The beginning of the process of saving Iran from medieval scholasticism was set by the progressive forces that grew up in Azerbaijan at the beginning of the 20th century. The national liberation and mashrut movement led by Sattar Khan in 1906-1911, which shook the whole of Iran, the national liberation movement led by Sheikh Mohammad Khiyabani in 1920 and which was successful for a short time, and many other popular movements are clear evidence of this. The establishment of an independent democratic government in South Azerbaijan in the 40s of the 20th century, of course, encouraged the development of prose as well as many other areas of literary and cultural life.
In addition to examples of prose whose theme is taken from contemporary life, it is also possible to find examples addressing the recent past, the history and heroes of the national liberation movement in the forties. Of course, at the very beginning, this is observed in writings written in the genre of literary memoirs. One of such works is the writing "Memories about Sardari-milli" by Gulameli Samsam, who closely participated in the Sattar Khan movement and became a comrade-in-arms of this national hero. This work, written on the basis of the author's own personal observations and meetings, is interesting from the point of view of opening the people's movement, the Mashruta revolution from another perspective.
One of the valuable examples of the memoir literature created in this period is the work "From the Prison Memories" written in Persian by the leader of the national democratic movement, Seyyed Jafar Peshavari. The language of the work could not prevent the emergence of the Azerbaijani thinking in it, the approach to the happenings from the Azerbaijani position. The work is remembered for its exposure of the arbitrariness that prevailed in Iran's social structure in the 1920s-1940s. Mir Jafar Peshavari's work "From the Prison Memories Notebook", which he wrote while in prison, occupies an important place in his literary works. The work consists of memories of the events that the author saw, witnessed, personally participated in:
The first examples of prose, which was formed mainly in the native language in South Azerbaijan, were published in the "Azerbaijan" newspaper, which began to be published in Tabriz in 1941. M. Hilali, Veyler Haili and Namza Fathi Khoshginabi were the first successful authors of fiction prose, which was represented mostly by the narrative genre. Especially after the establishment of the National government, these writers and their ranks M. Armaghani, G. Samsam, G. Sabahi and others. it is possible to see that the nasirs work with great enthusiasm and productivity.
Known as one of the active members of the democratic movement from a young age, Hamza Fathi Khoshginabi, who wrote his works in three languages - Azerbaijani, Persian and Russian, is a writer with an original style, fluent language, and interesting figurative expressions. When he returned to Tabriz in 1945, he continued his literary activity mainly in his native language, published dozens of political-themed feuilletons, essays, and stories in "Azerbaijan" newspaper, where he was the editor-in-chief. The author's short stories "Watered Steels", "Love and War", "Züleykha", "Ibrahim" and other stories can be considered among the first successful examples of modern South Azerbaijani prose.
The story "Revenge" by M. Hilali, who introduced himself to a wide audience with his artistic prose examples during the period of independence, tells about the unbearable life of poor people. In the story, a villager named Mashadi Ghulam takes revenge on a richly dressed gentleman who fell from a carriage in front of the shop and the reasons for it are revealed.
Mashadi Ghulam does not regret taking revenge on her master, but after being in prison, she thinks about her daughter's fate and tells the investigator to feel sorry for her daughter. The eyes of the investigator listening to him are filled with tears. In the story, Mashadi Ghulam's revenge against the deviant master to protect his right is praised by the writer.
In this period, Azerbaijani intellectuals who joined the Soviet army had a great role in the formation and development of South Azerbaijani prose based on the Northern example. One of the leading places among them is, without a doubt, Jafar Khandan, a prominent Azerbaijani literary scholar, writer and poet. In 1944-1945, he organized the "Council of Poets" under the Golden Soldier newspaper "On the Homeland" published in Tabriz, and did exceptional work in the development of literature in South Azerbaijan, especially in the formation of artistic prose. Seyyed Jafar Peshavari, one of the leaders of the democratic movement, who appreciated the short-term work of this assembly - only one year, wrote:
"What our poets wrote from last year (September) to the present year can be more than what they wrote in fifty years." Of course, it is clear that here we are not talking about the quantity and number of written works, but about their content, social content, and the role they play in solving the problems facing the people and the state. When approached from this point of view, one cannot fail to admit that there is a great share of truth in the words of Seyyed Jafar Peshawar.
Ali Tude, who remembers how the publication of a short story by the prominent Azerbaijani writer Mirza Ibrahimov, who is originally from South Azerbaijan and therefore close to the Tabriz literary environment, caused a wide response in the newspaper "On the Way to the Homeland", writes:
"In those days, the writer (Mirza Ibrahimov - M.M.) also wrote a story called "Nakam amorov" on a modern theme. The work was published in parts in the newspaper "On the Way to the Homeland" under the signature of "Ajdaroglu". The story told about the life of a family living in Tabriz. People from Tabriz they eagerly awaited the new issue of the newspaper so that they could read the story after the story. Many of them did not have enough newspapers. Close neighbors would gather in one house. One would read the work aloud, others would listen with interest and excitement. At that time, perhaps there were many people in Tabriz who did not know Mirza Ibrahimov. But there was no one who did not know Ajdaroglu."
