Nader Naderpour
Encyclopedia
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
ian-born poet
Poet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
.
Among many Iranian poets who shaped up the New Persian Poetry or New Poetry (in Persian
Persian language
Persian is an Iranian language within the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. It is primarily spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and countries which historically came under Persian influence...
: Sher-e Know), Ali Esfandiari, aka Nima Yooshij
Nima Yooshij
Nimā Yushij also called Nimā, born Ali Esfandiāri , was a contemporary Tabarian and Persian poet who started the she’r-e no also known as she’r-e nimaa'i trend in Iran...
, Parviz Natel Khanlari, Nader Naderpor, Forough Farrokhzad, Mehdi Akhavan Saless, Sohrab Sepehri, Feraydoon Moshiri, Siavosh Kasraii, Ahmad Shamloo, Hooshang Ebtehaaj, and Mohammad Reza Shaffii Kadkani are considered to be the most famous, skillful, and professional. Though Nima Yooshij (1896–1960) is known as the Father of New Persian Poetry, aka Nimaii Poetry or Sher-e Nimaii, according to a number of eminent and highly respected literary and poetry scholars Nader Naderpour is considered as the first Iranian poet who opened up exciting vistas of the new Persian poetry.
Personal life
Nader Naderpour was born on 6 June 1929 in TehranTehran
Tehran , sometimes spelled Teheran, is the capital of Iran and Tehran Province. With an estimated population of 8,429,807; it is also Iran's largest urban area and city, one of the largest cities in Western Asia, and is the world's 19th largest city.In the 20th century, Tehran was subject to...
, Iran. His parents were both fluent in French with a deep love for art, music and history. His father’s name was Taghi Mirza who was a descendant of Reza Gholi Mirza, the oldest son of Nāder Shāh Afshār
Nader Shah
Nāder Shāh Afshār ruled as Shah of Iran and was the founder of the Afsharid dynasty. Because of his military genius, some historians have described him as the Napoleon of Persia or the Second Alexander...
. The eldest of two brothers and three sisters, Naderpour grew up under the supervisions and cares of his culturally rich parents. His dad, who died when Naderpour was only fourteen, was a skillful painter and also a man familiar to poetry and literature. It was he who taught young Naderpour Persian literature
Persian literature
Persian literature spans two-and-a-half millennia, though much of the pre-Islamic material has been lost. Its sources have been within historical Persia including present-day Iran as well as regions of Central Asia where the Persian language has historically been the national language...
and classic poetry. When he was a preschooler, Naderpour would sit on his father’s lap and be encouraged to read the newspaper every night. His father also had Naderpour memorize old and modern poetry. His mother was a talented player of the string instrument of tar
Tar (lute)
The tār is a long-necked, waisted Iranian instrument. It has been adopted by other cultures and Azerbaijan. The word tar itself means "string" in Persian, though it might have the same meaning in languages influenced by Persian or any other branches of Iranian languages like Kurdish...
, and she helped Naderpour to develop an appreciation for music.
In 1942 during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, Naderpour entered Iran-Shahr High School of Tehran. A year later when Iran was occupied by the Allied military forces, Naderpour like many other students of the time, got involved in the field of politics, and he participated in a small nationalist party group. Later he joined the Tudeh Party of Iran
Tudeh Party of Iran
The Tudeh Party of Iran is an Iranian communist party. Formed in 1941, with Soleiman Mohsen Eskandari as its head, it had considerable influence in its early years and played an important role during Mohammad Mosaddeq's campaign to nationalize the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company and his term as prime...
(TPI), which became the major Communist Party of the country. Like Nima, Naderpour also published a number of poems in the Journals such as People (in Persian: Mardom), Leader (in Persian: Rahbar), and Our Iran (in Persian: Iran-e Maa), which were all supported by TPI at the time.
It is documented that by the time Naderpour was graduated from high school in 1948, he had already left the Party. In fact, since 1946 Naderpour was sad and unhappy over the Iran-Azerbaijan crisis, and like many other nationalist students, he was convinced that Soviet communism could not make any provision for the independent nationalist communist movements in other countries. Subsequently, Naderpour challenged wholeheartedly to ensure that Iran’s parliamentary elections would be open, honest, and fair. He therefore became sympathetic to the National Front
National Front (Iran)
The National Front of Iran or Jebhe Melli is a Democratic, political opposition group founded by Mohammad Mossadegh and other secular Iranian leaders of Nationalist, Liberal, and Social-Democratic political orientation who had been educated in France in the late 1940s...
