The Selfhood of Time and Space in Sohrab Sepehri’s Poetry: A Pouletian Approach

Georges Poulet is one of the phenomenological thinkers of the Geneva School and a founding figure of theme criticism. By developing an integrative method combining philosophy and psychology, with an emphasis on the production of the literary work as a mental act, he sought to bring the reader closer to the core temporality of the work’s creation. Organised around Heideggerian theories, the concept of “selfhood” (khodboodegi) can be traced in the ideas of phenomenologists. While this term may initially suggest an existentialist reading, Poulet refers to it as “mental presence” (la présence) and “lived experience” (expérience vécue). Throughout Hasht Ketab (Eight Books), Sepehri invites the reader to a realm where inner time is uniquely reconstructed for artistic creation. The inner time Sepehri envisions is a fusion of mythical time and temporal embodiment—a time that does not belong solely to the speaker but allows the reader to construct their own temporality within the domain of language. This research adopts a descriptive-analytical approach, drawing on Georges Poulet’s theories to explore Sepehri’s poetry in Hasht Ketab. The study aims to offer a new reading of Sepehri’s poetry by examining selfhood as a form of “mental presence,” “lived experience,” and “existential self.” Poulet’s key arguments are categorised into thirteen sub-themes, each supported by textual evidence. By employing the “idea of temporal spatialisation” and blending myth with experiential time, Sepehri creates a fluid space that enables the reader to reconstruct the past within their own mind.
 
Extended Abstract
1. Introduction
Combining psychology, literary criticism, and philosophy, Georges Poulet (1902-1991), one of the founders of the Geneva School, offered an interdisciplinary approach to textual analysis. In his Études Sur le Temps Humain, Poulet conceptualises the point of departure. By proposing time and spatial identity, Poulet challenges structuralist approaches to a literary work. In his view, thematic analysis can uncover the layers of a literary work. Emphasising the production of a work as a mental act, he attempted to bring the reader closer to the central core of its temporal creation by highlighting high-frequency words. Hence, he presented “temporal spatialisation,” in which the poet or writer, by creating a fluid space, creatively reimagines the narrated past through the reader. Echoing the psychological proposition of “the difference between the creation and reading of a work,” he argued that there is a difference between the narrator and the reader’s temporal spatialisation.
2. Methodology
Adopting a descriptive-analytical approach and informed by Georges Poulet’s theories, this article investigates Sohrab Sepehri’s Hasht Ketab. The purpose of this research is a new reading of Sepehri’s poetry in the light of selfhood as a form of “mental presence,” “lived experience,” and “existential self.” This article categorizes Poulet’s theories in thirteen innovative titles, with examples cited for each.
 3. Theoretical Framework
Georges Poulet’s theories of temporality are derived from the phenomenological ideas of the Geneva School, especially those of Edmund Husserl’s. In this system of thought, time is tied to human consciousness.  Husserl distinguishes three levels of time for our consideration: worldly or objective time, personalistic or subjective time, and the consciousness of internal time. In order to reach the so-called “absolute consciousness,” each of these temporal dimensions must be sought at a deeper level.
4. Discussion and Analysis
The present research examines temporality and spatiality to explicate the author and reader’s selfhood in creating and reading the work. Accordingly, the article explores how Proust’s concept of selfhood, as a phenomenon in accordance with time and space, is closely connected to Descartes’ “existential self.” In his teachings, Poulet speaks of the writer’s/poet's role in collapsing the traditional understanding of temporality, in such a way that human consciousness of time becomes the key to understanding the writer’s/poet’s fragmented and nonlinear images of time. Sepehri, in his Eight Books, also tries to set aside all non-intuitive assumptions and presuppositions to reduce the limits and boundaries of consciousness. Through this consciousness, the poet and poetry mirror each other; this, in turn, creates a kind of selfhood that leads to the discovery of new capacities in his world.
5. Conclusion
In his Eight Books, Sohrab Sepehri presents his mental and phenomenological experiences. His descriptions are nonlinear and in accordance with his memory. To properly understand this temporality, we need to explore the relationship between the poet’s consciousness and the world. This method properly conveys the meaning and explains how temporality is represented in the poem’s creation. It seems that Sepehri portrays his lived-temporality, which is not linear but rather the result of intuitive experiences, narrated in fragments, revealing the intersection between the continuity and discontinuity of time. The study offers a new reading of Sepehri’s poetry by examining selfhood as a form of “mental presence,” “lived experience,” and “existential self.” By employing the “idea of temporal spatialization” and blending myth with experiential time, Sepehri creates a fluid space that enables the reader to reconstruct the past within their own mind.
Bibliography
Cryle, P. 2008. “Playful Theory: Georges Poulet’s Phenomenological Thematics.” Culture, Theory & Critique, No. 49(1), pp. 21-34.
Hamidoost, M. 1394 [2015]. “Naqd-e Mazmooni va Bāzjost-hā-e Mo’alefeh-hā-e ān dar Dāstān-hā-e Houshang Golshiri.” Ph. D. Dissertation, University of Guilan. [In Persian].
Hawks, T. 1380 [2001]. Este’āreh. Farzaneh, T (trans.). Tehran: Markaz. [In Persian].
Jung, C. 1378 [1999]. Ensān va Sambol-hā-ash. Mahmoud, S (trans.). Tehran: Jami. [In Persian].
Moein, M. 1389 [2010]. Naqd-e Mazmooni, āra, Andisheh-hā va Ravesh-Shenāsi-e George Poulet: Dark-e Maqouleh-hā-ye Zamān va Makān. Tehran: Elmi va Farhangi. [In Persian].
Makaryk, I. 1388 [2009]. Dānesh-Nāmeh-e Nazariyeh-e Adabi. Mehran, M (trans.). Tehran: Agah. [In Persian].
Poulet, G. 1385 [2006]. “Padidār-Shenāsi-e Khāndan.” Mahboobeh, Kh (trans.). Mehr Aveh, No. 5-6-7, pp. 55-78. [In Persian].
Poulet, G. 1390 [2011]. Fazāye Prousti. Vahid, Gh (tr ans.). Tehran: Qoqnoos. [In Persian].
Sepehri, S. 1378 [1999]. Hasht Ketāb. Tehran: Tahouri. [In Persian].