Reading Lolita in Tehran [Autumn Reading 2022]

★By Azar Nafisi

Translated by Eri Ichikawa (Kawade Shobo Shinsha)

What kind of world awaits with the combination of "Tehran" and "Lolita"?
This title, with its thrilling combination of two words, caught my attention.

I turned the pages with eager anticipation, only to quickly realize my misunderstanding. This is not a novel. Even without reading the author's note at the beginning, the book jacket clearly states it is a "memoir."
However, due to various circumstances such as the political situation in the author Azar Nafisi's home country of Iran, while there are some rearrangements and changes in the details of the facts, it remains a work of non-fiction.

The story begins in Iran after the Islamic Revolution.
Under the strict laws of the regime, women must cover their entire bodies with black veils and coats. The moment they step out of their homes, militias patrol the streets, strictly checking for any violations. If a violation is found, a fate of being taken away and thrown into prison awaits.
The author, who had long taught English literature at a university, decides to leave her teaching position. Now is the time to realize her long-held dream, as it is impossible to conduct a proper class under these circumstances.
What the author dreams of is a special, elite class for literary study, colored by the freedom that lies beneath the black clothing. It was what should be called a "secret book club" with a select group of her female students.

The seven women gather at the author's home once a week to freely discuss assigned books over tea. They are all works by authors banned under the regime, such as Nabokov's "Lolita," "Madame Bovary," "Daisy Miller," and "Pride and Prejudice."

Nineteen-year-old Nabokov, even in the midst of the Russian Revolution,

continued to write without being distracted by the sound of bullets.

The author, who speaks to them in this way, believes that art and literature are essential for survival in this harsh and miserable situation.
Unlike them, perhaps because she is of a generation that experienced the free and vibrant memories of her homeland during her youth, she has a strong desire to somehow break through the current situation in her own way.

The author overlays the figures of her students onto the little-devilish Lolita, who seduces adult men and leads them to ruin, with a perspective slightly different from traditional interpretations. Just as she pities Lolita, who was robbed of her childhood as a normal girl, she also pities these women who have been robbed of the ordinary past in their own country.
For the author, reading Lolita is also about telling the truth of Tehran. Even if small freedoms like laughing out loud in public or shaking hands with the opposite sex are being taken away, she believes that continuing to talk about the significance of existence, and the almost magical and decisive power of literature, can transform a heavy reality.

The foundation of this secret book club likely lies in the author's long life in America, where she sought asylum. Even while experiencing culture shock at the reality of her homeland, to which she returned after seventeen years, she tries to rebuild herself by immersing herself in the teaching career she soon took up.
Among the unique classes the author conducts while carrying "The Great Gatsby" amidst the difficulty of distributing foreign books, there is one called "The Trial of Gatsby."
Each student takes on the roles of judge, prosecutor, defense attorney, defendant, and juror to present their arguments. However, the students are diverse, including those with leftist ideologies, devout Islamists, and anti-regime activists. The trial becomes a confrontation between the Islamic Republic and The Great Gatsby.
But how wonderful it is to be able to indirectly discuss through a work of art the various ideologies that are usually difficult to speak about openly regarding politics and society. I am reminded once again that this is the greatest appeal of the book club. I imagine this served as a great hint for the later secret book club.

What is impressive about the "secret book club" is the process by which they gradually become dyed in the colors of freedom that the author painted, away from their black clothing.
As the name of the book club suggests, the basis is, of course, to discuss the assigned books, but as the sessions progress, they sometimes talk about private matters such as work, and for women, it is no different from anywhere else in the world that they would talk about love.

As time passes, changes also come to the lives of the seven women.
The book club continued for nearly two years.
The liberation of their hearts, including those who were hesitant at first, also leads to changes in their appearance and clothing. When they quickly take off their black coats and veils, what appears from underneath is fashion overflowing with colors of their own choosing. It is as if various flowers are asserting their individuality after a bud opens in an instant...
As their change in clothing indicates, they set off toward their own new horizons. But they will likely never forget the experience of reading Lolita in Tehran.
Of course, for the author, it is also a sign that she will not forget her homeland.

Reading this part, it seems it was the right decision to state at the beginning that "this is not a novel but a proper 'memoir'."

This is a piece of non-fiction that transcends genres, indistinguishable from a novel itself, and in a sense, it also serves as an excellent reading guide.
The many literary works that appear in this book... is it due to the author's enthusiasm and outstanding skill that I feel as if I have read them, even if I haven't?
By the time you finish reading this book, you will surely be unable to help but think, "What an exciting book club. I would love to join such a book club."

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