The Academy of Persian Language and Persianate Culture
Intermediate Persian through Persian Short Stories
Instructor: MH Naraghi
About the course:
Intermediate Persian through Persian Short Stories is a literature-based language course designed for learners who wish to strengthen their Persian reading, speaking, and interpretive skills through close engagement with influential short stories from classical and modern Persian literature. Across twelve sessions, students read and discuss works by major authors such as Houshang Moradi Kermani, Saʿdi, Sadegh Hedayat, Bozorg Alavi, Mohammad Ali Jamalzadeh, and Ali Akbar Dehkhoda, exploring themes including friendship, hardship, humor, love, politics, satire, and social critique. Each session integrates targeted language instruction—focusing on narrative structures, idioms, stylistic registers, and emotional vocabulary—with guided discussions that connect literary meaning to contemporary cultural and social contexts. The course encourages active participation, critical reflection, and comparative discussion, enabling students to deepen both their linguistic competence and their understanding of Persian literary sensibilities.
Content of the course:
Session 1 – Friendship & Trust
Story: قصههای مجید (Majid’s Stories) – هوشنگ مرادی کرمانی (Houshang Moradi Kermani)
Language Focus: Direct vs. indirect speech, conversational style.
Discussion: “What does friendship mean to you?” “Have you had a friend like Majid?”
Session 2 – Hardship & Hope
Story: استخوان خوک و دستهای جذامی (The Pig’s Bone and the Leprous Hands) – مصطفی مستور (Mostafa Mastoor)
Language Focus: Descriptive vocabulary, tone of despair and hope.
Discussion: “How do stories reflect poverty and hardship?” “What role does hope play in human life?”
Session 3 – Contemporary Reflection
Story: از پاریس تا پاریز (From Paris to Pariz) – محمدابراهیم باستانی پاریزی (Mohammad Ebrahim Bastani Parizi)
Language Focus: Integration of connectors, idioms, emotional expressions.
Discussion: “Which story was your favorite?” “How has your view of Persian literature changed?”
Session 4 – Childhood & Simplicity
Story: قصهای از شلوار وصلهدار (A Tale from “The Patched Trousers”) – رسول پرویزی (Rasul Parvizi)
Language Focus: Present/past tense review, descriptive everyday vocabulary.
Discussion: “What does the patched trouser symbolize?” “How do small childhood details carry meaning in literature?”
Session 5 – Humor & Daily Life
Story: لطیفهای کوتاه (A Humorous Anecdote) – عبید زاکانی (Obeyd Zakani)
Language Focus: Past tense verbs, recognizing humor.
Discussion: “What makes something funny in Persian vs. your culture?”
Session 6 – Love & Politics
Story: چشمهایش (Her Eyes) – بزرگ علوی (Bozorg Alavi)
Language Focus: Vocabulary of emotions, politics, and art; complex sentence structures.
Discussion: “How is love tied to political and social struggle?” “What role does art play in this story?”
Session 7 – Moral Lessons
Story: گلستان (Gulistan) – سعدی (Saʿdi)
Language Focus: Proverbs, moral expressions.
Discussion: “Do morals from old stories still apply today?” “Compare it with a story from your culture.”
Session 8 – Food & Satire
Story: کباب غاز (The Roasted Goose) – محمدعلی جمالزاده (Mohammad Ali Jamalzadeh)
Language Focus: Food vocabulary, humor in narrative style.
Discussion: “What does this story show about Persian dining culture?” “How does satire use exaggeration?”
Session 9 – Society & Politics
Story: گاو (The Cow) – غلامحسین ساعدی (Gholamhossein Sa’edi)
Language Focus: Vocabulary for rural life, identity, social commentary.
Discussion: “How does this story reflect Iranian society?” “Why is The Cow so symbolic in Iranian cinema and literature?”
Session 10 – Symbolism & Darkness
Story: زنده بهگور (Buried Alive) – صادق هدایت (Sadegh Hedayat)
Language Focus: Adjectives, tone, and existential vocabulary.
Discussion: “How does this story reflect despair?” “What symbols are used to show isolation?”
Session 11 – Love & Human Relations
Story: داستانی کوتاه (A Short Story) – منیرو روانیپور (Moniro Ravanipour)
Language Focus: Emotions, descriptive language, and relationships.
Discussion: “What role does love play in Persian storytelling?” “How are female voices in literature different?”
Session 12 – Satire & Social Critique
Story: چرند و پرند (Nonsense) – علیاکبر دهخدا (Ali Akbar Dehkhoda)
Language Focus: Idioms, sarcasm, and irony in Persian.
Discussion: “What problems is the author criticizing?” “If you wrote satire today, what would you target?”
Course Details
Schedule: Thursday, 29 January 2026 – 9 April 2026
Time: 9:00–10:15 AM (US Pacific), 12:00–1:15 PM (US Eastern), 6:00–7:15 PM (Central European)
Format: 12 online sessions
Tuition: $300 (payable in 4 installments)
Note: Class days and times may be adjusted in accordance with the request of enrollees.
Registered participants will receive full access to recorded session videos and all course materials.
Registration link: https://forms.gle/4DJhsMC9b8EQpUGu6