Document Type : Research Paper
Authors
University of Hormozgan
Abstract
Intertextuality in young adult literature is not merely a literary technique but also a cultural and educational strategy. By connecting adolescents to their cultural heritage, global texts, and contemporary media, this approach transforms them into active readers. From this perspective, young adult fiction serves purposes beyond entertainment, becoming a medium for fostering identity, critical thinking, and creativity.
In this comparative, qualitative study based on textual analysis, the intertextual relations between the Persian novel The Dragon’s Palace (Kākh-e Azhdahā) by Arman Aryan and the classic novel The Brothers Lionheart (translated to The Valley of the Roses[in Persian]) by Astrid Lindgren are examined through the lens of Gérard Genette’s theory. Both narratives follow the shared pattern of “loss or catastrophe as a passage to another world” and include several narrative structures such as familial bonds, the motif of “initial misrecognition of the traitor,” and the archetype of the “cottage or storytelling old woman.”
However, Aryan, through creative transformation and localization of symbols, names, and settings, reshapes Lindgren’s fantasy framework into a mythic-cultural hypertext. From Genette’s perspective, this process may be defined as a form of serious transposition accompanied by ludic playfulness—that is, preserving the foundational structure of the hypotext while expanding its meaning and nationalizing its themes. Moreover, the findings indicate that the translated hypotext Aryan read during adolescence played a formative role in shaping his hypertext.
Thus, The Dragon’s Palace is not a mere imitation but a creative reimagining that redefines the universality of fantasy models within a localized and historically grounded context. The results contribute to a deeper understanding of intertextual adaptation in young adult literature and the role of childhood readings in the creation of culturally specific hypertexts.
Keywords
- Intertextuality
- Gérard Genette
- Comparative Young Adult Literature, Darre-ye Gol-e Sorkh, Kakh-e Ezhdeha
Main Subjects
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