The representative work of Iranian writer Hedayat (1903— 195 1). The novel describes several life fragments of the great capitalist Haji 194 1. Haji is nearly ninety years old, and with crutches, he earns huge income from manors, bathhouses, rented houses and commercial transactions every year. He also dabbled in politics and gained a good reputation in society. Every day, when he doesn't go to town to do business, there are countless guests visiting or asking for audience: some talk about business, some ask for care, some curry favor with others, and some plot. He is not only busy with big events, but also asks about family affairs in great detail, visits his wives and concubines to communicate with others, hands out everyone's share of sugar, and counts the plums eaten after meals. Politically, he highly praised King Reza's wisdom and Hitler's bravery, and hated the Soviet revolution. 194 1 year, British and Soviet troops entered Iran, and King Reza was forced to abdicate. He fled with his beloved concubine, intending to go to America. Soon after, seeing his friends coming back one by one, he also gave up his plan to go abroad. Pretending to be a defender of democracy and freedom, he engaged in various activities and planned to run for parliament. But the hernia tortured him. He doesn't trust doctors and doesn't want to have an operation. He receives guests in the front hall all day. In order to pretend to be democratic, he asked a poet to write a poem about democracy for him, which was rejected and severely reprimanded by the poet. The next day, he had to be admitted to the hospital. During the operation, under the action of * * * *, he dreamed that angels would not let him go to heaven, heard the scolding of obedient servants on weekdays, and saw the ridicule of his wife in the back room. Finally, the angel made him the gatekeeper of his tortured wife Halima Hatton.
Haji is a typical example of the big landlords and capitalists in Iran. Politically support fascism, oppose proletarian revolution, and hate freedom and democracy. But on the surface, he pretends to be the father of democracy in Iran. He has both bourgeois mercenary and feudal landlord's ignorance and vulgarity. Greed, lust and money are his three characteristics. "When it comes to eating, I immediately laugh, drool straight into my stomach and my eyes are wide open"; He has many wives and concubines, but he still can't bear to see women. Although he is old, he still asks for medicine to get the secret of rejuvenation. Money is his sustenance, his life. "When it comes to money, when I hear the jingle of money, when I reach out and count it, Haji's heart blooms like a bud. Suddenly the whole body is soft. " For the sake of money, he pretended to be poor and complained in front of others, personally asked about daily recipes, and did not hesitate to sever relations with his son, encroach on other people's property, and even betray national interests. He is good at camouflage, have it both ways, so that people have different faces in their minds, which makes people confused about his nature. Haji is also arty and boastful. He knows nothing, even the textbooks of primary school students can't explain clearly, but he develops himself around writing books. Participate in various literary gatherings, but applaud hard when you can't understand the recited poem. In a word, he is reactionary, despicable, greedy, hypocritical and obscene, and he has many bad habits in one.
Master Haji has a special structure. This book consists of three parts. The middle part gives an overview of Haji in the author's tone, and the front and back parts describe the scene of meeting guests in the lobby around 194 1 respectively, which seems to be an example to prove the introduction in the middle part. The repetition and rigidity of the structure, coupled with the dialogue between the front and back parts, are boring; However, it vividly depicts the hero's personality characteristics, and through Haji's meetings and conversations with other characters, it outlines the characters of the ruling group and describes Haji's living environment, making Haji's image appear true and credible. Novels often use typical details and dialogues to describe characters' personalities. The language is plain and accurate, humorous and often makes people laugh.