An analysis of Sadegh Hedayat’s “Haji Agha”

All along history, the art and society always have interplayed. Literary works especially novel are rooted in contemporary society and tell us about social, political, cultural and historical issues of a society. A realistic novel may reflect realities of its time like a mirror. The sociology of literature is aimed to explain the links between society and literature and clarifying the quality of reflection of social realities in literary works. Lukacs and Goldman as greatest theorist of sociological critique of literature tried to show the interplay between social structures and literary structures. They believed novel is a reflection of social life in writers’ time and originates from writers ideology. Sadegh Hedayat is a realistic contemporary Iranian writer. The main theme of his stories is social life of his time and we can see this in his Hajiagha. This paper studies Sadegh Hedayat’s “Haji Agha” applying the reflection of reality theory. The ability of the writer to portray the social transformations of his time is discussed.
All along history, the art and society always have interplayed. Literary works especially novel are rooted in contemporary society and tell us about social, political, cultural and historical issues of a society. A realistic novel may reflect realities of its time like a mirror. The sociology of literature is aimed to explain the links between society and literature and clarifying the quality of reflection of social realities in literary works. Lukacs and Goldman as greatest theorist of sociological critique of literature tried to show the interplay between social structures and literary structures. They believed novel is a reflection of social life in writers’ time and originates from writers ideology. Sadegh Hedayat is a realistic contemporary Iranian writer. The main theme of his stories is social life of his time and we can see this in his Hajiagha. This paper studies Sadegh Hedayat’s “Haji Agha” applying the reflection of reality theory. The ability of the writer to portray the social transformations of his time is discussed.