This article studies the principles and historical backgrounds of the purposefulness theory of the sūras (chapters) of the Qur'an. The first part of the article deals with the explanation of the features of the purposefulness theory of the sūras. The writer maintains that the accurate elucidation of these features would answer many of the misinterpretations and oppositions raised against this theory. In the second part of the article, the principles concerning the purposefulness of the sūras are enumerated and, in this relation, the consistency of the principles of attractiveness in Divine and human words, the revealed structure of the sūras, and purposefulness of the Qur'an are pointed out. In the final part, the article addresses the historical course of this theory and examines its development process in reliable Shī‘ī and Sunnī interpretations from the seventh/thirteenth century to the present era.
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