Shazdeh Ihtejab by Houshang Golshiri is one of the most valuable examples of Iran’s fictional literature in terms of its use of narrative techniques and devices. Golshiri in Shazdeh Ihtejab has benefitted from various narrative elements; however, it can be argued that the complexity of the narrative techniques of the work is to a great extent due to his use of two elements of “the voice of narrator” and “focalization.” Selecting the limited third person narrator which is restricted to the minds of two main characters of the work (Shazdeh Ihtejab and Fakhri) and offering the thoughts and sayings of these two characters in direct and indirect discourse has caused the voice of the narrator or narrators to be mixed with the perspective of the focalizer or focalizers and has rendered understanding the relation between narrator and focalizer and the difference between the two difficult. Based on this, in the present article, the two elements of “voice of the narrator” and “focalization” in the narrative text of Shazdeh Ihtejab are discussed in order to present the artistic use of the two elements in the narrative text of Shazdeh Ihtejab.

The narrative focus has a significant role in the analysis of those techniques that the storyteller uses in creating his own stories. The point of view, with respect to its semantic extension in modern narratives, is a special aspect by which the narrator shapes the temporal, cognitive – emotional and ideological components of his story and the narratee is sometimes led to read the text when the narrator changes and creates various points of view and presents different views. Therefore, the story finds a dynamic process by an interaction among the narrator, the character and the reader. In the story of Rostam and Esfandiyar, the narrator portrays the setting, incidents, characters and their actions, thoughts and inner feelings in an aesthetic and beautiful way and this is done by using different and changeable narrative focuses. In addition, the narrator provides presentation, evaluation and judgment of the story by his absence or presence in some parts of the story and also by combination of two ways of narration and drama. Furthermore, sometimes the narratee is led to a more effective and sincere inspiration of the story by narrating the story from the characters’ point of view.  In addition, the narrator expresses his own doctrines and special ideology by using non-narrator focus or the characters’ words; as a result he prepares the situation for the presentation and conjunction of different views or opinions, and in this aspect it equals many modern narratives. The analysis ofa few parts of this story can show Firdausi’s exceptional genius in his creation of this universal masterpiece.