(in Persian: Jebheh-e Melli) and its leader, Mohammad Mosaddegh, and other nationalist champions in those elections.
In 1950 Naderpour was sent to Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, to continue his education on French Language and Literature at the Sorbonne
Sorbonne
The Sorbonne is an edifice of the Latin Quarter, in Paris, France, which has been the historical house of the former University of Paris...
University. During his stay in Paris, he not only became a freelance writer for various publications but he also wrote for the Third Force Party (in Persian: Nirooy-e Sevoom), which Iranian ideologue and writer Khalil Maleki
Khalil Maleki
Khalil Maleki was an Iranian political figure, socialist and intellectual.During the early 1940s, Maleki had been one of 53 left-wing intellectuals who had been imprisoned by Reza Shah. After his release, he had been one of the original founders of the Tudeh Party Khalil Maleki (1903 Tabriz -...
had established within the umbrella of the National Front in Iran. After receiving his BA degree, Naderpour returned to Tehran and started working in the private sector.
In 1960 Naderpour arranged the first modernist Persian poetry reading in Tehran, held at the Cultural Society of Iran & America (in Persian: Anjoman-e Farhangi-e Iran-o Aamrica). Later, he worked as a consultant at the Office of Dramatic Arts of the Ministry of Arts and Culture (in Persian: Vezaarat-e Farhang-o Honar). He was also appointed as the Editor of Theater Magazine (in Persian: Majaleh-e Namayesh), and as the Editor-in-Chief of the Monthly Journal of Art and People (in Persian: Honar-o Mardom).
In 1964 Naderpour traveled to Europe. In Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
, he continued his studies on the Italian Language and Literature. He also spent sometimes in Paris, studying French cinema
Cinema of France
The Cinema of France comprises the art of film and creative movies made within the nation of France or by French filmmakers abroad.France is the birthplace of cinema and was responsible for many of its early significant contributions. Several important cinematic movements, including the Nouvelle...
, and devoting time to his own poetry.
In 1968, Naderpour became one of the thirty or so founding members of the first Association of Writers of Iran (in Persian: Kaanoon-e Nevisandegaan-e Iran). He was also one of its Manifesto’s signatories, along with several other famous Iranian writers and poets. When Jalal Al-e-Ahmad
Jalal Al-e-Ahmad
Jalal Al-e-Ahmad was a prominent Iranian writer, thinker, and social and political critic.-Personal life:...
, the driving force behind the Association, died in 1969, the Association chose Naderpour to speak on its behalf at the interment ceremony. For two consecutive years Naderpour was elected as a member of the steering committee for the Association of Writers of Iran. Later on, in 1977, he decided not to participate in the rejuvenation of the Association due to differences of opinion.
In 1971, Naderpour took over as the director of Contemporary Literature Department (in Persian: Gorooh-e Adab-e Emrooz) in the National Iranian Radio & Television
National Iranian Radio & Television
National Iranian Radio and Television or NIRT was the first Iranian Radio & Television Organization which started its work on October 26, 1966, and operated up until the Iranian Revolution in 1979, after which NIRT became the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting .-Background and History:In the...
, where he directed many programs on the life and works of contemporary literary figures. Naderpour fled the Iranian Revolution
Iranian Revolution
The Iranian Revolution refers to events involving the overthrow of Iran's monarchy under Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi and its replacement with an Islamic republic under Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the leader of the...
in 1980 for France and resided there until 1987. He was elected to France’s Authors Association, and participated in several conferences and gatherings. In 1987, he moved to California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
. During his residence in the United States, Naderpour gave several speeches and lectures at Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
, Georgetown University
Georgetown University
Georgetown University is a private, Jesuit, research university whose main campus is in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic university in the United States...
, UCLA, and UC Berkeley. Naderpour was considered as the first Iranian poet who opened up exciting vistas of the new Persian poetry, and he was regarded as one of the leaders of the movement for the New Poetry or Sher-e Know in Iran and among other Persian
Persian language
Persian is an Iranian language within the Indo-Iranian branch of the Indo-European languages. It is primarily spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and countries which historically came under Persian influence...
speaking nations like Afghanistan
Afghanistan
Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...
, Tajikistan
Tajikistan
Tajikistan , officially the Republic of Tajikistan , is a mountainous landlocked country in Central Asia. Afghanistan borders it to the south, Uzbekistan to the west, Kyrgyzstan to the north, and China to the east....
and Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...
