Stylistic Phenomena in the Prose Rendering of Verse in al-Hamadhani’s al-Manthur al-Baha'i (d. 414 AH)

Abstract

This study examines the stylistic features of prose rendering of verse in al-Hamadhani’s al-Manthur al-Baha'i, approaching this practice as a literary art that reveals the writer’s ability to interpret poetry and recreate it in prose. Using a stylistic approach, the study investigates how al-Hamadhani transforms selected poetic passages into prose and identifies the syntactic, figurative, and rhythmic features that characterize his technique. The analysis focuses on syntactic devices such as fronting and postponement, emphasis, and sentence transformation; figurative devices including simile, metaphor, and metonymy; and rhythmic features such as rhymed prose and paronomasia. It also examines the relationship between meaning and its reformulation in the resulting prose text. The findings show that al-Hamadhani’s practice extends beyond merely explaining or paraphrasing poetry. Instead, he creates a parallel prose text with its own distinctive stylistic and aesthetic qualities. His methods range from preserving elements of the original wording and structure to reformulating the verse while retaining its essential meaning. This stylistic flexibility demonstrates his ability to transform poetic material into effective artistic prose while freeing it from the formal constraints of meter and rhyme.