Iranian poets who have written stories

The literary service of the Iran Book News Agency (IBNA) – Marzieh Negahban Marvi: Iranian literature, especially since the Constitutional Revolution, has been the arena for the confluence of two important realms: poetry and storytelling. Poetry has always held a distinguished position in Iranian culture, and poets have been the cultural heroes of society. However, from the mid-20th century, with the growth of storytelling and the expansion of modern literature, many poets felt that they needed to move beyond the metrical and imagery limitations of poetry to express broader concepts and more complex experiences of modern man. Thus, poets such as Nima Youshij, Ahmad Shamloo, Mehdi Akhavan Sales, Forough Farrokhzad, Mohammad Ali Sepanlou, Shams Langroudi, Seyed Ali Salehi, Ahmad Reza Ahmadi, Reza Barahani, and others also ventured into storytelling or novel writing. But did all of them, in this journey from poetry to prose, manage to be equally brilliant, and did their stories receive as much attention and become as enduring as their poems?

Nima Youshij; From New Poetry to New Narrative

Ali Esfandiari, known as Nima Youshij (1897–1959), the founder of modern Persian poetry, was one of the first poets to also write in the field of storytelling. Before the establishment of the Nimai style, he wrote allegorical and social stories, among which are: “The Shrine of Agha” (1930, Marjan Publications), “The Giant Woman and Her Chariot,” “Bad Na’al,” and “Along the Way.” A collection of Nima’s stories was published in a book titled “…”.

In “The Shrine of Agha,” Nima satirically criticizes the superstitions and fanaticism of the people of northern Iran. In this story, popular and superstitious beliefs are subjected to poetic criticism. In fact, Nima, with the same enlightened spirit that transformed Persian poetry, also sought to create a transformation in storytelling; not a literary transformation, but a transformation in popular beliefs.

However, unlike his poetry, Nima’s stories did not receive much public attention. Critics considered his prose poetic, metaphorical, and sometimes complex.

Ahmad Shamloo; A Poet Who Understood Stories, But Wasn’t a Storyteller

Ahmad Shamloo (1925–2000) was a multifaceted figure: poet, translator, journalist, narrator, researcher, and cultural activist. He wrote stories such as: “The Tent the Night Caught Fire” (1955) and “The Gates and the Great Wall of China” (1973), and translated a number of foreign short stories, including works by Akutagawa and Exupéry’s “The Little Prince.”

Although Shamloo reached unattainable heights in poetry, he did not last long in storytelling. Some critics believe that Shamloo was “too much of a poet” for storytelling; his imagination sometimes swallowed the narrative.

Mehdi Akhavan Sales; Poet of Winter and Narrator of “The Jinn-Possessed Man”

Mehdi Akhavan Sales (1928–1990), the renowned poet from Khorasan, after establishing his position in Nimai poetry, also began writing stories. He published the collection “The Jinn-Possessed Man” (1975), which included four short stories. In 1976, he also published a story for teenagers called “The Old Tree and the Forest.”

Akhavan preserved the same ancient and dignified language of his poetry in his prose. His stories are full of mythological feeling, bitter humor, and social criticism. In the famous story “Eid Night,” he skillfully uses the colloquial Mashhadi dialect.

Some critics, like Morteza Kakhi, in the memorial “The Leafless Garden,” referred to him as a “poet-narrator”; someone who continues his poetry in the form of a story. Nevertheless, ordinary readers of Akhavan’s poetry are not as familiar with his stories as they are with his poems.

Forough Farrokhzad; Between Poetry, Cinema, and Story

Forough Farrokhzad (1934–1966), the poet of rebellion and liberation, is another figure who, alongside poetry, also wrote stories. Six short stories by her were recently collected from magazines by Leila Kordbacheh and published by Vaj Publications.

The common theme of all these stories is love, loneliness, and protest against patriarchal traditions. Forough’s prose, like her poetry, has a simple but profound language; honest, raw, and explicit. In fact, she used stories to express the same existential themes of her poetry.

Although Forough did not formally engage in novel writing, her short stories show that one can also be a poet in prose. Of course, Forough’s stories also did not become as famous as her poetry, and many of her readers may not have seen or read these stories.

