An Analysis of the Book I May Forget You from the Perspective of Resistance Literature

An Analysis of the Book I May Forget You from the Perspective of Resistance Literature
The website of the Iranian Oral History reports that the book I May Forget You, a documentary, historical novel by Hassan Rahimpūr on the Islamic Revolution and the Imposed War, was published by Ārma Publications. The story opens with events from before the Revolution and narrates onto the final years of the War. The book retells the life-story of the 21 adopted children (7 daughters and 14 sons) of Māshā`Allah Āzarfar. A wealthy gentleman under the Pahlavi Regime, Āzarfar adopts the aforementioned 21 children, each from a different province in Iran. With the Revolution and then his suspicious death, his adopted children`s life changes dramatically during the years after the Revolution and the eight-year Sacred Defense.
The significance of this work lies in its portrayal of the responsibility of parenthood as it is undertaken by Mr. and Mrs. Āzarfar, a mother who showers motherly affections to all her 21 children.
A biographical novel, this book depicts a fragment of the contemporary history of Iran. The fictional characters are all real, with the author interviewing eight of the aforementioned adoptees to document his work.
Printed in medium octavo, I May Forget You was published in 400 pages and 3000 copies by Ārma Publications and sold at 70.000 IRR.
The book was unveiled on Monday, the 11th of Ordibehesht, 1391 (the 30th of April, 2012), at the presence of a number of most prestigious authors of Resistance literature such as Ahmad Dehqān, Davūd Ghafārzadegan, Mohsen Kāzemi, Mohammad-Ali Olūmi, Ebrāhim Zāhedi-Motlaq, Ya`qūb Tavakkoli, Mohsen Motlaq, and finally the author of the book himself, Hassan Rahimpūr, at an event organized with the cooperation of the Iranian Foundation on Fictional Literature and Arasbārān Cultural Centre`s Literary Club.

The Golden Pages Have been Taken Out.
Underlining 1357(1979) as a year which witnessed the birth of a revolution came into life with the help of many parties, the contemporary history writer and researcher Mohsen Kāzemi, stated: “This unique phenomenon of our history precipitated many repercussions, with perhaps our country paying the price for its victory in several regions. Whenever I read the book I May Forget You, I was reminded of these detriments. I had never witnessed such an approach to the Revolution in any of the historical works produced so far; I had but overlooked it. When I read the novel, I ruefully wished that this theme had been approached by documentary makers before authors. A novelist sees things often overlooked by the historian. This book could have been prized as a historical treasure before a literary treasure.

Kāzemi then added: “An interview could have thrown light upon many historical ambiguities; but apparently the author (Rahimpūr) interviewed only eight of these adoptees, when I wish he had spoken of the consequences of this book as regarded by all these 21 individuals. We are not to restore some values at the expense of some others. Human dignity is a value, but to what extent has Rahimpūr honoured these values? Were there any conditions stipulated in his interviewing of these people? Did these individuals agree to have these memories published?”
Kāzemi pointed out: “I felt sorry for these 21 children and what they had been through, but was the Revolution or any individual to be held accountable for their fate? I though hard and concluded that we are not to blame the Revolution for their fate, for some misunderstandings arise that are the bases for some misconceptions. One dreads that the reader might get the idea that it was the Revolution that changed the lives of the aforementioned 21 individuals, whereas it is in fact the omission of 100 pages of this novel at the hand of a censor which leads to such a misunderstanding. I wonder and believe that if it were the censors who did this, then I will have to confess that they were wrong to omit these golden pages, for the truth of the historical events should have been told. There lay in these golden pages the essence of the book and the life-story of these children, yet it got to be discussed nowhere.”
The author of the book The Biography of Ezzat Shāhi then said: “The book abounds with similar historical holes, when these holes hold the key to the changes the children have undergone. Those who took advantage of the Revolution and the subsequent chaos are responsible. This historical part of the book caught my attention.”
This researcher of history further reiterated: “In his choice of subject and theme, the author was lucky enough to choose an unexplored subject which then confirmed his present status. This book has much to offer. The fate of each and every one of the characters appealed to me.”
Kāzemi moreover said: “There are many subjects, but does life allow us to attend to them? The first decade after the Revolution saw us busy first bringing back stability and then fighting the War. Events occurred so rapidly one after another that our literary capital was also caught up in them, and there were finally few left.”
Kāzemi lastly mentioned: “We have our limits, and our capabilities are limited. Cultural pursuits progress so lamely. We need a literary-cultural force if we are to harness the large reserves in Iran; but the question is to what extent we are concerned about training that force.”

