Child and Adolescent Cultural-Social Research

Child and Adolescent Cultural-Social Research

Hero Construction in Children’s and Young Adult Literature through the Use of Classical Persian Literary Heritage: A Comparative Study of the Representations of Gordafarid and Ilya

Document Type : Original Article

Authors
maryam mousavi 1
Amirhoosein Madani 2
1 Candidate in Persian Language and Literature, University of Kashan, Kashan, Iran. Email: maryammousavi651@gmail.com
2 Associate Professor, Department of Persian Language and Literature, University of Kashan, Kashan, Iran. (Corresponding Author) Email: m.madani@kashanu.ac.ir
10.22083/cssca.2026.566708.1098
Abstract
Introduction: Children’s and young adult literature is an important domain through which the literary and cultural heritage of a society can be transmitted and reinterpreted. Classical Persian literature, particularly Ferdowsi’s Shahnameh, contains numerous heroic figures who can contribute to the formation of cultural and national identity among younger generations. However, the direct transmission of these figures into contemporary children’s and young adult literature is not always possible because of differences in language, narrative structure, modes of reception, and audience needs. It therefore requires processes of rewriting and adaptation. In this context, the construction and representation of the hero are particularly significant. The mere presence of a powerful or central character does not necessarily constitute hero construction. Rather, the hero is constructed through personality traits, agency, decision-making, confrontation with crises and obstacles, relationships with other characters, and transformation throughout the narrative.
This study examines the construction of the hero in selected works that draw upon the heritage of classical Persian literature for children and young adults. Four rewritten or adapted versions of the story of Gordafarid in the Shahnameh are examined alongside Ilya: The Birth of a Hero, a contemporary work drawing upon patterns associated with Iranian heroes. The main research question concerns the extent to which heroes derived from classical literature retain the characteristics of their original heroic figures through processes of rewriting and adaptation and how they are transformed to meet the needs of contemporary audiences. The study also seeks to distinguish between the transmission of an established hero and the construction of a contemporary hero within the narrative process.
Methods:This qualitative study employs a descriptive-analytical and comparative approach, with data collected through library research. The corpus consists of selected works of children’s and young adult literature that draw upon narratives and heroic patterns from classical Persian literature. The works were purposively selected based on their direct relevance to the research problem, their potential for examining the representation of the hero, and differences in their degrees of rewriting and adaptation. Four works based on the story of Gordafarid and Ilya: The Birth of a Hero were examined. The analysis focused on indicators such as the type and narrative position of the hero, personality traits, goals and motivations, agency and action, confrontation with obstacles and crises, relationships with other characters, character development, degree of distance from the original narrative, and the use of visual elements and contemporary media. The comparative analysis further examined the distinction between the established hero of an epic narrative and a hero whose identity is constructed within a contemporary narrative.
Findings: The findings indicate that the rewritten and adapted versions of the story of Gordafarid generally preserve the essential heroic identity of the original character. Courage, independence, agency, and readiness to confront crises are among the principal characteristics retained across these works. Differences among the works are mainly evident in narrative techniques, simplification of language, rewriting of dialogues, omission or addition of details, attention to the character’s inner experiences, and modes of illustration. In some works, particularly The Dream of Gordafarid, greater attention is given to the character’s mental and emotional experiences, whereas others place greater emphasis on transmitting the main storyline and depicting the hero’s external actions. Thus, these works primarily represent the transmission and adaptation of an established hero for a new audience rather than a fundamental transformation of the hero’s identity.
In contrast, Ilya: The Birth of a Hero presents a different model of hero construction. At the beginning of the narrative, Amirali is an ordinary adolescent who faces family difficulties and subsequently confronts a broader social crisis. The death of his mother, his discovery of medicine hoarding, and the threat posed to the public create the circumstances through which the character moves beyond his initial ordinary condition. His heroic identity develops through confronting the crisis, discovering his abilities, and choosing to oppose oppression. His inner power, which is connected to his ancestral heritage, operates alongside intelligence, choice, and agency in the construction of his heroic identity. Therefore, extraordinary power alone does not make the character a hero; rather, the manner in which that power is used to confront a crisis is central to the construction of heroism.
The comparison of the two models shows that Gordafarid represents a hero “in action,” as her heroic identity has already been established before the crisis and is manifested through her actions. Ilya, by contrast, represents a “process of becoming a hero,” as his heroic identity develops throughout the narrative. In Ilya, elements such as ancestry and inherited heritage, latent power, crisis, the presence of a guiding figure, and resistance to oppression are connected to the broader pattern of the Iranian hero without constituting a direct recreation of any specific mythological figure. The use of illustrations, contemporary settings, and new media features, including access to an animated version of the story through a barcode, further expands the ways in which the work engages contemporary audiences.
Conclusion: The findings demonstrate that drawing upon classical literary heritage in children’s and young adult literature involves more than simplifying language or shortening narratives. The construction and representation of the hero, characterization, illustration, and the use of contemporary communication technologies also play important roles in maintaining the connection between this heritage and contemporary audiences. The works based on Gordafarid primarily seek to preserve the identity of the epic heroine while presenting her through language and narrative structures that are more accessible to children and young adults. In contrast, Ilya reconstructs the Iranian heroic pattern through a contemporary character and develops the process of becoming a hero on the basis of crisis, choice, agency, transformation, and connection to ancestral heritage. The comparison therefore indicates that transmitting Iran’s heroic literary heritage into contemporary literature, while preserving its fundamental elements of national identity and heroism, requires the reconsideration of narrative strategies and modes of heroic representation in accordance with the circumstances and lived experiences of children and young adults.
Keywords
Hero-making, Children’s and Young Adult Literature, Rewriting
Recreation, , Gordafarid
Subjects
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Child and Adolescent Cultural-Social Research
Volume 3, Issue 3 - Serial Number 10
Autumn 2026
Pages 135-169