Reflections on Literature after the 1979 Revolution in Iran and in the Diaspora

Abstract

This essay highlights the changes in literature in Iran and in the diaspora since the 1979 Iranian Revolution, and it especially emphasizes the role of literature and writers in responding to the societal changes in Iran, as well as to the experience of immigration to the West. The role of women writers, in particular, is suggestive of the ways in which the revolution has enabled new voices to emerge even despite the restrictive and repressive policies of the Islamic Republic. Women have been at the forefront of the literature of the diaspora and have taken opportunities to narrate and represent their experiences, becoming the progenitors of a literary movement in the West. This literature of diaspora has reflected the tensions of Iran's relationships with the West, but it has also begun to point to a shift that reflects a more transnational perspective.

Divergent Heterogeneities in Iranian Migration in France: Semantic and Theoretical Limitations of Diaspora

“…Review of the existing literature on Iranian migration demonstrates that, in general, research on Iranian diaspora, especially in Europe, North America and Australia, can be divided into four general categories: 1. Studies that have used the term diaspora regardless of the controversies surrounding it (Nassehi‐Behnam, 2000; Digard, 2001; Adelkhah, 2003; Adelkhah, 2004; McAuliffe, 2007; Karim, 2009; Sullivan, 2010; Alinejad, 2011; Bozorgmehr and Douglas, 2011; Malek, 2011; Tenty and Houston, 2013; Koochakzadeh, 2015; Dehghani and Bahrami, 2017); 2. Studies that discuss the concept of diaspora and its ambiguity, but eventually consider diaspora synonymous with exile, marginalization and refugee status.…”