aryanpoor (Vol. 2, pp. 433–480)

René Wellek identified and discussed nearly all of the major characteristics and methodological concerns associated with literary history throughout his scholarly works. By extracting and systematizing these features, it becomes possible both to develop an effective framework for the precise description of literary histories and to evaluate such works from the perspective of Wellek’s critical approach. This study undertakes precisely such an examination. The present installment focuses on Wellek’s aesthetic considerations and their place within literary historiography. In order to illustrate his views more concretely, the study investigates the presence or absence of these principles in a major work of Persian literary history. Wellek employs the term “literary history” in two distinct senses: first, as the study of literary traditions, genres, and major literary figures within a particular language; and second, as the study of unpredictable transformations in literary works resulting from processes of defamiliarization and artistic innovation. A proper understanding of Wellek’s contribution to literary historiography depends upon recognizing how he integrates these older and newer conceptions of literary history. This article forms part of a larger series consisting of seven independent studies on literary historiography, each devoted to a specific topic. In every chapter, a section entitled “Theoretical Discussion” introduces the relevant historiographical issue and explains Wellek’s position on it. This is followed by a “Case Study” section in which a selected passage from Az Ṣaba ta Nima by Yahya Aryanpoor (Tehran: Zavvar Publications, 2 vols., 8th ed., 1382 Sh./2003; 1st ed., 1350 Sh./1971) is critically examined according to the principles under discussion. All of the theoretical foundations employed in this study are derived directly from René Wellek’s writings, which have been examined in the earlier installments of this series.