.
Works
Naderpour is well known for his extensive research on Iran's contemporary poetry, and also his thorough, insightful analyses of Iranian poets (HafezHafez
Khwāja Shamsu d-Dīn Muhammad Hāfez-e Shīrāzī , known by his pen name Hāfez , was a Persian lyric poet. His collected works composed of series of Persian poetry are to be found in the homes of most Iranians, who learn his poems by heart and use them as proverbs and sayings to this day...
, Ferdowsi
Ferdowsi
Ferdowsi was a highly revered Persian poet. He was the author of the Shahnameh, the national epic of Iran and related societies.The Shahnameh was originally composed by Ferdowsi for the princes of the Samanid dynasty, who were responsible for a revival of Persian cultural traditions after the...
, Omar Khayyám
Omar Khayyám
Omar Khayyám was aPersian polymath: philosopher, mathematician, astronomer and poet. He also wrote treatises on mechanics, geography, mineralogy, music, climatology and theology....
, Molawi Rumi, and many others). In addition, he is recognized for his perceptive commentaries on Iran's recent history and his astute observations on Iranians' cultural and political challenges. Naderpour published his first poems in the 1940s and completed four collections by the 1970s. He published various collections of poems, many of them translated into English
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
, French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
, and Italian
Italian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
. Here is the list of his publications:
- Eyes and Hands (in Persian: Cheshm-haa-o Dast-haa): (1954)
- Daughter of the Cup (in Persian: Dokhtar-e Jaam): (1955)
- The Grape Poem (in Persian: Sher-e Angoor): (1958)
- Collyrium of the Sun (in Persian: Sormeh-e Khorsheed): (1960)
- Not Plant and Stone, but Fire (in Persian: Giaah-o Sang Nah, Aatash): (1978)
- From the Sublime to the Ridiculous (in Persian: As Aasemaan taa Rissmaan): (1978)
- The Last Supper (in Persian: Shaam-e Baazpaseen): (1978)
- False Dawn (in Persian: Sobh-e Drooghin): (1982)
- Blood and Ash (in Persian: Koon-o Khaakestar): (1989)
- Earth and Time (in Persian: Zamin-o Zaman): (1996)
In the introduction to his tenth and last collection of poems, Earth and Time, Naderpour noted that,
Poems come from “Heaven” and remain alien on “Earth”; instead of “place” they deal with “nature” and instead of “time” they deal with “history.” A poet who leaves his country and migrates to an alien land talks about his new home in terms of his original homeland. With his words he pictures the nature of his homeland, and instead of speaking of the “past” or the “future,” he links “history” with “eternity.” For an exiled poet the images of his homeland will always stay alive, but the homeland’s history, as well as its present, will be (for him) “eternity”.
The poems composed by Naderpour are rich in imagery and deeply imbedded in the texture of Persian language. Naderpour was an imagist
Imagism
Imagism was a movement in early 20th-century Anglo-American poetry that favored precision of imagery and clear, sharp language. The Imagists rejected the sentiment and discursiveness typical of much Romantic and Victorian poetry. This was in contrast to their contemporaries, the Georgian poets,...
, a wordsmith in one, and he ultimately was a classic poet living in a modern world, in a modern style.
Naderpour also published a large number of scholarly and research papers on Iran’s politics, culture, history, and literature in various print journals and magazines such as Iran-Shenasi, Mehregan, Sokhan, and Rahavard as well as in many different online journals.
Naderpour was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature
Nobel Prize in Literature
Since 1901, the Nobel Prize in Literature has been awarded annually to an author from any country who has, in the words from the will of Alfred Nobel, produced "in the field of literature the most outstanding work in an ideal direction"...
and was awarded the Human Rights Watch
Human Rights Watch
Human Rights Watch is an international non-governmental organization that conducts research and advocacy on human rights. Its headquarters are in New York City and it has offices in Berlin, Beirut, Brussels, Chicago, Geneva, Johannesburg, London, Los Angeles, Moscow, Paris, San Francisco, Tokyo,...
Hellman-Hammett Grant in 1993. The grant is mostly awarded to the writers in exile whose works are banned in their own homelands.
Samples
Here are some parts of the poems composed by Naderpour and translated in English by Farhad Mafie, and Manouchehr Saadat NourySaadat Noury
Saadat Noury , also spelled as Saadat Nouri, is an Iranian author, a poet, and a journalist. His full name is منوچهر سعا دت نوری Manouchehr Saadat Noury .-Early life and family:...
