- Marmulak: An exploration of comedy in Iranian film.
- The 'Social Man' in Weblogestan: A Reading of Mohammad Ali Abtahi: My Master's thesis. I discuss the rise of blogging in Iran as a new kind of public space that both government officials and disgruntled youth and expats participate in. I then do a detailed reading of former Vice President's Mohammad Ali Abtahi's WebNeveshteha.
خوش آمديد
photos
music
art
links
For a more focused page of my scholarly work, please go to my website at The University of Chicago. For the full list, please see below.
Modern Iran
Historical essays
- Le Regine Lussuriose: My Italian BA thesis.
- Ibn Battuta: An Overview: A brief discussion of Ibn Battuta and his journeys through 14th-century Asia.
- The Rhine and Barbarians Beyond: The first longish paper I wrote, centering around the Rhine as both a border and a crossroads between traditionally Franco-Roman and Teutonic culture - specifically, the example of a missionary who crosses into Germany to re-convert the believers who believed God, Mercury, and Thor were all part of the same pantheon.
- Foucault and the Inquisition of Languedoc: A comparative study of two works written on the French Inqusition in the Languedoc region of southern France in the 13th century, and Foucault's influence (or lack thereof) on their analysis.
- Christ or Aristotle: Where did this book come from?: A brief investigation into the medieval Bestiary.
- Nationalist Readings of the Buyid Dynasty: Discusses four different histories about the Buyid Dynasty, arguably the first "Iranian" dynasty after "Iran's" subjugation by the Muslims. Questions whether it is accurate to say that such a concept of "Iran" existed at the time.
- Islam in the Middle Periods: A brief analysis of Islam as a trans-political entity in the Middle Ages.
- Islam and the Modern Age: A badly titled work discussing the changes the Islamic world underwent in the 16th century, including the politicization of Islam.
- Kings, Conquerors, and Gods: Compares the autobiographic work of three conquerors, Timur Barlas (Tamerlane), Shah Isma'il, and Babur, and changing notions of hegemony and authority after the Mongol conquest of Asia.
- Re-examinations of Ottoman Diplomacy: A short essay discussing the 'revisionist' histories of the Ottoman Empire. What was so revisionist about them?
Queer / Gender Studies
- Gay Marriage and the Forces Behind: My first foray into gender studies; my take on gay marriage as a keystone of queer identity politics.
- Prove That You're a Man: A Critique of Gender: An introduction to Foucault, Butler, and queer theory.
- The Road to Domestication: A brief look at domestication, not as a domination of one animal over the other, but as a relationship of affection and mutuality between human and animal in 17th century England.
- On the Fringe of Queer: One of my most ambitious papers to date. I attempt to combine autobiography and queer theory to examine furry culture, one of my great interests and loves.
Creative Prose
- The Mortal Comedy: Short, very surreal story.
- I'm not a genius!: Short play.
- Wade: Memory.
Poetry