Journal of the stylistic of Persian poem and prose
volume Number 19، number In Volume 9، December 2026 ، issue Number 127

A Comparative Study of Mythological Motifs in the Narrative Structure of Banu Goshasp-nama and Ferdowsi’s Shahnameh Based on Gérard Genette’s Theories

Zohreh Esmaeilzadeh , Mohammad Mehdi Esmaeili (Author in Charge), Latifeh Salamat Bavil

Abstract

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Banu Goshasp-nama is one of the few Persian epics whose central protagonist is a female warrior. From this perspective, the poem offers considerable potential for examining transformations in gender and narrative patterns within the tradition of Persian epic poetry. Drawing on Gérard Genette’s theory of transtextuality, this study examines the relationship between the Shahnameh as the hypotext and Banu Goshasp-nama as the hypertext, focusing on the mechanisms of transformation, imitation, and narrative modification in the latter work.

METHODOLOGY: This study adopts a descriptive-analytical approach based on Gérard Genette’s theory of transtextuality. The Shahnameh is regarded as the hypotext and Banu Goshasp-nama as the hypertext. The extent and manner of the later poem’s indebtedness to Ferdowsi’s work are examined at the levels of characterization, vocabulary, themes, narrative patterns, and temporal structure.

FINDINGS: The findings indicate that one of the most significant manifestations of transtextuality in Banu Goshasp-nama is the transformation of the protagonist’s gender from male to female while retaining the fundamental heroic characteristics associated with Rostam. In this sense, Banu Goshasp can be regarded as a female re-creation of the Rostam archetype. This process of imitation, while preserving the heroic components of the hypotext, transforms the pattern of female agency in Persian epic literature through a gendered reconfiguration.

CONCLUSION: The results demonstrate that Banu Goshasp-nama is not merely a repetition of the epic patterns found in the Shahnameh; rather, through the recreation and transformation of elements derived from the hypotext—particularly with regard to the protagonist’s gender and the organization of the narrative—it presents a distinctive model of a female-centered epic. The transformation of women’s position from characters primarily associated with emotional and familial roles into active heroic agents constitutes the most significant transformation in this poem in comparison with its hypotext. Furthermore, the use of anachrony, varied forms of focalization, and changes in narrative speed demonstrates that, while maintaining its connection with the narrative tradition of the Shahnameh, the poet also modifies its organization and reworks its narrative patterns. Therefore, Banu Goshasp-nama may be regarded as an example of continuity accompanied by transformation within the tradition of Persian epic poetry.

Keyword
Mythological Motifs , Gérard Genette’s Theory , Banu Goshasp- nama , Ferdowsi’s Shahnameh , Literary Criticism.