Women’s Agency in the Expression of Love in Classical Persian Literature: A Comparative Analysis of Shirin and Manizheh Based on Sternberg’s Triangular Theory of Love

Abstract

Love in classical Persian literature is not merely an emotional experience or a lyrical theme; in many narratives, it functions as a significant force in characterization, decision-making, and narrative development. Focusing on women’s agency, the present study comparatively examines the expression and enactment of love by Manizheh in Ferdowsi’s “Bijan and Manizheh” and Shirin in Nizami’s Khosrow and Shirin within the framework of Robert Sternberg’s Triangular Theory of Love. The study aims to explain how passion, intimacy, and commitment are transformed into agentic behaviors by these female characters and to identify similarities and differences between their patterns of romantic agency. A descriptive-analytical method with qualitative comparative content analysis was employed. The units of analysis consisted of speeches, decisions, and actions contributing to the initiation, expression, maintenance, regulation, and continuation of romantic relationships. The findings indicate that Manizheh assumes an active role from the beginning by choosing and inviting Bijan, while her initial passion gradually develops into caregiving intimacy and sacrificial commitment. Her decision to remain beside Bijan, acceptance of familial rejection, efforts to provide for his needs, and active participation in his rescue constitute a pattern of “sacrificial-rescue agency.” Shirin, in contrast, combines intense passion and emotional commitment with a persistent preservation of autonomy in her relationship with Khosrow. Her movement in search of the beloved, critical dialogue, resistance to an unacceptable form of intimacy, and insistence on determining the conditions of union create a pattern of “autonomous-negotiative agency.” Overall, the findings demonstrate that both characters move beyond the passive position traditionally associated with the literary beloved and become active agents in shaping both love and narrative development. Nevertheless, their agency is realized differently: Manizheh primarily through caregiving, sacrifice, and rescue, and Shirin through choice, resistance, dialogue, and the regulation of relational boundaries.