Existentialism in the novel "The Scribes' Journeys"

Abstract

Asfar-e Kateban by Abutorab Khosravi is one of the most significant philosophical narratives in contemporary Persian literature, employing multi-layered narration, magical realism, and intertextuality to explore fundamental existentialist questions within the cultural and historical context of Iran. This study, grounded in existentialist philosophy—particularly the perspectives of Kierkegaard, Sartre, and Jaspers—analyzes themes such as death, suffering, guilt, faith, and immortality in the novel. Boundary situations, including Azar’s death, Eqlima’s murder, and Ahmad Bashiri’s recurring nightmares, are represented as symbols of existential anxiety and dread, while Kierkegaard’s three stages of existence— aesthetic, ethical, and religious—are traceable in the destinies of the characters. Moreover, the novel’s use of magical realism dissolves the boundaries between reality and imagination, bringing the sacred, myth, and history into dialogue with contemporary reality. In doing so, the narrative creates an existential space where the crisis of individual and collective identity, the quest for immortality, and the confrontation with human freedom and responsibility are central concerns. The findings of this study suggest that Asfar-e Kateban is more than a literary narrative; it is a philosophical text that bridges Persian literature with global existentialist thought.