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Literary texts are the product of individual unconscious psyche and collective consciousness. In Iranian mythology, Fereydoun and Zahhak are symbols of good and evil. This research is an attempt to demonstrate aspects of growth and decay according to Erich Fromm’s theories. It aims at finding aspects of growth (love of life, love of humanity, freedom from the archetypal Mother) and contrasting them with the manifestations of decay (love of death, narcissism, return to mother’s womb) in respectively the characters of Fereydoun and Zahhak in Shahnameh.

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One of the modern theories of literary criticism, which is based on psychological knowledge, is the Archetypal criticism. This theory is based on the views of Carl Gustav Jung and deals with the quality of the absorption of archetypes in the mind of the poet or writer. According to studies, a heroic journey in each person’s life is possible to achieve individual perfection. Fereydoun’s story is important because of the ups and downs of his life and the important characteristics that directly affect his personality during events at every stage of his story. The purpose of this article is to study the story of Fereydoun from the perspective of an archetypal criticism based on the intellectual foundations of Carol S. Pearson and Hugh Marr on the twelvearchetypesforawakening the hero within.Adopting a descriptive-analytical approach,the authors try to portray the manifestations of prominent archetypes in Fereydoun’s story.