Ta’ziyeh and Declamation in Shia Tradition: Discourse in Focus

Abstract

The central theme of Ta'ziyeh, as one of the Islamic tragic drama and folk theater, in one of the major denominations of Islam (the Shia) is a representation of the siege and massacres of Karbala. This study investigated Ta'ziyeh (alternatively Ta'zïye, Tazīa, Ta'zīya) and its discourse, a form of declamation. The data for analysis were collected from library resources (e.g. books, electronic resources) and observation. The data were analyzed based on Gee's discourse and society model. The study confirmed that Ta'zieh was the most important tragedy in Shiism. The discourse used in Ta'ziyeh, contrary to the Western variations, appeared to be a more spiritual practice than a dramatic genre. Furthermore, the role of Ta'ziyeh writers and performers was explored as agents who have distributed the accounts of the Karbala battle for generations in Iran. The findings, from a global perspective, might emphasize how diverse a culture's perceptions of religion and its related rituals could be and how a language variety (e.g. declamation) could help frame such perceptions in dramatic genre. The findings could also guide the categories that multi-cultural studies of tragedies may take into account.