In a translation of "Rostam and Sohrab" by Helem Zimmern
(see link below), the story begins:
"Give ear unto the combat of Sohrab against
Rostam, though it be a tale replete with
tears."
From the beginning,
the reader knows that this Persian legend will involve not only tragedy ("tears") but
also some type of conflict between the two characters. Thus, throughout the tale, the
father-son pair, Rostam and Sohrab, are separated. Sohrab spends his whole youth
searching for his warrior father but begins to lose hope that he will ever find him.
Ironically (as many legends go), Rostam and Sohrab meet in battle against each other,
and even when there is opportunity for them to know each other's identity, they are
deceived by manipulative villains or ruled by their own skepticism. It is not until
Rostam throws Sohrab on the ground, breaking his back, that he and Sohrab realize that
they are father and son. While Rostam is able to spare his son torture from Sohrab's
enemies, he must still live with the knowledge that he delivered the death blow to his
only son who wanted nothing more than to know his
father.
The story also possesses Aristotle's elements of
tragedy. It includes a tragic hero (both Rostam and Sohrab) whose tragic flaw (primarily
pride) leads to his (in this case, "their") tragic
downfall.
As a side note, Khaled Hosseini masterfully uses
"Rostam and Sohrab" as an allegory in his bestselling novel The Kite
Runner.
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