my heart is sorrow sick
my heart is sorrow sick
i go to the porch and draw my
fingers on night’s taut skin
the lights of relation are dark
the lights of relation are dark
no one will present
me to the sun
no one will take me to the revel of the sparrows
commit the flight to memory
the bird is mortal
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Forough Farrokhzad (1934–67), is known in Iran as one of the most influential female poets of the twentieth century. Challenging the traditional limits of Iranian literature and social norms, her work is celebrated for its unique blend of social commentary and personal reflection. Farrokhzad’s contributions to the world of cinema, particularly the documentary The House Is Black, highlight her legacy as a pioneering voice for change in Iran.
Born in Isfahan and raised in Los Angeles, Arash Saedinia is a writer, filmmaker, photographer, curator, archivist, and educator. At MacDowell in 2023, he translated Forough Farrokhzad’s Let Us Believe in the Dawn of the Cold Season from Persian into English. At present he is at work on a book of his own poems.
I Will Again Greet the Sun
By Forough Farrokhzad, translated by Arash Saedinia
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The Wind Will Carry Us
By Forough Farrokhzad, translated by Nader Nazmi
The Kenyon Review · “The Wind Will Carry Us” by Nader Nazmi Already have an account? Log in Join KR for even more to read. Sign up for a free […]
from From Nima On: A Selection of Contemporary Iranian Poetry
By Forough Farrokhzad, translated by Michelle Quay
1.In my blank verse poems, I conceive of meter and rhyme differently. When I lengthen or shorten various lines, it’s not based on whim or fancy. Even in the disorder […]
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