The Novelist Upgrades Social Taste.
The writer, researcher, and journalist Ebrāhim Zāhedi-Motlaq described the novel I May Forget You as a work “so thorough and interesting for it to be only organized by the author”.
Zāhedi-Motlaq reiterated that the book was a testimony to what he believes: that “the society has the potential for the publication and dissemination of such ideas. The novelist does not expect this at all. The novelist can upgrade social taste. He/she can even orient it towards a different perspective. I myself thank the censors at the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance, for their choice to overlook and not to omit some words in this book has saved this book from falling prey to the fate of many other works.”
Regarding the influentiality of the characterization, Zāhedi-Motlaq held: “The significance of this work is its communication of sadness. This book incorporates and invokes sadness, the sadness amassed deep within the hearts of the children, the narrator, and the society. Every now and then the reader feels that the narrator longs to go back in time. However, the important point in this book is the addressee; nostalgic works describing the past rarely address young people; this book addresses women and men over 40 years.”
Zāhedi-Motlaq underlined: “The book cover and the title are irrelevant to the subject. The font is far too small to be legible for readers. I emphasize that the title could have been a stronger one. The book design, albeit different, could have been developed to be more appealing.”

I May Forget You Combines Dream and Reality.
Calling the characters in I May Forget You immortal, the Resistance literature writer Mohsen Motlaq stated: “The characters or in fact Āzarfar`s 21 adopted children have been immortalized by this book, immortalized to remain forever in fiction.”
Mohsen Motlaq maintained: “Had it been written from the perspective of a historian or a documentary maker; based on its historical genre, we could evaluate the degree of its influence on readers. This novel should be regarded as belonging to that category of biographies which are in a way literary, with the criteria being literary. The story combines dream and reality, and it should therefore be analyzed from this perspective.”
Regarding the language the book uses, Motlaq maintained: “The language incorporates the emotions the author feels. This literary style is present in Hassan Rahimpūr`s writing as a documentary biography, wherein it originates from within the hearts of people, comprehends facts, and is transferred into the reader.”

Such Subjects Would Suffice for a Lifetime of Writing
Concerning the subject of I May Forget You, Ahmad Dehqān: “The manuscript differed from the published version available, for 100 pages have been censored out. The subject is so appealing that I wished for it to be mine to write.”
Dehqān then added: “It is the writer`s art to find novel subjects and write about them. This writer could be proud of his work as a great discovery. The plot is endowed with such coherence that it could be the basis for an audio-medial work or a movie.”
“The subject inspired envy in me from the beginning; I longed for it to be mine. The subject is one of those subjects that would suffice for a lifetime of writing,” said Ahmad Dehqān, who has been a source of counsel to Rahimpūr in his writing of the novel.
Dehqān then added: “As a documentary, the book is valuable. Not unlike a mine, the researches of this book should be tapped into gradually, and Rahimpūr`s greatest art was his discovery of these points insomuch that anyone who reads these is astonished, feeling that this is a great subject with much potential.”

Humanity is a Subject Easily Noted in the Novel.
Calling I May Forget You a semi-fictional-historical novel, the writer and researcher Ya`qūb Tavakkoli maintained: “The events are written in the form of a fiction, however, all events did occur; so we may introduce this novel as a fictional-historical novel.”
“The author has discovered these characters and developed a fiction based them, therefore, I May Forget You could stand out as a source of enquiry for researchers to study and document the events,” Tavakkoli added.
He then reiterated: “Humanity is a subject readily noted in the novel in that sense that the Āzarfars decide to adopt children from 21 provinces once they cannot have children of their own. They fully take on to their responsibility of parenthood, bringing up the children responsibly. Their responsibility and humanity is beautifully captured in the novel.”
“Once authors do not fear lending subject to one another, major developments will surely occur in fiction. Authors unfortunately do not have such collaboration to gather around and prepare their mindset,” Tavakkoli peoposed.
Criticizing Mohsen Kāzemi `s claims regarding the improbability of turning this book into a movie by the authorities, Tavakkoli concluded: “We cannot say for sure that there exists an insular approach for turning books into movies. But, there exists an insular approach, with us being only at the beginning of the way. We should rightfully wait for screenwriters to proceed and turn this into a movie.”

I Was Not Gray-Headed When I First Started to Write.
Regarding the process of publication, the author of I May Forget You, Hassan Rahimpūr, who has published books such as Good Life, The Smiles of War, Never Again, and By the Oak Forest, confessed: “This book took me 20 years to write. I was not gray-headed when I first started to write. While writing, I would occasionally be frustrated by threats, empty promises, and the disdain. When I first submitted the manuscript to the Publication, they returned it back to me after a few months of delay. There were 100 pages censored out by the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance`s Censorship Office; the story perhaps need not have been shortened this much.

Report by: Fātemeh Nūrvand
Translated by: Katayoun Davallou