As you can see, Mirza Ibrahimov's artistically penned narrative gathered the literary enthusiasts of an entire city and thus inspired other new writers to try their pens in the field of prose.
The fall of the National Government of South Azerbaijan, whose fate is very similar to the fate of the Azerbaijan Democratic Republic, but differs from it in that it is shorter-term and tragic, will remain one of the eternal black pages of our history as one of the greatest calamities experienced by the Azerbaijani people. The fate of the South Azerbaijan National Government, which was treacherously handed over to the bloody claws of Persian chauvinism with the participation of the Armenian henchmen of Stalin's regime, was not so different from the fate of the twenty percent of Northern Azerbaijan lands that were occupied as a result of the combination of Armenian treachery and Russian chauvinism.
1946-cı ilin dekabr ayında Qəvamüssəltənənin fitnə-fəsadları və Stalinin türklərə qarşı xəyanətkarlığı, eləcə də beynəlxalq xristian imperializminin razılığı əsasında Cənubi Azərbaycanda Milli hökumət öz qızıl qanında boğuldu, xalqın təzə-təzə çiçək açan arzuları, sürətli inkişaf yoluna qədəm qoymuş ədəbiyyat və mədəniyyət kobud sərbaz çəkmələri altında tapdalandı, yerlə yeksan edildi. "Həbs edilənlər, sürgünə göndərilənlər, ölümə məhkum edilənlər, vətəndən didərgin salınanlar sırasında nasirlər də var idi. Bütün bunlar isə janrın inkişafına ağır zərbə vurmaya bilməzdi".
Bu dövrün nəsrini ənənələrdən ayrılmağa qoymayan sənətkarlar arasında Gəncəli Səbahinin adını xüsusi qeyd etmək lazımdır. Onun xüsusilə "Həyat faciələrindən" adlı povesti irtica illərinin bütün dəhşətlərini bədii sözün qüdrəti ilə oxucuya çatdırmaq baxımından böyük əhəmiyyət kəsb edir.
1950-ci ildə qələmə alınmış, ancaq duz otuz il sonra - 1980-ci i1də işıq üzü görmüş "Həyat faciələri" povesti, adından da göründüyü kimi, sənətkarın ətrafında görüb müşahidə etdiyi, bədii təhlil süzgəcindən keçirərək ümumiləşmiş şəkildə qələmə aldığı insan talelərinin, faciələrinin bədii təcəssümüdür.
Ancaq Azərbaycan Respublikası müstəqillik əldə etdikdən sonra Şimalla Cənub arasında istər siyasi və iqtisadi və istərsə də ədəbi-mədəni əlaqələrin xeyli genişlənməsi bütövlükdə Güney Azərbaycan ədəbiyyatının inkişafına da güclü təkan vermiş oldu. Lakin əvvəlki mərhələlərdə olduğu kimi, burada da biz daha çox mənzum janrın inkişafından və sayca zənginləşməsindən danışa bilərik. Nəsrə gəldikdə isə onun inkişafında, janrca və sayca zənginləşməsində müəyyən problemlərin olduğunu görürük ki, bu da müəyyən obyektiv və subyektiv səbəblərlə bağlıdır. Bunların arasında ən başlıcası kimi, xüsusən 80-ci illərin ikinci yarısından başlayaraq İran İslam Respublikasında totalitar rejimin güclənməsi, müəyyən mövzuların bədii ədəbiyyata gətirilməsinə, onların problem səviyyəsinə qaldırılmasına qadağa qoyulması, bəzən rəsmi dairələr tərəfindən aktual həyat həqiqətlərinin olduğu kimi bədii inikas etdirilməsi yolunda maneələr yaradılması və sair səbəblər göstərmək olar.
Əsərdə aparıcı motivlərdən birini də istibdad dövründə ana dilinin qadağan edilməsi və bu ədalətsiz, şovinist siyasətin roman qəhrəmanlarının ürəyində doğurduğu qəzəb və etiraz duyğularıdır. Bütöv bir millətin dilini "çoban dili, qeyri-elmi dil" adlandıraraq həmin dildə çap olunmuş kitabları, hətta müqəddəs Quranın türkcə tərcüməsini belə yandırmağa hazır olan şah rejimi nümayəndələrinin işləklərini, ancaq bəşər mədəniyyətinin quduz düşməni olan, Avropanın göbəyində kitablardan tonqal qalayan faşistlərin qeyri-insani hərəkətləri ilə müqayisə etmək olar.
Bütövlükdə çağdaş Güney Azərbaycan nəsri 80 illik formalaşma və inkişafı dövründə keşməkeşli bir yol keçmiş, bəzən coşğun inkişafın, bəzən süstlük və durğunluğun dadını da hiss etmişdir. Ancaq bütövlükdə bu hərəkatın inkişaf xətti yüksələn olmuşdu və indi də həmin istiqamətdə öz yürüşünü davam etdirir.
