درخت حوزه‌های تخصصی

This study is concerned with the effects of technology on man’s identity in the Knight Rider TV show. It investigates how the major characters of this TV show lose their human identities as a consequence of embracing technological practices which are hailed by technocratic societies as enhancing to the human race. Such an issue is knocked upon by Henri Lefebvre who sees technology as an expression of capitalist domination over humanity. In Lefebvre’s view, man’s social and cultural practices are formed by the space encompassing him reflecting a mutual relationship between man and space. With the advent of the technological age, Capitalism tends to socialize technological practices as alternatives to man’s original cultural and social practices. This issue encourages the initiation of technocratic societies which require man to cast away his human identity through annexing him to a machine. In the light of these perspectives by Lefebvre, the current study examines the effects of technology on man’s identity in Knight Rider TV show. Through tracking the phases that they pass in becoming technocratic individuals, the study reveals how the main characters give up their innate cultural and social molds to technological practices. The study argues that the characters’ own aspirations for an unlimited power, intensified by the mystification practiced by capitalist leaders about the role of technology in enhancing man’s attributes, have blinded them from noticing the gradual loss of their human identities.

This study employs the framework of Influence Studies within Comparative Literature to explore the impact of Franz Kafka (1883-1924) on Gholam Hossein Saedi (1936-1985). The primary focus of this comparative study is to assess the quality of influence and elucidation regarding the overarching perspective on loneliness, isolation, identity crisis, and metamorphosis, ultimately aiming to comprehend the similarities and distinctions between Gholam Hossein Saedi's The Cow (1965) and Franz Kafka's The Metamorphosis (1915). The present research, conducted through a descriptive-analytical approach and grounded in the French school of comparative literature, concerned with influence studies, determines that the central theme of Kafka's novel revolves around human destiny, which is altered by societal issues. Both narratives illustrate the transformation of their main characters into non-human forms, emphasizing the alienation and isolation faced by individuals in contemporary society. Kafka examines the absurdity of human existence through Gregor's transformation and his subsequent ostracism by society, while Saedi sheds light on the struggles of marginalized communities through Mashd Hassan's change into a cow. The findings of this study demonstrate that Saedi, influenced by Kafka, has adapted and expanded the notion of metamorphosis in The Cow, thereby enriching the landscape of Persian literature.