ABSTRACT
This is an introduction to the concept of evidentiality; its definition, its coding in Persian, the rationale behind evidentiality analysis, and semantic-pragmatic functions of evidentiality. The main question of the monograph has been discussed here and the hypothesis has been mentioned. The reason that three of Sa‘dī’s masterpieces, namely Būstān, Golestān, and Sonnets, have been chosen is explained. The methodology of analysis and the preliminary results are mentioned. The rest of the introduction summarizes the main content and aim of the chapters that follow. In the first chapter, the outstanding question will be: What are the evidentials good for from a pure linguistic aspect? In the second chapter: What are the evidentials good for in literature from a literary theory point of view? The third chapter deals with the evidentiality manifested in the given masterpieces. The fourth chapter compares the arrangement and application of this linguistic marker as is used in Būstān, Golestān, and Sonnets. In the last chapter, some cognitive, stylistic, and functional explanations are presented, beside a snapshot of the book.