:
The Winter Homily
“O, the fire that flames from inside the night
rises to dance,
but turns to stone by morning
O, the memory of the earth’s seething anger
in the days when the sky’s rage was spreading.
O, the sense of pride
O, the point where epics begin and end
O, the magnificent summit of old epics
O, the house of Ghobad!
O, the stony nest, the destiny of the phoenix
O, the land of Zal the Champion’s childhood”: Farhad Mafie (Los Angeles, 2000).
Awareness
“In the midst of the battle, we understood
The words were not able and never could
Get the job done as it really should
And seize a very great raiding road”: MSN (Montreal, 2006).
The Persian verses composed by Naderpour read as follows:
Maa dar miyaan-e mahlekeh daanestim
Kaz vajeh kaar vijeh nemi-aayad
In harbeh raa tavaan-e tahaajom nist
Death
Naderpour died from a heart attackMyocardial infarction
Myocardial infarction or acute myocardial infarction , commonly known as a heart attack, results from the interruption of blood supply to a part of the heart, causing heart cells to die...
in his Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
home on Friday 18 February 2000, at 11:00 AM. Visitors to the Los Angeles area often pay their respects to Naderpour by visiting his gravesite located at Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery
Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery
The Pierce Brothers Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery is a cemetery in the Westwood Village area of Los Angeles, California. It is located at 1218 Glendon Avenue in Westwood....
.
Shortly after Naderpour died, his widow Jaleh Bassiri established the Naderpour Foundation in Los Angeles. The aim of the Naderpour Foundation is to promote cross-cultural studies and comparative approaches to East-West literary tradition by focusing on the late poet's legacy.
Remarks
Here are the various remarks about Naderpour and his poetry as cited by some Iranian scholars and researchers:“In my opinion, Naderpour’s poems are lasting poems. Undoubtedly, his works will be counted among the classics in the Persian language. In the last twenty years we owe thanks to Naderpour for many expressions that have now become popular and universal, such as the sadness of exile, being cut from our own roots, disheartened by the homeland that is being traumatized. In addition, he has given life to his poems through his beautiful descriptions, and through new, effective explanations he has made apparent to us the ambiguous, complex conditions of our own hidden conscience. His poem is the poem of our sadness, our worries, our hopes, and our disappointments”: Ehsan Yarshater
Ehsan Yarshater
Ehsan Yarshater is the founder and director of The Center for Iranian Studies, and Hagop Kevorkian Professor Emeritus of Iranian Studies at Columbia University. He was the first full-time professor of Persian at a U.S. university since World War II....
(2001).
“Naderpour supported the three principles established by Nima
Nima Yooshij
Nimā Yushij also called Nimā, born Ali Esfandiāri , was a contemporary Tabarian and Persian poet who started the she’r-e no also known as she’r-e nimaa'i trend in Iran...
. First, he believed that like natural or conversational speech, poetry must convey the meaning; the number of words as well as the simplicity or complexity of the phraseology must be dictated by the requirement of the expression of the thought being expressed. In other words, he believed that the phrases expressing single thoughts do not have to be of the same length. Secondly rhythm, Naderpour believed, need not follow an established, monotonous form. Rather, like natural speech, it should be allowed to vary depending on the requirements of the thought structure being expressed. Thirdly, rhyme must appear at the end of each completed thought pattern. Rather than forced on thought segments, Naderpour believed, rhyme must serve as a unifier; it must join complete thought segments and present them as a cohesive expression of the poet's sentiments”: Iraj Bashiri
Iraj Bashiri
Iraj Bashiri is Professor of History at the University of Minnesota, USA and one of the leading scholars in the fields of Central Asian Studies and Iranian Studies. Fluent in English, Persian/Tajik and several Turkic languages, Bashiri has been able to study and translate works otherwise...
(2008).
“Naderpour loved to talk about what was going on in Iran as long as you could talk on the same level": Farhad Mafie (2000).
"Naderpour made it very easy and approachable for younger people who've been away from their culture. His death was the perfect definition of a tragedy": Parastoo Izad Seta (2000)
"Nader Naderpour will never be forgotten and his words and work will live on forever": Saadat Noury
Saadat Noury
Saadat Noury , also spelled as Saadat Nouri, is an Iranian author, a poet, and a journalist. His full name is منوچهر سعا دت نوری Manouchehr Saadat Noury .-Early life and family:...
(2010).