A Case of Optimistic Empowerment: Iranian Koli Woman’s Experiences of Place in Moniroo Ravanipoor’s The Koli by the Fire

Abstract

This article highlights the noticeable effect of Ravanipoor’s the Koli by the Fire on bringing up the issue of women’s optimistic and powerful identity in contact with a series of interconnected places in Iranian society, the genre which recounts diverse theories of identity in accordance with several people and spaces. To explore this issue further, this article embarks on the Koli by the Fire in the light of the theories of identity and how the author integrates the themes of identity and place into her work. The article asserts that a Koli woman’s experience of place can be seen as examples of cruel optimism and empowerment since it recklessly fights against the binary distinction injected in society depending on diverse places, those which are deemed to be inappropriate for women. In particular, this article narrates the ways in which experiences of new places can empower so-called minority groups such as women. The combination of all these current thoughts, values and settings creates a context for women’s happiness. Forced exile of the Koli woman thus becomes a case of woman’s optimistic empowerment.