Tasks: Darius by Dina Nayeri

1. What happened to Darius in Iran that forced him to leave the country?
2. The girl that Darius is talking about has parents who are both Sepâh. Find out what a Sepâh is.
3. Why is it dangerous for Darius to have contact with a girl? And with this girl in particular?
4. Describe the interrogation techniques that are used. What is Darius accused of, and why are these accusations particularly dangerous in this country?
5. What happened to Darius on his first attempt to cross the Mediterranean? What do you think happened to “the tired children” that he describes?
6. The author of this text, Dina Nayeri, comments on the attitudes that await Darius and refugees who are in the same situation as him as they reach Europe. Are they welcomed? Trusted? Regarded as an asset to society? Are these attitudes you recognise from the public debate in Norway?
7. According to Nayeri, "it is so easy to doubt him". Why?

8. Why do you think Dina Nayeri has called her book The Ungrateful Refugee? What could refugees be grateful for? What do you think they are not grateful for? Do you think Darius feel any form of gratitude for his experiences?

Do some background research to the story of Darius. Discuss your findings in class.

How much do you know about the political-religious situation in Iran – before and today?

• What happened in Iran in February 1979?
• Why did many people flee Iran after 1979?
• What is the political and religious situation in Iran today?
• Today, Iran has many refugees from other countries. Where do they come from? Why have they ended up in Iran?

At the end of the text, Darius is told that he's going to Moria. Find out more about this refugee camp.

• Where is Moria refugee camp located?
• Where do the refugees in Moria come from?
• How are the living conditions in Moria described?

• What happened to Moria in September 2020?

This video was produced by NOAH, the Norwegian Organisation for Asylum Seekers, as a comment on what they regard as a random asylum process. Watch the video below and discuss the following questions:

• What does it mean to apply for asylum? Who can apply for asylum?
• What is the message of this video?
• How is the message conveyed to the audience?
• In your opinion, how effective is this video?

Pick one of the tasks and write a longer text.

1. What happens to Darius after he arrives in Europe? Is he able to leave the refugee camp and find a new home? Continue Darius' story.
2. Using Darius' story as a starting point, write a text where you discuss the gains and the losses that a refugee like Darius has to endure. What are they forced to leave behind? What do they gain by leaving their country and settling in a different part of the world?
3. In 2017, Dina Nayeri wrote an article in the Guardian called 'The ungrateful refugee: We have no debt to repay' where she explains the background for her book. Write a text where you discuss and comment on the following statement, which is taken from the article:

It is the obligation of every person born in a safer room to open the door when someone in danger knocks. It is your duty to answer us, even if we don’t give you sugary success stories. Even if we remain a bunch of ordinary Iranians, sometimes bitter or confused. Even if the country gets overcrowded and you have to give up your luxuries, and we set up ugly little lives around the corner, marring your view. If we need a lot of help and local services, if your taxes rise and your street begins to look and feel strange and everything smells like turmeric and tamarind paste, and your favourite shop is replaced by a halal butcher, your schoolyard chatter becoming ching-chongese and phlegmy “kh”s and “gh”s, and even if, after all that, we don’t spend the rest of our days in grateful ecstasy, atoning for our need.

Here is a link to the Guardian article: 'The ungrateful refugee: We have no debt to repay'.