Tarikh Islam

The period of the caliphate of Imam Ali (35 to 41 Hegira) witnessed mutual exchange of letters between the opposing sides, as a result of the complicated political situation which the death of Uthman had created. Examining these letters with the aim of recognizing the political behavior of the important figures in that period of time contributes to turning a new page of the research in the field of Islamic history. Identifying the key points, including the stylistic devices used by the authors and the arguments, claims, criticisms, etc. which characterize these letters, on one hand and comparing the letter contents with the political behavior of their authors, on the other hand, can contribute to the achievement of the objectives of this study. Using a descriptive-comparative method, this research seeks through a case study to show to what extent the behaviors of Talha and Zubayr conform with their claims. The results of this study show that there is a fundamental contradiction between their claims and their actions. The claims contained in their letters such as claiming allegiance by force, Imam Ali's involvement in the murder of Uthman and Imam Ali's lacking qualification of being a caliph, which represent their main political slogans, do not correspond with the reports and historical documentary evidence.