Persian through poetry

Reading classical and modern Persian poems closely, in the original with guided translation.

Level

Foundations, Practitioner

Who it is for

Learners at A2 or above, and heritage speakers who want to read poetry.

Format

Online seminar with readings and recordings.

About 24 hours. Hours are an estimate.

Before you start

• Persian A1 or equivalent reading ability.

What you will be able to do

• Read selected poems aloud with metre and rhyme.
• Explain key images and forms: ghazal, masnavi, ruba'i, free verse.
• Compare translations and say what each keeps or loses.
• Place each poet in time and place.

Modules

1. How Persian poems sound. Metre, rhyme and the radif.
2. Ferdowsi and the epic. Passages from the Shahnameh.
3. Rumi and the masnavi. Stories and their teaching.
4. Sa'di and Hafez. The ghazal and the art of ambiguity.
5. Modern voices. Nima, Forough Farrokhzad, Sohrab Sepehri and after.
6. Poetry in the diaspora. How poems travel, and who writes them now.

Assessment

A recorded recitation and a short commentary on one poem.

Status

Draft outline for scholarly review. The lessons, readings and questions are in preparation. Completion is recorded; nothing is accredited.

Course code: IDCDC-PER-05.