Dariush Ashouri’s Reflections on Poetry: A Critical Analysis

As one of the contemporary Iranian thinkers, Dariush Ashouri, has significant reflections on the nature and coordinates of "poetry." Adopting a descriptive-analytical approach, the present research tries to investigate and criticize his opinions and reflections on poetry. The results of this study show that Ashouri, with his philosophical and linguistic background, adopts a phenomenological approach to poetry and its vocabulary. In his view, poetry is an incident that happens in the world and everything that happens in the world is reflected in language. The most important source of poetry, according to Ashouri, is the poetic experience of existence. Although he considers "feelings," "emotions," and "imagination" as the essential elements of poetry and considers the music of language to be an inseparable part of poetry, he believes that the definition of poetry and the aesthetics of the readers in each era are different from the others, and the poeticity of the poem is confirmed when the composer and its readers have reached such an understanding. Ashouri emphasizes the inseparable intermingling of form and meaning in poetry, and among the types of Persian poetry, he finds romantic-mystical sonnets and mystical poetry closer to pure poetry, where color is the instrumental character of language. The poet displays the deepest manifestations of his emotions and feelings. By re-proposing the conflict between philosophy and poetry, Ashouri sees poetry and the poet above the dual confrontations in which philosophy and the philosopher are trapped. He tries to bring the poet to the position of a thinker and, unlike new metaphysics, does not limit the truth to the field of science and knowledge, and introduces poetry as a field for representing truth and raising questions about the essence of existence. Ashouri does not consider the present time as the time of birth and growth of original poetry and poets.
 
Extended Abstract
1. Introduction
Engaging with “poetry” and attempting to provide a specific definition of its essence has always been one of the fundamental concerns of great thinkers throughout history, from Plato and Aristotle to prominent modern and postmodern philosophers. One of the major challenges of our time is the simultaneous discourse on the end of poetry and the destruction of experience, rendering the possible impossible, while on the other hand, new movements in poetry are emerging. Defining poetry was once a challenging task, and today it seems to be impossible in the midst of this chaotic landscape. It appears that there are no intrinsic characteristics or essential elements that can be attributed to poetry. Dariush Ashouri is among those thinkers who are well acquainted with both the modern world and its intellectual frameworks while deeply understanding our tradition and culture. He has contemplated on the “nature of poetry” and the concepts and elements surrounding it, and understanding his insights and findings will assist us in approaching the nature of poetry more logically and reasonably in the present time.
2. Methodology
This study adopts a descriptive-analytical and phenomenological approach.
3. Theoretical Framework
Ashouri does not believe in the existence of “universal poetry.” In his writings, he avoids defining poetry on the one hand and simultaneously engages in various forms of defining poetry and non-poetry on the other. In his definitions and descriptions of poetry, he considers the psychological characteristics of poetry (expression of feelings, emotions, imagination, and the evocation of these) and its linguistic features (concise language, rhythmical quality, use of meter, rhyme, symbols, metaphors, etc.).
4. Discussion and Analysis
With his philosophical and linguistic background, Ashouri adopts a phenomenological approach to poetry and its vocabulary. In his perspective, poetry is an event occurring in the world, and everything happening in the world is reflected in language (Ashouri, 1994: 32). For him, the most crucial essence of poetry is the poetic experience of existence. While he lists “feelings,” “emotions,” and “imagination” as intrinsic elements of poetry and considers the music of language an inseparable part of poetry (ibid: 39), he believes that definitions of poetry and the aesthetics of readers differ in each era from those of previous periods, and the poetic quality of a poem is affirmed only when both the poet and its readers have reached such understanding (Ashouri, 1997: 77). Ashouri emphasizes the inseparable bond between form and meaning in poetry (Ashouri, 1994: 7) and finds the romantic-gnostic ghazal and the trickster poetry to be closer than any other poetic forms to pure poetry, where the instrumental nature of language fades away and the poet showcases the deepest expressions of their emotions and feelings (Ashouri, 1997a: 79; Ashouri, 2014: 171-172). By reintroducing the conflict between philosophy and poetry, he views poetry and the poet as transcending binary oppositions that confine philosophy and the philosopher (Ashouri, 1994: 31-32). He attempts to elevate the poet to the position of a thinker and, contrary to what is affirmed in modern aesthetics, he does not limit truth solely to the realm of science and knowledge; he presents poetry and poetics as spheres for representing truth and questioning the essence of existence (ibid: 55). Ashouri establishes an identity between poets and thinkers; however, from Heidegger’s perspective, poets and thinkers think similarly but not identically. Both aim to discern the powers of heaven and the earth, the mortal beings and gods, and the forces of “physis” and “logos.” Their differences lie in the way they conceptualize these powers and formulate their thoughts (Glennery, 1998: 90).
It is noteworthy that Hölderlin, in his poem “Bread and Wine,” asks: “What good are poets in times of hardship?” According to Heidegger, the centrality of will and desire accompanied by domination brings many calamities upon humanity. Unconditional strife ultimately leads to the technological domination of beings and the world (Heidegger, 2002: 197-198). Such thinking aligns with the perspectives of Continental Philosophers like Hegel and Heidegger. The Nihilism dominating the modern world has made the emergence of the poet and significant art impossible (Heidegger, 2008: 197).
5. Conclusion
Ashouri’s reflections revolve around two notions: one is that he is heavily influenced by Heidegger and his followers in both his understanding of language and his conception of poetry (Heidegger, 2008: 55; Heidegger, 2010: 56); propositions such as avoiding definitive definitions of poetry, regarding poetry as part of experiences that reveal truth, acknowledging the influence of context and history in shaping beauty in each era, the relationship between poets and thinkers, the absence of authentic poetry and poets in times of hardship, etc, unveil his Heideggerian approach in his interpretation of language and poetry. The second point is that despite Ashouri’s reminders in his writings that he does not aim to define poetry, by positing statements like “the most crucial essence of poetry is the poetic experience of existence,” “feelings, emotions, and imagination are intrinsic elements of poetry,” and “the music of language is an inseparable part of poetry,” he refers to the essential elements of poetry and merely considers the type of perception of these elements in constant flux according to the aesthetic taste of readers in each era and generation.
Bibliography
Ashouri, D. (1997). “On the Definition of Poetry,” Kelk Morad, Issues 89 to 93, pp. 74-81. [In Persian].
Ashouri, D. (2014). Mysticism and Trickery in the Poetry of Hafez. Tehran: Markaz. [In Persian].
Ashouri, D. (1994). Poetry and Thought. Tehran: Markaz. [In Persian].
Heidegger, M. (2008). The Origin of the Work of Art, with commentary by Friedrich Wilhelm von Hermann, translated by Parviz Zia Shahabi, Tehran: Hermes. [In Persian].
Ashouri, D. (2002). The Language of Poetry and the Thought of Liberation, translated by Abbas Manoochehri, Tehran: Mola. [In Persian].
Glenn Gray, J. (1998). Poets and Thinkers: Their Place in Martin Heidegger’s Philosophy, translated by Mohammad Saeid Hanaei Kashani, Arghanoon, Issue 14, pp. 81-98. [In Persian].