''Savušun'' (also spelled ''Savushun'', ) is a 1969

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

novel A novel is an extended work of narrative fiction usually written in prose and published as a book. The word derives from the for 'new', 'news', or 'short story (of something new)', itself from the , a singular noun use of the neuter plural of ...

by Iranian writer

Simin Daneshvar Simin Dāneshvar (‎; 28 April 1921 – 8 March 2012) was an Iranian academic, novelist, fiction writer, and translator. She was largely regarded as the first major Iranian woman novelist. Her books dealt with the lives of ordinary Iranians, ...

. It is the first novel in Persian written by a female author. The story is about the life of a landowning family in

Shiraz Shiraz (; ) is the List of largest cities of Iran, fifth-most-populous city of Iran and the capital of Fars province, which has been historically known as Pars (Sasanian province), Pars () and Persis. As of the 2016 national census, the popu ...

faced to the occupation of

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. ''Savušun'' has sold over five hundred thousand copies in Iran. ''Savušun'' is "groundbreaking" and highly acclaimed work in contemporary

Persian literature Persian literature comprises oral compositions and written texts in the Persian language and is one of the world's oldest literatures. It spans over two-and-a-half millennia. Its sources have been within Greater Iran including present-day ...

, with both literary and popular success within and outside Iran. The novel has been translated to

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

and 16 other languages. When writing about the novel's importance, critic Kaveh Bissari describing an exact translation by

M.R. Ghanoonparvar Mohammad Reza Ghanoonparvar () is a Professor Emeritus of Persian and Comparative Literature at the Faculty of Middle Eastern Studies at the University of Texas at Austin, University of Texas, Austin, Texas, Austin, whose expertise includes the work ...

in 1990 and the version ''A Persian Requiem'' by Roxane Zand in 1991. Daneshvar uses

folklore Folklore is the body of expressive culture shared by a particular group of people, culture or subculture. This includes oral traditions such as Narrative, tales, myths, legends, proverbs, Poetry, poems, jokes, and other oral traditions. This also ...

and

myth Myth is a genre of folklore consisting primarily of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society. For scholars, this is very different from the vernacular usage of the term "myth" that refers to a belief that is not true. Instead, the ...

in ''Savušun.'' Linguistically, ''savušun'' is a corruption of '' Siyâvašun'', which refers to the traditional mourning for Siyâvaš, a hero in the ''

Šâhnâme The ''Shahnameh'' (, ), also transliterated ''Shahnama'', is a long epic poem written by the Persian poet Ferdowsi between and 1010 CE and is the national epic of Greater Iran. Consisting of some 50,000 distichs or couplets (two-line verses ...

''.

Adaptations

Simin Daneshvar was particularly sensitive about her

being adapted, and she generally did not agree to adaptations of this work.

Theater

Manijeh Mohamedi, a playwright and

theater Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors to present experiences of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The performers may communi ...

director, managed to obtain permission from Daneshvar to adapt "Suvashun" into a play. The stage production, under the same title, featured actors such as Afsaneh Bayegan (as Zari), Mohammad Eskandari (as Yousef),

Mehdi Miami Mehdi () is a common Arabic masculine given name, meaning "rightly guided". People with the name Mehdi generally originate from Iran, with other notable countries of origin being India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Iraq, Azerbaijan, France, Mo ...

Mohsen Zehtab Muhsin (also spelled Mohsen, Mohsin, Mehsin, or Muhsen, ) is a masculine Arabic given name. The first person known to have the name "Muhsin" was Muhsin ibn Ali, the son of Ali ibn Abi Talib and Fatimah bint Muhammad. Islamic term In Arabic, it ...

, and

Habib Dehghan-Nasab Habib (; ; also romanized as Habeeb) is an Arabic masculine given name, occasional surname, and honorific, with the meaning "beloved" or "my love", or "darling". It also forms the famous Arabic word ''"Habibi"'' which is used to refer to a friend ...

. This play was performed in the main hall of Tehran's City Theater from March 2001 to May 2002. The play's script, adapted by Mohamedi, was later published by Ghatreh Publishing in 2007 under the title "Suvashun: Based on the Immortal Novel by

." A radio adaptation of "Suvashun" was also broadcast on Radio Namayesh in 2013, directed and arranged by Nima Mehr.

Cinema and television

Mohammad Motavasselani, an Iranian

director Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty Music * Director (band), an Irish rock band * ''D ...

, mentioned that he acquired the rights to adapt "Suvashun" into a film many years ago. He has since negotiated with various directors and producers to bring the project to fruition. However, due to the significant

budget A budget is a calculation plan, usually but not always financial plan, financial, for a defined accounting period, period, often one year or a month. A budget may include anticipated sales volumes and revenues, resource quantities including tim ...

and specific requirements needed for the film, no producer has yet committed to investing in the project. A

television Television (TV) is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. Additionally, the term can refer to a physical television set rather than the medium of transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertising, ...

adaptation of this novel, directed by

Narges Abyar Narges Abyar (, also as Narges Ābyār; born 8 August 1970) is an Iranian film director, author, and screenwriter, best known for directing '' Track 143'', ''Breath'', and '' When the Moon Was Full''. The film Track 143 is adapted from Abyar's n ...

, is currently in development. In November 2022, the Cinema of the Revolution and Sacred Defense Association announced that they are producing a film-series adaptation of "Suvashun."

References

External links

Savushun on ''Iranica''

سووشون
(in Persian) Persian-language novels 1969 novels Political novels 20th-century Iranian novels Novels set in Iran {{1960s-poli-novel-stub

Adaptations

Theater

Cinema and television

See also

References

External links