Document Type : علمی- پژوهشی

Authors

• Rasool Rostami ¹
• Mohammadreza Rashed Mohasel ²
• Majid Khazaei Vafa ³

¹ P.H.D student, D of Persian Language & Litrtature Department of Persian Language and Literature.Birjand Branch, Islamic Azad University, , Birjand, Iran

² Faculty member of the Department of Persian Language and Literature, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad

³ Assistant Professor, Persian Language and Literature group, Azad university birjand, Iran

Abstract

In the distribution of power, the Italian sociologist Wilfredo Pareto (1848-1923) believed in the existence of governing political elites who influence political decisions. His theory about this subject which is almost a psychological theory has been known as the circulation of elites. According to this theory, society is composed of two general classes: 1. The masses and 2. The elites. The latter are divided into two groups, the governing elites and the non-governing elites. The governing elites influence political decisions, and the non-governing elites only play a leading role. He attributes two psychological traits to the governing elites: intelligence and aptitude. Residues prone to violence and coercion. Speculators make the ultimate decision with conspiracy and cunning; Transformation in societies, from Pareto's point of view, is the result of the circulation of these same elites. In Ferdowsi’s Shahnameh, the authors discovered evidence of this kind of circulation, specifically between two classes of Warriors (heroes) and clerics (priests). Consequently, in the epic part of the Shahnameh, most of the warrior elites are consulted with the Shah in important political decisions, and in its historical part, the governing elite association is often made up of priests

Highlights

The rotation of elites in Ferdowsi's Shahnameh

(Based on Wilfredo Pareto’s Theory)

Rasool Rostami

Department of Persian Language and Literature, Islamic Azad University, Birjand

 

Mohammadreza Rashed Mohasel

Faculty member of Persian Language and Literature, Ferdowsi University

Introduction

Ferdowsi's Shahnameh, as an open and dynamic text, makes it possible to infer many mechanisms of power, distribution of powers, balance or social imbalance, etc. through the lens of scientific fields such as sociology and political science. In this article, the theory of the rotation of Pareto elites in religious elites (priests) and military elites` relationship analysis (warriors/heroes) of Shahnameh has been studied. Pareto (1848-1923) had an organic view of sociology. In other words, he considered society as a balanced system that is composed of interconnected components, so from his point of view, change in one component of society inevitably affects other components. Pareto's sociological theory is in stark contrast to Marx's theories. While Marx emphasizes the role of the masses in the evolution of societies, Pareto speaks of the role of a small minority called the elite. According to Pareto, "the strongest factor in upsetting the social balance is the accumulation of the upper elements in the lower class and the accumulation of the lower elements in the upper class." Pareto, 1304: 1964)

The authors assume that in Shahnameh as well as throughout the history of Iran, we have faced the rise of power in the hands of one class. Now the authors try to find answers to the following questions in an analytical-descriptive way:

• What is meant by the theory of elite rotation?
• Has the rotation of the elites taken place in Shahnameh during the four kingdoms?

Keywords: The Circulation of Elites, Wilfredo Pareto, Ferdowsi’s Shahnameh.

 

 

Discussion

According to Pareto, new elites have always emerged from among the non-ruling elites or from the more deserving masses, and change in societies is the result of the rotation of these elites, not the mass revolution of the people, who often lack much awareness and rationality. What makes Pareto's theory both readable and critical at the same time is his view of the psychological aspects of man. (He denied Marx's class system and the influence of history and economics.) (RK: 1377: 50) He does not consider the man as a rational being, but a being deciding on various instincts rather than reason and logic. Pareto lists at least six types of instincts that influence human behavior, including:

• instinct or feeling or constant storage of compounds that is manifested in the ability to think, creativity and initiative.
• the instinct or constant storage of the continuity of collections, i.e., the habits, customs, traditions, and beliefs making up culture. This instinct is concentrated in the masses ... "(Bashirieh, 1374: 71)

Pareto's theory has been the subject of much criticism and analysis. One of the best of these critiques and analyses has been provided by Raymond Aron; he correctly divided Pareto's book "General Sociology" into two parts. In his view, the first part of the book, which deals with the theory of survivors and derivatives, is neither psychologically nor historically written. This part is written in a generalized way, in contrast to the second part of Pareto's book, which deals with the character of the elite was written psychologically. In this section, he divides them into two categories by mentioning two important psychological characteristics of the elite: the mighty elite and the cunning elite. The fierce elites are prone to violence and the use of force, while the cunning elites are more inclined to compromise and skillful deception.

From Pareto's point of view, then, what keeps the government in power is the constant rotation of the elites. The same thing that we clearly see in the period of Pishdadi and Kiani kings of Shahnameh. But in the period of Parthian and Sassanid kings in Shahnameh, with the rise of priests (religious elites), the balance of power was clearly upset. A brief look at the history of ancient Iran better explains this; it explains that the classification of society based on the amount of wealth and power in the Parthian period and before was as follows:

• the great feudal lords and the courtiers and the royal family who controlled the domestic and foreign policy of the country.
• officials and officers who held military and national jobs.
• Moghans and clerics.
• the middle class, which included the free people of the cities and the craftsmen and smallholders.
• villagers and slaves. (Ravandi, 638: 1384)

It is obvious that the political structure of power in the Sassanid era has taken a more coherent form. On the other hand, with the compilation of the Avesta by the order of Ardashir I, Zoroastrianism becomes the official religion of the Iranians. In this period, as Christensen shows, the clergy were in the pyramid of power immediately after the king and even before the warriors. It is clear how much this position affected their power of influence in the political and legal affairs of the country. Thus, Iran's political elite were often chosen from among Zoroastrian clerics. But before Zoroastrianism became the official religion of the Iranians, warriors and the military played a more prominent role among the political elite, and the Shah consulted with them more.

Conclusion

According to Pareto, the most powerful factor in upsetting the social balance is the accumulation of the upper elements in the lower class and the accumulation of the lower elements in the upper class. With the imbalance among the elite, not only the social balance but also the monarchy undergoes a fundamental change; Wilfredo Pareto's method of studying this theory is a psychological method. Following Machiavelli's design, he divided the ruling elite into two groups and studied them with psychological or moral characteristics. In one group of ruling elites, the trait of force or coercion prevails, and in the other group, the trait of cunning prevails, so the elite are either strong or cunning. Elite in the first section of the two parts of Shahnameh, which the absolute creator remembers them as the national epic and the national history of Iran, were selected from the warrior class (heroes) and in the second part, they were chosen from the clergy class (priests). Therefore, in the Shahnameh Association of Political Elite, there has been a shift from heroes or warriors to priests or clerics. We have no reason why the political role of the military elite is diminishing, but one thing is certain: the accumulation of power in the hands of the clergy (given their temperament as cunning elites) led to the fall of the Sassanid Empire. In other words, the accumulation of power leads to the disruption of the balance of power and the loss of imperial authority. Ferdowsi's approach to these political actions is neutral. He did not accuse the clerics of compromising or cheating, as Pareto puts it, but the clerics' wise advice shows the political intelligence of these elites, which Ferdowsi reflected in his work

References

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Keywords

• the circulation of Elites
• Wilfredo Pareto
• Ferdowsi’s Shahnameh

Main Subjects

• . Epicical and Mythical Literature