A Market in Jerusalem
Forough Farrokhzad, her poetry and life, was the topic of a talk given by Prof. Nasrin Rahimieh at USC last night. I was thoroughly impressed both with the school’s luxurious beauty and its students’ dedication to the promotion of arts and culture. The talk was organized by PASCA, a group mainly consisting of engineers; their interest in Forough reflects her popularity amongst ordinary, non-literary Persian speakers.
What was talked about…
Attended by some thirty students and scholars, it was rather a cozy and friendly atmosphere. Nasrin encouraged everyone to recite the poems and share their opinion. Highlighting Forough’s development as a poet, we started by discussing Sin (gonah), one of her early and less mature works, and we concluded by reading I Grieve for the Garden (delam baray-e baqche misoozad), one of her most mature works in terms of composition and music. An iconic figure of modern Persian poetry, Forough’s daring voice in reciprocating the gaze and love of the male lover in Persian poetry has challenged male-centric literary traditions and conventions. Speaking openly about her sensual desires for the opposite sex, Forough “un-veils” the male figure, physically and culturally.
Every subject that normally comes up about Forough briefly came up last night, her icon-breaking and rebellious nature, her pessimism and lack of hope in humanity, and the struggle with depression. Her documentary the House Is Black (khane siah ast) captures the life of a leper community in Tabriz. Having humanized and beautified the victims of one of the most feared diseases of the twentieth century, Forough does nothing less with her poetry. She adopted a boy from that community who went on to live in Germany and present her works to German audiences. What would Forough have done had she lived beyond the age of 32? That question has had us all think, and dream.
Listen to her Asheqane
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