The Violence and the Problem of Ungrievability in Mehdi Yazdanikhorram’s Khoon khordeh: A Butlerian Study (مقاله علمی وزارت علوم)

چکیده

This study aims to show the reasons behind the capability of grief over the death of each person and how violence is performative in registering someone as livable or unlivable. This study also uses descriptive analysis methods and library research techniques. The main character in this novel Meftah, is an Arabic literature student, a religious person who works in the graveyard. This resulted in his recounting the story of the Sookhteh brothers whose deaths are not recognized so they are not mourned over properly. Through Butler's idea, the researcher tries to find out how livable and unlivable people are distinguished and what makes people believe that only registered lives are capable of being mourned over, and performative violence makes people differentiate between worthy and unworthy human beings.  The appearance of Homo Sacer is discussed in detail, the person who cannot be sacrificed but can easily be killed. It is deduced that people who are deprived of the primary conditions of life be it safety, welfare, or peace, as the main characters of this novel, don’t count as livable humans. They are not registered as humans, so they are not recognized and they become unrepresentable. Violence does not only lead to death but it also paves the way for people to ignore the death of some who are not subjectified and are not worthy of being grieved.