Several works of fiction by well-known authors have been translated from French and English into Persian and are now available in the market, ISNA reported.
O. Henry Prize Stories (2009)
‘An Ordinary Soldier of the Queen’ is a collection of 17 best short stories selected by series editor Laura Furman in 2009. The collection is translated into Persian by Shima Elahi and published by Neyestan publications in 456 pages.
In the introduction to the collection, Furman writes that the stories mainly address the crisis faced by humankind, trying to discover new aspects of human relationships, presenting a precise definition of family structure in the United States.
War, as a phenomenon invented by mankind, is among other main themes of the stories.
“The role of war in shaping the relationship between human beings is illustrated in some of the short stories of the collection,” she adds, noting that some stories are a reckless narration of human efforts trying to reach higher social status.
“One of the most significant themes, however, is an effort towards understanding the real world via stories,” she also says.
L’engrenage (1946)
‘L’engrenage’ (In the Mesh) by Jean-Paul Sartre, translated into Persian from French by Ghasem Sonawi and published by Parseh publications comprises 159 pages.
Written in 1946, a year after World War II, the book tells the story of a fictional revolution that happens at an unspecified time and place.
“It is the story of people who have experienced poverty and aggression, but after they take power via revolution, instead of bringing peace to the society, they take the same path of their predecessors, using violence and coercion.”
A French philosopher, playwright, novelist, political activist, biographer, and literary critic, Sartre deals with the nature of politics in this novel, metaphorizing concepts like “while some people benefit from turning of the wheels of ‘the gears’, others are crushed among the same wheels.”
Sonawi has also translated other works of Sartre into Persian, including ‘The Unburied Dead’, ‘Nekrassov’, ‘Dirty Hands’, ‘The Trojan Women’, and ‘The Flies’.
The Prophet (1923)
‘The Prophet’, composed of 26 works of prose poetry written in English by the Lebanese writer Kahlil Gibran was translated into Persian by Mohammad Sharifi and published by Amut publications in 144 pages.
Being Gibran’s best-known work, the book has been translated into over 50 different languages, according to ISNA.
The Prophet tells the story of a messenger by name Almustafa, who, exiled to an island Orphalese for 12 years is about to board a ship which will carry him home.
On his way back, he is stopped by a group of people, with whom he discusses issues such as life and the human situation.
The book contains chapters dealing with love, marriage, children; work, joy and sorrow; crime and punishment; laws, freedom, reason and passion, and other topics.
Khalil Gibran (1883–1931) was a Lebanese artist, poet, and writer. Born in the town of Bsharri in the north of modern-day Lebanon (then part of Mount Lebanon Mutasarrifate, Ottoman Empire), as a young man he immigrated with his family to the United States, where he studied art and began his literary career, writing in both English and Arabic. In the Arab world, Gibran is regarded as a literary and political rebel.
Sharifi, 53, is author, poet, and translator. Among his works, a collection of short stories entitled ‘Baghe Anaari’ (Pomegranate Garden), two collections of poems named ‘The Silence of God’ and ‘Awaiting Islands’, and the Persian translation of ‘American Indian Mythology’ by Alice Marriott and Carol K. Rachlin can be mentioned.
