Journal of the stylistic of Persian poem and prose
volume Number 19، number In Volume 3، June 2026 ، issue Number 121

Narrative Poetics and the Deconstruction of Time; A Rereading of the Indigenous Components of Magical Realism in the Novel “Kami Dirtar” by Seyed Mehdi Shojaei

Mehdi Ghaffari , Hojjatollah Gh Moniri (Author in Charge), Fozieh Parsa

Abstract

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: In committed fiction, representing trans-historical concepts such as “Entezar” within the limited constraints of chronological time has always faced challenges. By utilizing the capacities of “magical realism”, the novel Kami Dirtar attempts to make this impossibility possible. The main objective of this research is to analyze the nature of “temporal deviation” in this work and answer how the author, by manipulating the element of time, has transformed the paradox of “verbal enthusiasm” and “practical reluctance” regarding the concept of Entezar into a narrative form.

METHODOLOGY: This study employs a library‑based research method and draws upon the theoretical framework of narrative poetics, with particular reference to Wendy B. Faris’s discussion of the naturalization of the marvelous in magical realism. Within this framework, the formal structure of the novel is examined. The analysis focuses specifically on narrative techniques related to the management and organization of time, as well as on the construction of dual forms of characterization.

FINDINGS: The findings show that the author has challenged the linear logic of time by creating a “fluid chronotope” (a reverse movement from the cold winter of denial to the spring of truth). This is achieved through three prominent techniques: 1. “Time dilation” (the stretching of time in the elevator scene), which objectifies suspense and anxiety; 2. “Anachrony” (the physical journey of the narrator and Asad to previous centuries and meeting with Allameh Hilli), which blurs the boundary between “historical narrative” and “fictional action”; and 3. “Metafiction” (reading a novel that has not yet been written), which inverts the principle of causality. In this context, the character “Asad” is not a usual archetype, but rather a floating signifier between wakefulness and sleep that carries the semantic burden of these temporal ruptures.

CONCLUSION: The novel Kami Dirtar proposes a model of “indigenous magical realism” in which supernatural elements (such as Tayy al-Ard [mystical teleportation] or the overlapping of worlds) are used not merely to create wonder, but to justify the internal logic of “Entezar”. In this work, “form” itself turns into “content”, demonstrating that comprehending the truth of Entezar requires departing from linear and mundane time.

Keyword
Narrative Poetics , Indigenous Magical Realism , Anachronism , Kami Deh-tar (A Little Later) , Seyyed Mehdi Shojaei.