Dāstān-i Fārsī va sarguzasht-i mudirnītah dar Īrān: guftār-hāʼī dar naqd-i adabī Persian 2026

Persian Fiction and the Story of Modernity in Iran: Essays in Literary Criticism, by Houra Yavari, is a collection of essays and interviews examining the emergence and development of modern Persian fiction and its relationship to the experience of modernity in Iran. The author situates the history of contemporary storytelling within the broader cultural, social, and intellectual transformations of Iranian society.

Yavari approaches fiction and the novel not merely as literary forms, but as important cultural means of redefining the individual, society, and the world. From this perspective, the history of modern Persian fiction is closely connected with the Iranian encounter with modern life and with changing values, social structures, and ways of understanding human experience.

The essays address topics such as the emergence of modern fiction, changing conceptions of the individual and society, the role of imagination, the relationship between reality and narrative, and the cultural function of literature. Drawing on an interdisciplinary approach, Yavari combines literary criticism with insights from psychology and cultural studies in her analysis of contemporary Persian fiction and literary movements.

The book is a useful resource for readers and researchers interested in modern Persian fiction, literary criticism, Iranian cultural history, and studies of modernity.