Analysis of the Rhetorical System and Imagery in the Narrative Poem Samandar Khan Salar with Emphasis on Metaphor and Simile

Abstract

The narrative poem Samandar Khan Salar by Ali-Akbar Abbasi, as one of the most prominent examples of dialect poetry from Khorasan, possesses significant literary, narrative, and rhetorical capacities whose scholarly examination can reveal new dimensions of the expressive power of Iranian dialect poetry. This study focuses on two fundamental elements of rhetoric—metaphor and simile—to analyze the poem’s imagery system and investigate the role of these figurative devices in shaping meaning, constructing atmosphere, developing characterization, and advancing the narrative. Since dialect poetry is often examined primarily within ethnographic or linguistic frameworks, many of its artistic and literary values have remained overlooked. Employing a rhetorical-critical and text-centered approach, this article seeks to demonstrate how Abbasi creatively utilizes the expressive potential of the Torbati dialect, innovative similes, and vivid metaphors to create a poetic yet tangible world that is rooted in oral tradition while simultaneously conforming to the aesthetic standards of written poetry. The research adopts a descriptive-analytical method based on direct examination of the text of the poem. Instances of metaphor and simile were first identified and then classified according to their type, structure, semantic domains, and rhetorical functions. Subsequently, the study explored the contribution of these devices to the enhancement of imagery, the creation of semantic musicality, the evocation of indigenous settings, and the transmission of the worldview of the people of Torbat-e Heydarieh. The findings indicate that the poet does not employ rhetorical devices merely as ornamental features of language; rather, he transforms them into primary instruments of narration, visualization, and meaning production. Metaphors derived from elements of nature, rural life, local tools, and indigenous objects, together with similes rooted in the lived experiences of the region’s inhabitants, enable the poem to preserve both the intimacy of local speech and the coherence of a sophisticated literary structure.