دانشگاه اصفهان فنون ادبی 20088027 مقالات آماده انتشار 2026 07 28 A Multi-dimensional Theory of Genre نظریة چندوجهی ژانر 39 64 30672 10.22108/liar.2026.148906.2589 FA علیرضا فولادی دانشیار گروه زبان و ادبیات فارسی، دانشکدة ادبیات و زبان‌های خارجی، دانشگاه کاشان، کاشان، ایران Journal Article 2026 05 25 Throughout the history of genre theory, two major approaches have dominated the field: monistic and pluralistic. Neither, however, has succeeded in providing a comprehensive and practical framework for the classification of literary genres. Consequently, genre theory remains largely under the influence of the simplicity of Aristotle's single-dimensional model. To overcome this limitation, a multi-dimensional theory of genre is required. Employing an analytical approach, the present study proposes such a theory. It argues that literary genres are neither confined to a limited number of fixed categories nor infinitely numerous. Rather, every literary work constitutes a unique configuration woven from a finite yet diverse range of verbal genres and subgenres. Identifying these genres requires recognizing the genre dimensions, each of which contributes a distinct component to the overall genre profile of a work. Ultimately, the study identifies twenty-three genre dimensions, together with their corresponding kinds and types, as a preliminary framework for the classification of verbal and literary genres. These dimensions are divided into two major categories: structural and contextual. The structural dimensions include language, internal poetics, external poetics, internal style, external style, writing style, function, ethical level, subject matter, theme, length, organization, method, and discourse. The contextual dimensions comprise the author's gender, the author's profession, the authenticity of the work, the mode of presentation, the place of presentation, the period of presentation, the audience's level of knowledge, the audience's age group, and the institutional context of use. Keywords: Genre Theory, Literary Genre Classification, Single-dimensional Genre Theory, Multi-dimensional Genre Theory, Typology. Introduction The basis for the classification of literary genres has long been the central concern of genre theory. Since the time of the ancient Greek philosophers, numerous attempts have been made to resolve this issue. Nevertheless, genre theory continues to be dominated by Aristotle's Poetics. The reasons for this enduring dominance deserve careful examination; however, one significant factor appears to be the simplicity of Aristotle's model. It is sufficient to note that Aristotle classified literary genres primarily according to their function, thereby identifying the three principal literary genres: epic, tragedy, and comedy. If Aristotle's model is regarded as a single-dimensional theory of genre, developments from the Classical period to the beginning of the modern era gradually expanded the number of recognized literary genres, thereby opening a path beyond the limitations of this theory. During the modern period, Romantic theorists further attempted to identify multiple distinct genre dimensions. At times, they even regarded genre as inherently indeterminate, considering each literary work to possess a unique genre of its own. Although these perspectives broadened the theoretical horizon, none resulted in a comprehensive and practical framework for literary genre classification. The present article seeks to address this deficiency by elaborating the theoretical foundations of a multi-dimensional theory of genre. Materials and Methods The present study employs an analytical research method based on qualitative content analysis. Accordingly, after reviewing previous approaches to the foundations of literary genre classification and outlining the principles and components of the proposed multi-dimensional theory of genre, the study identifies genre dimensions together with verbal and literary kinds and types through an inductive approach. These categories serve as the analytical framework for classifying literary genres and provide a practical model for the typological analysis of literary works. To this end, two fundamental principles guide the proposed theory: Specification, namely, taking into account all verbal and literary genres; and Generalization, namely, considering all subcategories within each particular verbal or literary genre. In addition, two subsidiary assumptions support the theory. First, the term dimension