The primary research problem of this study is to identify and elucidate the mechanisms through which myths and collective archetypes operate within the narrative and semantic structure of Asghar Farhadi's cinematic works, as well as their function in representing contemporary social issues. The aim of this research is to apply Gilbert Durand's mythanalytical method to the analysis of the hidden mythical layers in Farhadi's cinema, and to explain the connection between his personal myth and collective archetypes, as well as its potential for generalization to the societal level and to the works of other artists.



The research method is qualitative in nature and based on Gilbert Durand's mythanalysis approach. The research corpus encompasses all of Asghar Farhadi's cinematic works, and the research sample was selected purposefully. The data were collected through library research, consulting relevant books, articles, and dissertations, as well as through the viewing and analysis of the films. The analysis of the works was conducted based on a descriptive-analytical method, utilizing Durand's seven-stage mythanalytical framework. In what follows, a summary of the implementation of each of the seven stages on Farhadi's works is presented.



The first stage of the research consisted of selecting the most significant work and identifying the mythemes embedded within it. Based on the opinions of critics, festival jurors, and audience feedback, the film A Separation was chosen as the representative work. Subsequently, through a detailed analysis of this film, the mythemes present within it were identified at three levels—formal, content-based, and contextual. These included motifs such as separation, lying, concealment, death, journey, court, family, oath, child, city, religious beliefs, the film's title, Termeh, window, Qur'an, and the green scarf—each of which functioned as the smallest meaningful units of myth within the narrative structure.



In the second stage, after identifying the mythemes, the relational network among them was examined. Based on frequency of occurrence, role in the plot, and influence on narrative structure, the mytheme of "lying" was identified as the focal mytheme in A Separation. In this film, lying is not a peripheral element but rather the driving engine of the narrative and the primary factor in the formation of crises and narrative complications.



In the third stage, the fundamental characteristics of the mytheme of "lying" in A Separation were determined: first, lying as a defensive strategy to which characters resort in order to cope with social and legal pressures; second, the inability of lying to resolve crises, meaning that lies not only fail to reduce tensions but actually deepen personal and familial crises; and third, the contradiction between intention and consequence, whereby even well-intentioned white lies lead to negative and crisis-inducing outcomes.



In the fourth stage, the mytheme of "lying" was correlated with Asghar Farhadi's personal and professional life. An examination of his biography, interviews, and professional controversies revealed that Farhadi himself has encountered patterns of concealment and white lies in several instances, such as disputes over the authorship of the play Mashin-Neshinhá (The Car-Sitters) with Ali Khodsiani, the matter of secret smoking, and the accusation of idea theft for the film A Hero. Furthermore, the mytheme of "lying" recurs in Farhadi's other works, including Dance in the Dust, Beautiful City, Fireworks Wednesday, About Elly, The Past, The Salesman, Everybody Knows, and A Hero. In a comprehensive table, the motivations, consequences, and types of lies in each film were examined separately, demonstrating that protective and self-interested lies in all his works lead to the collapse of human relationships and moral crises.



In the fifth stage, existing mythical narratives that corresponded with Farhadi's personal myth (lying) were examined. Five mythical narratives were studied: Jamshid, Rostam and Sohrab, Sudabeh and Siavash, Othello, and Medea. In the Jamshid narrative, lying is reflected at the level of power and society, leading to the loss of the divine glory (*farreh*). In the story of Sudabeh and Siavash, lying serves as a tool for revenge and status preservation, resulting in the rupture of the father-son relationship. In Othello, lying functions as a psychological and destructive force that destroys both the victim and the liar. In Medea, lying begins with Jason's betrayal and sets in motion a cycle of deception and annihilation. Following analysis, the story of "Rostam and Sohrab" from Ferdowsi's Shahnameh was selected as the pattern most congruent with Farhadi's personal myth, because in both, lying and concealment are not individual acts but rather tragic factors that dismantle the foundation of the family.



In the sixth stage, a intermythic study was conducted based on the selected narrative, and the relationships of this myth with other homologous myths were identified. In the final analysis, it was determined that the character Nader in A Separation occupies a structural position similar to that of Rostam. Both face a critical moment in which they have the opportunity to tell the truth, yet consciously choose the path of concealment. The difference lies in the fact that in the Shahnameh, the tragedy culminates in Sohrab's physical death, whereas in Farhadi's film, it leads to the "moral death" of Termeh. At the beginning of the film, Termeh is an innocent child, but throughout the narrative, she gradually enters the cycle of lying and offers false testimony in court to defend her father. This event marks a turning point in her moral development and demonstrates that lying, as a cultural pattern, is transmitted from one generation to the next.



In the seventh stage, a transtextual study was conducted within the semantic field pertaining to Farhadi's works to determine whether his personal myth (the white lie) can be generalized to the societal level and to the works of other artists. In this regard, the meta-narrative of Rostam and Sohrab in Ferdowsi's Shahnameh was consulted, and it was demonstrated that Rostam, through his concealment, exemplifies the "white lie" whose consequences are tragic and crisis-inducing, leading to the collapse of the family foundation. In Persian literary texts, a distinction is also made between the "white lie" and the "sedition-inducing lie," as Sa'di emphasizes in Golestān: "An expedient lie is better than a sedition-inducing truth." The results indicated that Farhadi's personal myth is not confined to a single work or individual, but rather, on a broader level, reflects the spirit of the age and the cultural-historical paradigm of Iranian society. The pattern of "expedient concealment" is deeply rooted in Iranian society and is reproduced through everyday behavioral patterns, social structures, and even formal institutions. At the level of family relationships, this pattern manifests as "concealment to maintain appearances," which official statistics identify as one of the significant factors contributing to the increase in emotional divorce and the decline of trust within families. At the societal level, it appears as a "duality between official discourse and everyday life" and "self-censorship." Its consequences can be observed in declining public trust, increasing collective anxiety, and the rupture of human bonds. This pattern is also observable in the works of other contemporary Iranian directors, such as Sa'ādatābād (Maziar Miri), Ghesseh-há (Rakhshan Banietemad), Melbourne (Nima Javidi), and Rahā (Hesam Farahmand).



Ultimately, the present study demonstrated that "lying" is the focal mytheme in Asghar Farhadi's cinema, and that his personal myth is connected to the narrative pattern of "Rostam and Sohrab" in Ferdowsi's Shahnameh. This myth, derived from Rostam's act of concealing the truth of his identity from Sohrab, is not confined to a single work or individual; rather, on a broader level, it reflects the spirit of the age and the cultural-historical paradigm of Iranian society. From this perspective, the "white lie" is not a personal theme but rather a cultural pattern deeply rooted in the Iranian collective unconscious—one that is reproduced across various artistic media and social relations, and that holds the potential for generalization to the works of other filmmakers and artists. This tragic dimension of the myth serves as a warning that lying, even with good intentions, is not a risk-free strategy, and its ultimate outcome may escape individual control and exacerbate personal, familial, and social crises. The findings of this research further demonstrate that mythanalysis, as a method of cultural analysis, can serve as an effective tool for identifying deep-seated intellectual and behavioral patterns in artistic works, and can contribute to a better understanding of the complex interactions among art, myth, and society.