There have been people who have tried to attack me personally or politicise the book. I, of course, never intended this book to be a political pamphlet.

Reading Lolita In Tehran exalts the shattering of stereotypes and salutes the unfettered spirit of Iranian women, even in an oppressive regime. In a conversation with Verve, author, Azar Nafisi, speaks about the binding and liberating force of literature

Azar Nafisi's book, Reading Lolita In Tehran, effectively captures life in Iran under an extremely oppressive Islamic regime. Proclaimed an 'international sensation', it capsules historic and social events in the country as seen through the eyes of the Iranian author and a diverse group of seven students who met every Thursday, in Tehran, to discuss literary works like Lolita and Pride and Prejudice. Nafisi admits to having found refuge in the works of Vladimir Nabokov, Jane Austen, Saul Bellow, Muriel Spark and others, in a regime where "women were searched and arrested for possession of a new kind of weapon of mass destruction: namely lipstick and make-up," as she recently wrote in Vogue.

Currently a lecturer and a Visiting Fellow at the Foreign Policy Institute of John Hopkins University's School of Advanced International Studies (SAIS) in Washington DC, Nafisi has taught Western literature at three Iranian Universities, including the University of Tehran, from where she was expelled for refusing to wear a veil. She takes a breather in the course of a hectic travel schedule and speaks to Hina Oomer-Ahmed in Washington DC, exploring issues relating to her experiences and how these culminated in a compelling story.

Reading Lolita In Tehran reveals a fusion of literary styles, part biography, part narrative and literary critique…

I know but I did not start out writing like that; I wanted to narrate the different means through which fiction and reality influence and subvert one another. The best way I could do it was by narrating my own experiences.

How would you describe the level of frustration you felt in Iran as a result of the political and social climate? How different do you feel now?

In Iran, the frustration arose from my inability to express my inner self. As an author, teacher, woman and human being, I had to either censor myself at every turn or pay a very heavy price for it. After a while, it became very confusing to decide who I really was and what I really wanted. In a tyrannical society the danger is that you are greatly dominated by the state - you forget how to act and constantly react to the power that tries to control you at every level.

Here, I am have the freedom to speak out and can fashion my life the way I want to. What becomes frustrating though is the way images and people are presented simplistically and the kind of categorisation that goes on in relation to people. For example, there is such a stereotypical image of how a woman from a Muslim society should look, act or what she should desire. Sometimes it is more difficult to convince people of how alike everyone is rather than how different they might be!

Reading Lolita In Tehran effectively captures the magical and universal binding force, a love of literature. In what way did the collective reading experience affect the lives of your students and yourself?

Our reading of these books connected us to one another in ways that could never have happened otherwise, under the circumstances. Literature is not an escape from reality; it is a journey into a different world, which reveals to the reader both the truth behind the reality and the potential for change. We could articulate our own inarticulate feelings, emotions and desires through reading the books we discussed. I believe that, in circumstances when individuals are deprived of their sense of integrity and individuality, they instinctively turn to those achievements of mankind that represent these qualities and that is why they seek out great works of imagination.

How would you describe the reaction of your college students in Iran to Western novels?

My students in Iran welcomed the novels we read. For them these works were the best representatives of a culture the state had called satanic and had cut their contacts with. I think some of the most interesting interpretations of works by great Western writers and thinkers, have been by Iranian youth. I hope they will be critical in their confrontations with Western culture. A critical outlook is central to keeping a culture alive and dynamic.

What kind of responses have you received for this book?

On the whole, I have been very lucky with this book. But there have been people who have tried to attack me personally or politicise the book. Ironically, some of these people say I am in favour of the Islamic Republic while others say I favour the Imperialists; so you have to take your pick! I, of course, never intended this book to be a political pamphlet.

How is it possible for a woman to have a sense of dignity in such a suppressive environment?

What we must remember is that a repressive regime can take away all your freedom but it cannot deprive you of your own sense of individuality and dignity. This is why women in Iran, rather than submitting to their rulers, resisted their tyranny by disobeying their rules.

How do you envision the future for Muslim women in such tyrannical environments?

In many countries, women are not putting up with oppressive laws and they are fighting back. I think the Iranian woman's case is a good example of how women can change their own lives and that of their society.

Whom does Lolita represent?

She is a victim. Humbert wants to transform Lolita into a figment of his own dreams and, in doing so, he destroys her. Lolita knows his nature and hence is constantly trying to evade and escape his clutches.

Can you expand on the comparison in your book between Humbert and Ayatollah Khomeini?

They both were blind to the existence of other people. This blindness came from their obsessive self-involvement, their will to power. They tried to shape other individuals' lives and destinies, taking away from them their individual control over their own lives.

Is your book being sold in Iran?

My book cannot be sold there but people have access to it through travellers. I know that it is xeroxed and read.

Any plans for a new book?

Yes, I hope to get down to it this Fall.