Document Type : Original Research Paper
Authors
1
Assistant Professor, Department of Media Arts, Faculty of Religion and Media, IRIB University, Iran
2
MA in Philosophy of Media, Faculty of Religion and Media, IRIB University, Iran
Abstract
This article, grounded in Linda Zagzebski’s Exemplarist Moral Theory, explores the moral capacities of television narratives—particularly Iranian drama series—for fostering moral understanding and the cultivation of character. In contrast to rule-based ethical theories, Zagzebski locates the source of moral knowledge in lived encounters with virtuous individuals—encounters that begin with moral admiration, unfold through moral imagination, and culminate in emulative identification. On this account, narrative fiction—including serialized television—can serve as a potent medium for such formative moral encounters. Methodologically, the study employs a combination of conceptual analysis in moral philosophy and narrative analysis in media studies. It first explicates core notions from Zagzebski’s framework—such as moral admiration, knowledge by acquaintance, and moral emulation—as analytical tools. It then examines five influential Iranian television series (Hezar Dastan, Once Upon a Time, The Tales of Majid, Imam Ali, and The Times of Gharib) through the lenses of gradual narrative development, character-centered storytelling, and ethical complexity. The findings indicate that these series—through layered character arcs, dramatization of moral conflict, and evocation of responses such as admiration or revulsion—create conditions in which viewers engage with figures like Morad Beyg, Reza Tofangchi, Dr. Gharib, and the grandmother in Majid not merely as spectators but as affective and imaginative participants. Such engagement enables a non-propositional moral grasp and the internalization of virtue. Finally, the article argues that the cultural embeddedness of these series—through vernacular language, historical context, and collective memory—plays a vital role in reinforcing the moral accessibility and exemplariness of their characters.
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