Mohammad Ali Sepanlou; Poet of the City, Men, and Stories

Mohammad Ali Sepanlou (1940–2015), one of the founders of modern urban poetry in Iran, also had a hand in storytelling. He published the collection “Men” (1970), which included five short stories. Alongside that, he also authored and compiled research works such as “Recreating Reality” and “In Search of Reality” in the field of contemporary Iranian fiction. Sepanlou’s stories mostly deal with urban space and modern man, and the trace of the poet’s sociological perspective is evident in them. However, he is known more as a poet and researcher than as a storyteller.

Ahmad Reza Ahmadi; Poet of the New Wave and Calm Prose

Ahmad Reza Ahmadi (born 1940), one of the figures of the New Wave poetry school, entered adult fiction with his novel “Apartment, Sea.” This novel, published by Nika Publications, has a simple, pictorial, and minimalist language; just like Ahmadi’s short and solitary poems. Ahmadi was previously active in children’s and young adult literature and wrote dozens of books for this age group. He is one of the few poets who managed to create a natural bridge and a homogeneous language between poetry and prose; a prose in which poetry gently breathes. However, in Ahmadi’s case too, his poetic fame outweighs his fame as a storyteller.

Shams Langroudi; Poet of the Wooden Nightingale and Modernist Novelist

Mohammad Shams Langroudi (born 1951) is a poet from the post-revolution era. Alongside his poetry collections, he has also written several fictional works: “Parade on Hollow Earth” (1993, Markaz Publications), “Those Who Came to My House” (Ofogh Publications), and his new novel “I’m Going to the Concert” (Ofogh Publications), which has been extensively promoted in the book market.

Shams considers storytelling a natural continuation of his poetry. His prose is poetic, contemplative, and sometimes surrealistic; on the border between reality and imagination. In an interview, he said: “In short poems, I speak briefly; in novels, with a long breath; but in both, I seek the music of words.”

Seyed Ali Salehi; Poet of Speech and Writer of Philosophical Novels

Seyed Ali Salehi (born 1965), the founder of the Speech Poetry school, is one of the most prolific contemporary poets. But he has also published several novels and novellas: “Dance of Suffering” (1980), “The Good of Those Years” (1982), “Tazkereh Iliyat” (1986), and “The Death of the Leopard” (2008).

In his novels, Salehi deals with philosophical and social concepts, but still remains within the framework of poetic language. He has published many of his works under the pseudonym “Khosrow Nasimi.” Critics consider him a more successful poet than a novelist, yet his prose is full of imagery and music.

Reza Barahani; Alchemist of Words Between Poetry and Novel

Reza Barahani (1935–2019), a great poet, novelist, and literary critic, is one of the few poets who also created influential works in novels and achieved fame and prominence in storytelling as much as in poetry. His important novels include: “The Infernal Times of Mr. Ayaz” (1970), “What Happened After the Wedding,” “The Song of the Slain” (1983), “The Secrets of My Land” (1987), and “Azadeh Khanom and Her Writer” (1997).

The last novel is a postmodern and multi-layered work, approximately six hundred pages long, and is considered one of the influential works of contemporary prose. Barahani, according to Hélène Cixous, was an “alchemist of words”; a poet who broke down the boundaries between poetry, theory, and novel. He was one of the first writers who truly realized the concept of modern Persian poetic prose.

Other Figures

Esmail Shahroudi and Nosrat Rahmani also wrote short stories, which, although not very famous, still carry the spirit of poetry. Also, Emran Salahi (1946–2006), a humorous poet, has a humorous novel titled “You Might Not Believe It” (1995) in his repertoire.

Why Do Poets Turn to Storytelling?

Change in Mode of Expression: A poet sometimes feels that poetry is not enough to express broader human and social experiences. The novel allows him to experience narrative and dialogue.

Economic Prosperity and Publishing Market: As Abbas Jahangirian has said: “A poet gets nowhere from selling poetry, but stories have a livelier market.”

Linguistic and Structural Experimentation: For poets like Barahani or Shams Langroudi, the novel is an arena for experimenting with form and language. In novels, they continue poetry in another way.

Freedom from the Constraints of Poetic Form: In poetry, one must be concise and condensed, but in a novel, details can be recounted. Many poets needed this “longer breath.”

Poet or Storyteller? That is the Question

A group of contemporary Iranian poets tried to continue their poetic endeavors in the realm of storytelling, and that’s what happened; they remained poets and never became famous in storytelling; except for Barahani, whose stories also became prominent and influential in the world of contemporary storytelling. The rest either remained mediocre or were not seen at all.

Now, it remains to be seen whether Shams Langroudi’s book “I’m Going to the Concert” will shine, or if Reza Barahani will remain the only exception in this field.