Letters
March 1-5, 1999 / Esfand 10-15,1377
Today
* Women:
- Iranian women are mature and aware
- Insulting & inaccurate
- Poetry - not lifestyle - made the difference
Previous
* Bahrampour:
- Too long & descriptive
* Abadan:
- Owpatan to Obbadan to Abadan
* Angylina:
- Silicone
- I was born in [BLANK]
* Tourism:
- Things have improved
email us
Friday,
March 5, 1999
* Iranian women are mature and aware
You have made a number of assumptions and generalizations ["To
live or to be alive?"]. There is more to life of Iranians than
the relationship between women and men and even your look at that has been
one-sided. On the issues that you have raised, there is a wide spectrum
but your contacts included only a certain group. Who cares that there are
women who haven't experienced going to a party until they are 22? Do you
know how many men live in Iran who never experienced the joys of parties?!
In my visit to Iran in April 1998, on a number of occasions, I was delighted
and proud to hear young women discussing literature, movies and plays everywhere
(even while waiting in line to see a play). I really wonder how many girls
their age in America are able to see things at this level of maturity and
depth? They looked at men straight in the eyes and were very much clear
about what they have and what they need to fight for ... FULL
TEXT
Yassaman Mottaghipour
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* Insulting & inaccurate
Ms. Khalili's portrayal of women ["To
live or to be alive?"] in Iran is an insult to all Iranian women
who despite deep-rooted social and political constraints, have made great
strides for representation and participation in the society. A bourgeois
reflection of Iranian women as portrayed by Ms. Khalili is unjust and inaccurate
... FULL TEXT
Jafar Javan
Washington DC
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* Poetry - not lifestyle - made the difference
Forough Farrokhzad's fame came from her poetry and not her choice of
life style, meaning if she had not written a single verse of poetry, would
she still be the "Magnificent Living" in Laleh Khalili's commentary
["To
live or to be alive?"]? it goes without saying not every woman
who chooses to leave her husband and child, etc.., is a poet nor becomes
famous, at least not for poetry!
Sepehr Sohab
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Thursday
March 4, 1999
* Too long & descriptive
I first learned about Tara Bahrampour, the author of "To see and
see again", from excerpts
in The Iranian magazine. Then a couple of weeks ago I heard her interview
on the U.S. National Public Radio. Finally I met her at Politics and Pros
bookstore where she read parts of her book .
My husband and I both read the book (I have not finished it yet) and
we both think that the book is lengthy and too descriptive. A lot of times
it feels like I am reading a detailed dictionary of Farsi words in English!
One can easily skip paragraphs even pages without missing the story.
When she explains about her childhood I don't feel that I am reading
about a young girl of this generation. It easily fits my time and my childhood
rather than my daughter's (I am in my forties).
Of course this is my take from the book. Maybe because I am too familiar
with the culture. I am sure the book would be more interesting for my daughter
or the younger Iranians who are not as familiar with Iranian culture.
I admire Bahrampour's interest and effort in searching for her Iranian
heritage and wish that all young Iranian are as enthusiastic about their
motherland and their root as she is.
Simin Habibian
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Wednesday
March 3, 1999
* Owpatan to Obbadan to Abadan
I was born and raised in Abadan
although my father and mother were Zoroastrians from Yazd. I like to give
you a brief explanation about the name of our hometown: Abadan.
When I was a young boy I asked about the meaning of "Abadan"
and people always interpreted it as "a place that is aabaad"
(flourishing). Many years later when I went to university I found a book
named Iranvij by Dr Bahram Frahvashi and there was a short explanation
about Abadan's name.
According to this book: there was a small castle and light tower near
the mouth of Arvand river, built to protect the waterway and guiding boats
or small ships in and out of the river. This place initially called OWPATAN
which is combination of OW (aab=water), PAT (pad=defend or protect) and
AN (jaa/makaan=place). Put together OW-PAT-AN means the place for protecting
water.
"P" changed to "B" during the Islamic period and
the name became Obbadan and finally during recent times it turned into
Abadan.
Daryoush Mehrshahi
Geography Department
Sheffield University
England
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Tuesday
March 2, 1999
* Silicone
Dear Angylina,
Silicone parts are made for toys. Also, next time try having someone
proofread what you write. Say hello to your "attourney".
Nariman Neyshapouri
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* I was born in [BLANK]
Since [you quoted part
of Angylina's biogrpahy] she has taken out the part that says she is
from Tehran, Iran.
Simin Habibian
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Monday
March 1, 1999
* Things have improved
Dear Khodadad,
Based on your article ["Waking
the friendly giant"], I am to assume that
you have not been to Iran for quite some time. I had an opportunity to
travel with 12 foreigners last year and we saw all the mid to southern
parts of Iran by car. We camped where we could and stayed at hotels in
locations which were dangerous due to smugglers.
I was quite surprised to see that the Iranian
historical conservation society has started to preserve historical locations.
It also charges the tourists (foreigners pay dollars and Iranians rials).
Also, there were souvenir shops and beautiful traditional coffee shops
where you could rest and have anything from cold soda to cappuccinos. I
was also amazed at the number of tour buses full of Japanese, Italian and
German tourists.
Another point is that on Iranian TV they have
a program called Good Morning Iran. It takes you to different parts of
Iran every morning and shows the best parts of the country. This way people
get to learn about their beautiful country and make plans to visit these
locations. There are well-organized tours provided for Iranians as well
as foreigners.
Here is the downside: The hotels in Iran are not
privately owned and have been operated by the bonyads. So they have not
been maintained in over 20 years. Also in you can only travel with your
family members. If you are a female you cannot travel easily either.
But over all, there is a shift in the attention
given to tourism.
Ferial
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