Clemson English professor receives $60,000 fellowship from the National Endowment for the Humanities

Clemson University assistant professor Maziyar Faridi has received a $60,000 fellowship from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) to write a book on poetry and cinema during the Pahlavi dynasty.

Faridi, of the Department of English and World Cinema program, was the only professor in South Carolina to be awarded a faculty fellowship by the NEH, which supports humanities projects across the country. His scholarly interests lie in the interrelationship between politics and aesthetics.

“The NEH fellowship is a gift of time,” Faridi said. “I am truly honored by this recognition and especially grateful to the National Endowment for the Humanities for its unwavering support of the global humanities. I also want to thank the Department of English and a faculty-run grant writing group initiated by associate dean for undergraduate and graduate studies Michael LeMahieu.”

The money allows Faridi to spend a year focusing on his book project, “Rhythms of Relation: Decolonizing Identity in Iranian Modernism.” Faridi’s book focuses on the last Iranian dynasty that ruled from 1925-1979.

This recognition by the NEH is clear evidence that our humanities faculty are making an impact nationally. I congratulate Professor Faridi on his accomplishment, and am grateful to Associate Dean Mike LeMahieu for preparing and encouraging faculty to apply for these prestigious grants.

NICHOLAS VAZSONYI, DEAN OF THE COLLEGE OF ARTS AND HUMANITIES

“Rhythms of Relation” develops a narrative arc about filmmakers who negotiated their place in relation to Persian literary history in West and South Asia, modernist visual culture and the allure of global modernism.

College of Arts and Humanities Dean Nicholas Vazsonyi noted that Faridi’s achievement contributed meaningfully to Clemson’s goal of doubling research by 2035 as part of Clemson Elevate, the University’s bold new strategic vision.

“I firmly believe that the humanities are a crucial part of this mission,” he said. “I am excited by the engaged research of the faculty in the College of Arts and Humanities that is elevating the University’s visibility and profile nationally.”