Abstract

Tharikh-e- Bala'ami and Ferdowsi's Shahnameh are among the most important works produced in the first half of the fourth century. Although the works share thematic commonality (Iran's history) and were written within a short time interval of each other, they indicate some certain differences, as well. Of the most important differences are the divergent ways in which characters are developed. A comparison of the 27 common characters (kings and heroes) in the above books indicates the differences tellingly. In The History of Bal'ami 17 percent of the characters are purely mythological, whereas in Shahnameh 34 percent of the characters can be subsumed under this category. The epic characters in Shahnameh and The History of Bal'ami are 24 and 30 percent, respectively. Briefly the major differences in the two works are as follows: 1. Differences in the literature used 2 stylistic differences 3. Ferdowsi's poetic requisites 4. Fardowsi's religious beliefs and 5. Different approaches of Ferdowsi and Bal'ami to the rationalization of the narratives. The comparison indicates that Ferdowsi's Shahnameh is both more mythological and heroic than The History of Bal'ami. However, it has to be emphasized that some mythological aspects of certain characters, Kiumarth in The History of Bal'ami is more prominent. This is also true of certain heroic characters in The History of Bal'ami.