Narration of Death and Martyrdom in the Novel Chess with Doomsday Machine by Habib Ahmadzadeh

Contemplating death and discussing it are common themes in the literature of every nation. The impossible act of creating something from nothing, akin to the presence of life in death, is the contradiction that serves as the essence of creating a work of art. In the novel "Chess with Doomsday Machine," one of the most prominent works of the holy defense literature, there are two contrasting attitudes portrayed by the negative characters, such as the engineer, and the Basiji character, who serves as the narrator. Each of them views the events through a different lens. For this reason, the author aims to introduce the types of death narration and differentiate them from martyrdom. Additionally, the author seeks to explore how Ahmadzadeh was able to elucidate death and martyrdom in his novel from both materialist and spiritualist perspectives. He paid attention to the narrative ways of addressing profound themes of death and martyrdom in this novel. According to this essay, the culture stemming from the concept of martyrdom has consistently been reflected in the portrayal of the characters Musa, Parviz, and Commander. This culture is founded on the values of endurance, steadfastness, and self-sacrifice to the utmost limit. The plot of the story conveys the message that besides reinforcing one's heartfelt beliefs, one should also exhibit humane behavior in line with the values of holy defense. One should always be prepared for any form of martyrdom and sacrifice to uphold the principles of their religion.