Born and raised in Tehran, Iran, Mohamad Tavakoli-Targhi is Professor of History and Near and Middle Eastern Civilizations at the University of Toronto. He is the Editor of the academic journal Comparative Studies of South Asia, Africa and the Middle East, and he has written two books: Refashioning Iran: Orientalism, Occidentalism and Nationalist Historiography (Palgrave, 2001) and Tajaddud-i Bumi [Vernacular Modernity] (in Persian, Nashr-i Tarikh, 2003). He is currently working on Pathologizing Iran, which explores the medicalization of historical narratives and political discourses.

Mohamad joins Chris and Suzanne to help put Persepolis into further context. How idiosyncratic is its portrayal of the 1979 revolution and where does Satrapi’s graphic novel fit into traditions Iranian diasporic writing? They also reflect on the celebration of Nowruz (Persian New Year) in a time of crisis.