Giwe's unwavering loyalty and honor for Kay-Khosrow is admirable and shows why he is well respected. He sacrifices his own life for Kay and does his best to convince him on why his survival is important for the better of the kingdom. This shows the importance of leadership and why Giwe is willing to sacrifice himself because he knows that the empire will not be successful without a good leader in place. His selflessness is also inspiring for a lot of readers as people tend to forget that being selfless can be admirable. As humans, we want the attention and credit for achievements so to see someone else give up their pride for a larger cause, it is very admirable and encourages other people to do the same in similar situations. Similar to Giwe, there are people on the frontlines and in war who put themselves out there for a similar reason as they want to protect the people in their country and are fighting for something much bigger than themselves. While not everyone is fighting for something bigger than them, Giwe reminds us to work for something bigger than us and to have a positive impact on other people because that is what we should do as people. Not to mention, Kay-Khosrow is successful in enacting revenge over Afrasiyab showing that good will always triumph over evil and continuing the legacy of his father. CC BY Ajey Sasimugunthan (contact)

Kay-Khosrow coming to find out his true heritage is an interesting moment because there is so much internal conflict as he is young and now is confused about his upbringing. He has come to express his own dissatisfaction with his simple upbringing despite being from loyalty and is now told the truth. The feeling must be bittersweet because he knows the truth on one hand but feels like he must have been lied to for his entire life. He feels a disconnect between his lowly origins in comparison to the elevated treatment he can get now being of royalty. It is similar to the feeling someone must feel if they are told that they were adopted later in life. They feel like they lose a part of themselves as they think they are not true members of the family and face a lot of internal conflict about their upbringing and why they were lied to for such a long time. The reference of "son of a shepherd" is what allows the readers to understand that he had a simple life growing up which is why it must feel out of place for him to be associated with royalty. An interesting theme that this brings up is the idea of social status and how that plays into someone's personal identity. People are judged by the social status they belong in so it must be an interesting transition for him to move up social status where he will be treated more favorably as well. It raises the question as to why people in higher social status gets to be treated better when all people should inherently be treated equally. CC BY Ajey Sasimugunthan (contact)

Siawosh's deep sense of honor, sacrifice, and duty can be highlighted here as he faces death soon but still shows his character as a loyal person. The horse itself symbolizes Siawosh's personal and martial identity in which it captures his own heroism. His loyalty and persistence in his beliefs reflects how noble he is and how selfless he is as he prioritizes the future of his lineage rather than himself. The hope that Siawosh's son can avenge his death ties into the idea of legacy as he wants family to correct the wrongdoing of his death. It is also interesting that he wants his son to continue this natural cycle of revenge because it will keep happening until someone stops or a mutual agreement comes into place. While this may be the case, the big reason he wants to avenge his loss is because of justice. It is a universal theme that everyone mostly believes as we all want what is right. In the case of Siawosh, the taking of his life was unjust and revenge in his mind is the best way to enact justice especially considering the betrayal that he just faced. CC BY Ajey Sasimugunthan (contact)

This quote shows a turning point in the story as the relationship between Afrasiyab and Siawosh has become better. An interesting image from this quote is "the lamb and leopard" because you would never see these two animals feeding each other but this symbolizes harmony that was not seen before and shows how even the most unlikely of enemies can still get along with one another. In a day and age where people are more selfish and want more attention, we forget to sacrifice for others and put our own ego to the side for the sake of others. It is like any relationship as it requires mutual understanding and respect in order for them to get along and enjoy life with one another. Another topic that comes into play is politics since both sides usually do not like each other but this quote instills hope in readers than even the worst enemies with totally different ideas and beliefs can still get along in the most dire circumstances. CC BY Ajey Sasimugunthan (contact)

The quote highlights the internal dilemma that Siawosh faces between his own integrity and the circumstances that he is currently facing. Referencing "Urmazd" serves to undermine the actual gravity of the dilemma he is and also highlights the divine weight of the oath that he has taken. Not to mention, he is torn between whether to honor the promises that he is made up to this point or to make sure further conflict and damages do not occur. Diction is important in this quote as "perdition" puts an emphasis on the inevitable damages that will occur no matter what decision that Siawosh decides to take. People have been in situations where their previous decisions lead them to a point where no decisions can make the situation better. It is like the saying goes that you can only control what is front of you but it is hard to do that when past actions have already inflicted too much damage. Despite the harsh reality that Siawosh is facing, it serves as a lesson that individuals who uphold their values are not always able to carry out good circumstances in a world filled with politics and conflict. CC BY Ajey Sasimugunthan (contact)

A pivotal moment is captured by this moment as we see a shift in the mindset of Afrasiyab. He does a smart calculation and realizes that negotiating for peace is much better than continuing to wage war as it will exhaust his people and just delay their defeat. Not to mention, this smart approach can be described as cost-benefit analysis which is taught in economics and business. While he might not emerge victorious from this encounter, the benefit of having peace greatly outweighs the mental distress and outpour of resources needed to continue fighting. Not to mention, the idea of using jewelry and other expensive gifts to negotiate for peace shows that the concept of giving gifts to make people feel better has existed for a very long time. Moreover, this diplomatic gesture underscores the idea that material goods can make up for conflicts and political disagreements. The contrast between Siawosh's approach and Afrasiyab is interesting because one does it for honor while the other does it to prevent further disasters. Analyzing this difference, it highlights how different motivations and values can affect leadership and shows the importance of having a leader with the right qualities. CC BY Ajey Sasimugunthan (contact)

The imagery behind this scene is very compelling as you can imagine the relief that a lot of people must have felt since Siawosh was proven innocent and did not get hurt. In addition, the build up in tension reaches a point where the audience is highly anticipating what would happen to Siawosh which is a compliment to the use of good figurative language. The outcome of the trial is similar to how people might feel when an innocent family member was accused of doing something then proven innocent later on. Because the entire community celebrated his innocence, it shows how Siawosh is well liked in his community and that his well being is important to others. It also shows the importance of not jumping to conclusions immediately as seen here with Siawosh. Not to mention, getting through the fire is a testament to his purity and righteous heart. In hindu culture and other cultures alike, they might tell someone to touch a fire if they think they might be lying because they would not be hurt if they were telling the truth. It is interesting to see that idea play out in this text and shows that it is more common that what I originally thought. CC BY Ajey Sasimugunthan (contact)