Tense Shifts In The Narratives Of Surat Al-Kahf: A Stylistic Study

Abstract

This study examines the movement of time through the medium of the verb within the Quranic text, specifically focusing on the narratives mentioned in Surat Al-Kahf. These consist of four primary stories: the People of the Cave, the owners of the two gardens, Moses and the Righteous Servant (Al-Khidr), and Dhul-Qarnayn.

Time fluctuates through verbal shifts and varied semantic connotations—spanning the past, present, and future—based on the definition of the verb as an event intrinsically linked to time. This research seeks to extrapolate the dynamic movement of time across these four narratives through stylistic analysis. It aims to elucidate the nature of temporal shifts and compare their manifestations in each story relative to the others.

The study emphasizes that these "verbo-temporal" transitions are meticulously aligned with the Quranic narrative structure, as their placement within each story is essential to constructing the intended meaning and achieving the specific rhetorical objectives of each account.