Literary Criticism in Funny in Farsi

Cienna Hernandez

Professor Sturgeon

Literature and Society  

3 December 2017

Literary Criticism in Funny in Farsi

        In the novel Funny in Farsi, by Firoozeh Dumas, the audience sees a positive view and outcome of the main character Firoozeh. She and her family immigrated to California from Iran when she was a young girl. This memoir looks back on her childhood and has a humorous tone to it. The novel is meant to draw the readers in with its warm, funny and sometimes poignant look at cross-cultural misunderstanding and family life. 

        This novel was mainly set in Whittier, California. This is where the author lived as a child and where she first immersed herself into the American culture. Firoozeh Dumas, the main character is the protagonist of the memoir. She was born in Iran and then immigrated to California as a child due to her father’s job. Being raised in two different countries, she is aware of both cultures and plans to appreciate both. She mentions that even though she was familiar with the traditional Iranian culture of women only being able to marry and have children, that was not for her. Her father, Kazem, and her family fully supports her decisions. In fact, they encouraged Firoozeh to go above and beyond when it came to her career. Most of the novel consists of her own stories especially her close relationship with her father. There was some conflict when it came to her mother. Nazireh, was raised in a traditional Iranian household, and did not really feel the need to learn the American language when they moved. It was just hard for her to break those borders and adapt to a new culture. However, the audience sees that this is resolved when she supports her daughter’s marriage to a Frenchman which would have looked down upon in the Iranian culture.

        Symbolism is clear in many aspects of the novel, however I noticed thanksgiving to be a clear symbol. Firoozeh and her family celebrate Thanksgiving every every with Turkey being the main dish. This is the American tradition; however, her family adds onto the plates by bringing Persian foods to to the dinner. This symbolizes the fact that Firoozeh and her family love to embrace the American culture and while still embracing their own culture.

        The memoir is written in first point of view and covers everything about what she was experiencing as a child. Firoozeh would be an omniscient narrator because even as a child she is aware of the prejudices that were made against her family for being Iranian. However, a review in Publisher’s Weekly states, “In addition, while politics are understandably not Dumas's topic, the way she skates over the subject can seem disingenuous.” They note that Dumas skims over, what should have been a big part of the novel the Iranian Revolution. A single chapter that mentions the Iranian Revolution is only five pages long, however she does mention how her father and family were effected by it. Iran was looked at as a country of danger and a lot of immigrants had and still have a hard time with negative views against them. Firoozeh briefly explains that no one wanted to hire her father because he was an Iranian. I see how this reviewer noticed that she briefly mentions the prejudice against them, however she does not ignore the topic and is brought up at perfect timings. Another reviewer in KIRKUS REVIEW, wrote, “At all times, no matter how heavy the subject matter, Dumas keeps her tone light.” I completely agree with this statement, because throughout the novel she does cover the topic of prejudice against her family, however she mentions overall positive outcome from immigrating to the United States.