in this study does not correspond to the concept of mode commonly employed in genre studies. Rather, it refers to any aspect of a verbal or literary work that necessarily gives rise to a distinct genre. Second, every verbal or literary work possesses multiple dimensions, each corresponding to a single genre. This characteristic results in the interweaving of multiple genres within a single work. Nevertheless, the number of such dimensions is not unlimited; instead, they are finite, identifiable, and classifiable into kinds and types. Research Findings Genre dimensions can be divided into two broad categories: structural and contextual. Each dimension consists of specific kinds and types, which together constitute verbal and literary genres. The structural dimensions include: Language, whose kinds comprise Persian, Arabic, English, and other languages, each of which may further include formal, colloquial, and dialectal varieties with numerous subtypes. Internal poetics, which today is no longer confined to poetry, fiction, and drama, comprises two broad categories: major forms, including theses, treatises, anthologies, books, periodicals, and the like; and minor forms, including proverbs and maxims, memoirs, news reports, short stories, biographies, travelogues, poems, screenplays, journal articles, plays, and so forth. External poetics, which consists of two principal kinds: prose and verse, each encompassing numerous types and subtypes. The remaining structural dimensions are internal style, external style, writing style, function, ethical level, subject matter, theme, length, organization, method, and discourse. The contextual dimensions include: Author's gender, under which at least two kinds may be investigated: masculine, exemplified by the epic tradition, and feminine, exemplified by the Persian folk genre of the lullaby. Author's profession, one type of which, for example, is academic criticism, understood as criticism produced by university scholars. The remaining contextual dimensions are authenticity of the work, mode of presentation, place of presentation, period of presentation, audience's level of knowledge, audience's age group, and institutional context of use. Discussion of Results and Conclusions Between the traditional Aristotelian view of literary genres and the Romantic conception of the limitless nature of genres, there exists a more practical and comprehensive approach to the classification of literary genres: the multi-dimensional genre theory. The present study has proposed this theory and elucidated its principles, subsidiary components, and practical implications. From this perspective, every work possesses at least twenty-three generic dimensions and, consequently, at least twenty-three structural and contextual types and subtypes that interact and complement one another to shape its unique mode or tone of expression. The classification of verbal and literary types is likewise possible within the framework of these twenty-three generic dimensions. The classification developed in this study also provides a practical model for the typological analysis of literary works, thereby laying the foundation for genre-based analyses. This study has presented both the theoretical foundations underlying the above findings and their practical applications. در تاریخ نظریة ژانر، دو دسته رویکرد «وحدت‌گرا» و «کثرت‌گرا» وجود دارد که هیچ‌کدام تا کنون، طبقه‌بندی انواع ادبی را به سوی یک نتیجة کاربردی و فراگیر پیش نبرده‌ است؛ بدین دلیل، نظریة ژانر هنوز تحت سلطة سادگی نظریة تک‌وجهی ژانر ارسطو قرار دارد. برای برون‌رفت از این محدودیت، به نظریة چندوجهی ژانر نیاز است. مقالة حاضر، با روش تحلیلی، ارائة این نظریه را هدف قرار داده و از این رهگذر نتیجه گرفته است که انواع ادبی، نه محدود به چند نوع خاصند و نه بی‌نهایت؛ بلکه یک اثر، بافه‌ای از گونه‌های متنوع و در عین حال، محدود کلامی است و شناسایی این‌ انواع و گونه‌ها، نیازمند بازشناسی وجه‌های ژانری است که همواره در هر اثر، ترکیبی منفرد پدید می‌آورند. این مقاله سرانجام، بیست و سه وجه ژانری را با انواع و گونه‌هایشان به‌مثابة الگوی اولیة طبقه‌بندی انواع کلامی و ادبی بازمی‌شناسد و در دو دستة الف) ساختاری، شامل «زبان»، «صناعت درونی»، «صناعت بیرونی»، «سبک درونی»، «سبک بیرونی»، «سبک نگارش»، «کارکرد»، «سطح اخلاقی»، «موضوع»، «مضمون»، «اندازه»، «ترتیب»، «روش» و «گفتمان» و ب) بافتاری، شامل، «جنسیت مؤلف»، «حرفة مؤلف»، «اصالت اثر»، «ابزار ارائه»، «جایگاه ارائه»، «دورة ارائه»، «سطح دانش مخاطبان»، «ردة سنی مخاطبان» و «نهاد کاربری»، به معرفی آنها می‌پردازد.

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