Narratology and character functions of Sohni Mahiwal: An actantial analysis

Abstract

The study analyses Sohni Mahiwal, the renowned Punjabi folktale, by applying Greimas Actantial model for structural analysis. The purpose of this study is to explore the narrative structure and discover the character functions based on the model. Folktales are considered the simplest and oldest form of stories embedded in the local cultures. They broadly refer to orally transmitted, traditional narratives that carry cultural information. The findings show that all the major actantial categories proposed by Greimas such as subject, object, sender, receiver, helper, and opponent have been depicted in the selected folktale. The analysis revealed that many characters were found involved in several actant classes simultaneously. Structural analysis of the folktale uncovered two parallel acts/episodes. The parallelism in the contents of two acts of the tale serves a didactic function at the socio-cultural level besides entertaining the readers/ listeners proving the strength of true love. As far as the function is concerned, the tale successfully validates the culturally imparted message that the individuals who transgress the social norms are destined to perish.