New researches in Islamic humanities studies

New researches in Islamic humanities studies

Analysis of the Role of Unconscious Conflicts in the Behavior of the Main Character in Contemporary Short Stories Based on Freud’s Theory

Document Type : Original Article

Author
Maryam Shafiee Taban
, Department of Persian Language and Literature, Payam Noor University, Tehran, Iran
10.22034/api.2026.2086957.1689
Abstract
Objective: The present study aims to explore and analyze the role of unconscious conflicts in shaping the behaviors and actions of the main character in contemporary Iranian short stories, based on Sigmund Freud’s psychoanalytic theory. 
In this regard, the study seeks to demonstrate how the hidden layers of the mind can influence the semantic and narrative orientation of the text.
Method: This research employs a descriptive‑analytical approach and relies on library-based methods to examine the unconscious mechanisms of the mind particularly the interplay among the id, ego, and superego in the decision‑making processes and existential crises of fictional characters. 
In addition, theoretical sources and selected literary samples have been closely analyzed to extract shared psychological patterns.
Results: The findings indicate that repressed conflicts and unfulfilled desires, concealed within the deeper layers of the unconscious, give rise to contradictory behaviors, sudden impulses, and at times self‑destructive tendencies in the main character. 
These results suggest that many seemingly irrational reactions in the text originate from fundamental psychological struggles.
Conclusions: The study concludes that contemporary short‑story writers, whether consciously or through artistic intuition, employ literary symbols and imagery to depict internal conflicts and the psychological anxieties resulting from such unconscious tensions, thereby enriching the psychological depth and complexity of their works. 
Ultimately, the research highlights that a Freudian analytical approach can serve as an effective tool for deciphering the hidden layers of meaning and motivation within literary texts.
Keywords
Unconscious Conflict, Freud&‌rsquo
s Theory, Main Character, Contemporary Short Story, Psychoanalysis, Id, Ego, Superego
Subjects
آذری دودران، زهرا. (۱۴۰۴). تحلیل روانکاوانه شخصیت‌ها در داستان‌های محمود دولت‌آبادی. اولین همایش بین‌المللی هوش مصنوعی در آموزش و پرورش، روانشناسی، علوم تربیتی و مطالعات دینی، فرهنگی، اجتماعی و مدیریتی در هزاره سوم، بوشهر
https://civilica.com/doc/2406433
شفیع‌آبادی، عبدالله، و ناصری، غلامرضا. (۱۳۸۵). نظریه‌های مشاوره و روان‌درمانی. تهران: مرکز نشر دانشگاه.
شولتز، دوان پی، و شولتز، سیدنی الن. (۱۳۸۴). نظریه‌های شخصیت (ترجمه یحیی سیدمحمدی). تهران: ویرایش. (اثر اصلی در سال ۲۰۰۴ منتشر شده است).
کریمی، یوسف. (۱۳۷۵). روان‌شناسی شخصیت. تهران: ویرایش7.
مظفری، سولماز، و متقی، زهره سادات. (۱۴۰۲). تحلیل و بررسی داستان دخترک کبریت فروش بر اساس نظریه ی زیگموند فروید. کنفرانس بین المللی زبان، ادبیات، تاریخ و تمدن . https://sid.ir/paper/1129956/fa
مهاجرزاده، سید پرهام، و نعیمی، سیده غزل. (۱۴۰۲). تحلیل روانکاوانه شخصیت «مخمل» در داستان کوتاه «انتری که لوطیش مرده بود» نوشته صادق چوبک با تکیه بر نظریه روان کاوی اجتماعی کارن هورنای. مطالعات هنرهای زیبا، ۴(۱۰)، ۱۶-۲۴.
 
Azari Doudran, Z. (2025). A psychoanalytic analysis of characters in the stories of Mahmoud Dowlatabadi.In Proceedings of the First International Conference on Artificial Intelligence in Education, Psychology, Educational Sciences, and Religious, Cultural, Social and Managerial Studies in the Third Millennium. Bushehr, Iran. https://civilica.com/doc/2406433 
Freud, S. (2019). The ego and the id (J. Strachey, Trans.). Penguin Classics. (Original work published 1923). 
Karimi, Y. (1996). Personality psychology. Tehran: Virayesh. 
Mohajerzadeh, S. P., & Naeimi, S. G. (2023). A psychoanalytic analysis of the character “Mokhmal” in the short story “The Monkey Whose Master Was Dead” by Sadegh Chubak based on Karen Horney’s social psychoanalytic theory. Studies of Fine Arts, 4(10), 16–24. 
Mozaffari, S., & Motaghi, Z. S. (2023). An analysis of the story “The Little Match Girl” based on Sigmund Freud’s theory. In Proceedings of the International Conference on Language, Literature, History, and Civilization. https://sid.ir/paper/1129956/fa 
Schultz, D. P., & Schultz, S. E. (2004). Theories of personality (Y. Seyedmohammadi, Trans.). Tehran: Virayesh. 
Shafiabadi, A., & Naseri, G. (2006). Theories of counseling and psychotherapy. Tehran: Markaz Nashr Daneshgahi.
New researches in Islamic humanities studies
Volume 4, Issue 8 - Serial Number 8
December 2025
Pages 1-13